Have you lost your wisdom teaching?

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Many people have completely thrown away the teachings of the most important knowledge in the world because of alienation with the institutions associated with the teachings.

At this time of year, many parents of high school juniors and seniors and their children are traveling around the world looking at colleges and universities to receive higher education. If scholarships are not involved, many families consider spending 20, 30, 40 or $50,000+ per year for this education.

What type of education and degrees are we willing to spend this kind of money on?  Law, Engineering, Pre-med, Business, Liberal Arts, Art, Music, Psychology, etc.

Will you please answer these questions?

If you wanted to eliminate war from the face of the earth and instruct people how to peacefully co-exist, what type of education would you give to people?

If you wanted to eliminate hunger and homelessness forever, what would be the types of courses you’d make mandatory?

If you wanted to educate individuals on their power to cause the changes that they desire for themselves, their families and the world, what would you teach?

If you wanted drug and alcohol abuse to become a thing of the past, what would we teach people?

If you wanted each person in the world to have equally high self-esteem, what would we teach?

If you wanted to reduce or eliminate our dependance upon counselors, psychiatrists and psychologists, what would we have people learn?

What did you come up with?

I came-up with a self-study program that would either be free or cost less than $100. The education that I’m talking about which would solve each of these problems is available in a book or two for free at any library or for less than $100 at a bookstore.

Most of us had parents who raised us by bringing us to a religious service on a weekly or very frequent basis.  Are you aware that today 17% of people go to religious services on a regular basis (more than 3 times per year)?

One of the reasons that our parents or grandparents attended services on a regular basis is that this service was the primary form of education within many faiths.

Did the education and knowledge that people found to be the foundation of their values for the last 2000+ years suddenly become irrelevant with my generation and by default for our children?

Do we really think that sports practice, dance lessons and Xbox 360 and Nintendo are really better uses of our time than developing our spiritual health?

I understand that many people have become alienated with the institutions themselves and/or with the fighting going on in the world which frequently seems to have religious ties.

If you’re unhappy with your particular house of worship, I’ll encourage you to do one of the following:

• Ask yourself if you’re letting the messenger get in the way of the message. The message is always good.
• If you can’t get past the messenger, search for a new house of worship whose messenger is more consistent with your personality.
• If that doesn’t work, create a home-study program for yourself and your family that allows you to spend time weekly (or daily) studying your faith and/or multiple faiths. In addition, meditation and prayer are habits that can be conducted anywhere at any time.

I don’t know of any God or any faith that promotes war.  Do you?  Any person that is using God as an excuse for war has corrupted the message that Allah, Jesus, Buddha and all of the spiritual teachings that I’m aware of.

The education that I believe each of us should receive, which would serve as the foundation for the education that we’ll need for our vocation, is an education on how to live with God-like qualities.

• Unconditional Love
• Integrity
• Service to others
• Kindness

Yesterday’s topic on BlogTalkRadio was God.  Greg Stewart and I talked about some definitions of, perceptions of and reasons for believing in God.

A lot of people fight against the idea of God being real because they’ve never shaken God’s hand or been able to pull up any of God’s clips on YouTube.

I admit that going from a position of “I don’t believe in God” to “God is the center of my life and basis for each of my thoughts and actions” is a drastic jump. What I’ve recommended to many people who are interested in understanding and developing a relationship with God or living with God-like qualities on a daily basis is the following two-step process.

Here’s the first step.  Read the teachings of  people like Jesus and Buddha like you were reading any other book that you had to read while in high school or college. While reading the teachings, ask yourself the following types of questions:

• Do I agree with this principle?
• Do I incorporate this teaching into how I run my life today?
  • If I agree with it and am not living it, why not?
• Would I be a better person if I practiced what this teacher taught?
• What type of person would I be if I began thinking, believing and behaving in this manner?
  • Do I like what I’m capable of becoming?
• What would my community (or the world) be like if others lived their lives in this fashion?
• Could we eliminate each of the problems listed above if others were educated and lived with this knowledge?

