Splash of Spirit: The First Commandment

Saturday, May 9, 2009

The First Commandment

The first commandment is:

Love Life with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.

I know what this looks like, and what it feels like. I know how it feels to love life, and to be around people who love life.

It doesn’t have anything to do with their belief systems, or their occupations, or their circumstances, or their activities. It is a saying-yes, open-hearted embrace of everything that’s here. It’s a habit of paying attention to the needs of the moment, of taking the time to care.

There may be many directions on how to live a good life, many different interpretations of what that means. But they shouldn’t even be looked at first.

The first commandment comes from Life itself, not from anyone else’s instructions. So I have resolved to not ask any other source about it first. I might ask second, to hone and clarify my loving of Life. But first I will pay attention to Life, and to keeping the first commandment.

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About this blog

This blog was originally entitled “Healing Through Prayer.” I launched it from a need to share my thoughts, but also in the hope of it helping to start my career as a Christian Science practitioner - one who heals through prayer. I would still love for such a career to develop, but my need now is to humbly accept what is given me, which is the desire to write. I’m counting on prayer to guide me in all the hard work required to develop myself as a writer.

I took a long pause from this blog while I was figuring that out. Now I have returned, and have revised the title to make it more true. I have been disabused of the initial hope that this blog would be wildly popular. Since you’re here reading, welcome. I deeply appreciate your presence.

Further Explanation

I am a Christian Scientist. I am not hiding it, although it seems there are many who will write me off at those words - some unnamed fear prompting in them a shuddered response, “I don’t want to read anything about that.”

Christians have been told we are a cult. Others have been told, and repeat with great indignation, that we irresponsibly neglect ourselves and our children in our unwillingness to make sacrifices at the altar of “modern medicine.” It becomes tempting to hide my affiliation so that people will be open-minded enough to listen.

I am a Christian Scientist, but this blog is not an explication of official views. Indeed, the phrase “official views” would make it sound like someone else - officials or collectives - does our thinking for us (an oxymoronic proposition). My attraction to Christian Science, besides the irresistible light of Spirit, has been the opportunity to soar in thought, to explore ideas that open windows of possibility.

I believe that we all are one, and our experience of Spirit is shared. Each one’s uplift energizes our collective rise to the consciousness of joy and power which is our natural state. I try to speak in a language that anyone can grasp, of things anyone can use, whether or not they have donned a mantle of faith and adopted articles of belief. I don’t think these make any difference to Spirit.

There are many generous people who share their experience of Christian Science - not official views but accounts which serve to guide seekers toward the understanding which is accompanied by healing. You can find some of these at ChristianScience.com and jsh.christianscience.com/.

This blog contains my ideas and experiences relating to Spirit. I share them because I must. My goal is to be honest and clear. My hope