This first step allows us to come to know how the world’s greatest teachers of truth have advised us to proceed towards enlightenment.

The second step is for you to decide how you want to proceed based upon 3 possible outcomes.

The first possible outcome (I don’t believe in these teachings)

After reading these teachings, you might decide that you absolutely disagree with these concepts.  I doubt it but, it’s a possibility. If you do, you’ve made an educated decision.

The second possible outcome (I believe in these teachings and commit to living them but, I still don’t believe in God)

A second possible outcome would be that you’ve decided that this teacher or these teachers were very wise and that you and I would have happier lives and live in a peaceful world if each of us truly implemented the teachings.

I’ve thought about what the world would be like if each of us were educated in these principles and implemented them – even if we still didn’t believe in God.

We’d have a world without weapons -assault weapons, tanks, fighter jets – because there would be no need for them.

We’d have a world where people were better at listening to and understanding each other than ordering around and giving ultimatums.  If we had disagreements – and we would – we would engage in conversation with the expectation of coming to peaceful outcomes.

We would have a world that treats every person on the planet with dignity and respect.

We would allocate our tax dollars toward education and solving the hunger and homeless issues instead of funding war with and security from our family members.

The third possible outcome (I believe in God)

A third possible outcome would be that you would come to believe that these teachings could have only come from someone with much higher thoughts about love, peace and compassion than any human you’ve ever met. That these thoughts were designed to have us works toward perfect love.

You might come to believe that there is tremendous causative, creative power that exists within you that manifests itself when aligned with the teachings that you’ve learned and implemented. You might come to believe that you have the ability to co-create solutions to every problem that exists when you combine your consciousness with that of God.

You might come to believe that the life that exists within you was created by and comes from the spirit of God that is dwelling within you and I and within every person in the world.

You might come to develop faith in a spiritual power that created the world and everything in it that you’ve never physically seen or touched.

We can’t ask others to do what we’re not willing to do ourselves.

Are you willing to make an educated decision for yourself?

Are you willing to discover  whether or not you believe in and are willing to implement what the teachers of truth have taught us?

A WORD of CAUTION: These principles when acted upon will cause you to change and could possibly result in Sainthood and Enlightenment.

It seems to me that there have been a lot of people in the world of sports to forgive lately–Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz (possibly), Michael Vick, Rick Pitino just off the top of my head. Joe Posnanski writes in a Sports Illustrated website article “ It’s time to forgive Pete Rose for his sins against baseball.”

Why is it so important that we forgive those who have wronged us and to apologize to those whom we’ve hurt?

Forgive your neighbor the wrong he has done, and then your sins will be
pardoned when you pray.
Sirach 28:2

One  reason to forgive others is that most of us are looking for forgiveness after we’ve done something wrong. When I’ve wronged others, I’ve decided to institute the “do unto others” principle and apologize.  I don’t control whether or not people will accept the apology but, I do control whether or not I offer it.  Whenever I apologize, I feel better. Even if the apology was not accepted. Did you ever try asking someone for forgiveness and have them refuse?  I have.

Maybe people like holding on to their anger because of what Ghandi said: “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” I liked that quote so much that I turned it into an affirmation:  “I am a strong individual who easily and happily forgives others.”

On the path to becoming enlightened, the Buddhists implement a strategy to free themselves from what they call “afflictive emotions” — anger, hatred, desire, jealousy, etc.  There are great meditations that allow us to promote happiness, peace and freedom from suffering for ourselves and others. When our minds are full of happiness and peaceful thoughts (Spirit), we don’t allow much room for negativity, anger and resentment. It’s so much easier to forgive others when we’re feeling good about ourselves.

I listened to Deepak Chopra’s “Secrets of Enlightenment” CD at the gym this morning for the first time.  Boy did he pack a lot of information into 60 minutes! One of his comments that I really enjoyed is “When we’re in the state of Love, it’s impossible to hurt or be hurt.”  Meditate on that thought for a while!  Can you imagine and visualize being so full of Love that you’re incapable of hurting others or being hurt by someone else?

Lewis B. Smedes tells us that “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” When we’re holding on  to a hurt feeling that’s been caused by someone else, we’re the ones who are suffering.  When we’ve hurt another person and don’t apologize, we just don’t feel right.  Once we say those magical words, “I apologize” or “I forgive you”, that huge weight is lifted from our shoulders and souls.

Does a man harbor anger against another, and yet seek for healing from the Lord?
Sirach 28:3

Have you ever tried asking forgiveness from another person or from God when in the back of your mind you remember that you have not forgiven someone else?  Now that’s not going to work out real well is it?

Because I’m looking to forgive myself and to be forgiven by God and others, I’ve decided to become God-like when it comes to forgiveness.

Forgive others when they’ve offended you.  Apologize to people at the first sign that you “might have” possibly hurt them. You’ll feel better and so will they.

Who are the people whom you should forgive today?   Who are the people who are waiting for an apology from you?  Give them a call or go and visit them.

I agree with Joe Posnanski. Let’s forgive Pete Rose.

I say goodbye to you today with a laugh from Oscar Wilde: “Always forgive your enemies- nothing annoys them so much.”

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My 19-year old son played the organ and sang at 4 masses at church on Saturday and Sunday filling-in for the usual music ministers who both happened to be on vacation at the same time.  When I asked him how he did after the first service on Saturday afternoon, he said that he “wasn’t perfect”. I shared with him a lesson that I learned and implemented a while ago that has allowed me to persist and improve on a daily basis: “We’re striving for excellence, James–NOT perfection.”

If I waited for “perfection” before I ever wrote, spoke or acted, I’d never do anything. It would be a constant state of paralysis!

This philosophy allows us to live and act on a daily (minute-by minute) basis knowing that we don’t have to be perfect.

I’m now singing the song from Human League :

“I’m only human
Of flesh and blood I’m made
Human
Born to make mistakes”

Physical perfection is something that many people I know (self-included) strive for and rarely if ever achieve.  Val Willingham’s article on CNN.com today “Elusive search for cellulite cure continues” illustrates the point quite well.   Val chronicles a woman who is in her mid-40’s who eats well and exercises but, still has a problem with cellulite.

Because cellulite can be genetic, it can still develop “whether they’re thin or heavy, a gym rat or a couch potato, cellulite is one of those things most women face,” says Dr. Howard Brooks who is quoted throughout the article.

What does Dr. Brooks recommend in order to curb cellulite?

• Quit smoking -smoking damages connective tissue
• Watch your weight.  Fat is fat
• Invest in a treadmill and exercise
• Eat smart. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle decreases the appearance of cellulite

One of my favorite pieces about the article was Dr. Howard’s candor referring to two FDA-approved laser treatments and massage: “But unfortunately, this isn’t permanent, and you need a lot of treatments.  There is no miracle.”

Another concept that allows me to smile at myself and others who are working very hard  towards physical health with diet and exercise is the quote from the Bible that says that we were “created in the image and likeness of God.”  Because God doesn’t have a physical body and is neither male or female, it reminds me to focus on what image and likeness of God really means -to live in loving relationships with others, to use my “will” to choose freely the best possible good in every situation and to use my intellect to think in spiritual ways.

If I do these things consistently, my less-than-perfect body somehow doesn’t seem to matter as much!

Our bodies are the temples in which our “image and likeness of God” reside. We should choose to do our best to implement each of Dr. Brooks’ recommendations above: stop smoking, maintain the ideal weight for us, exercise consistently and regularly and eat smart.

I do each of the above and still manage to have scrawny, non-muscular legs, little love handles around my waist and maintain too much fat around my chest.  I’m still striving for excellence instead of perfection in every area of life – including physical health.

I was on the altar with my son at the 9AM mass on Sunday  morning and had to hide my tears of happiness as I listened to him sing and play.  He was EXCELLENT!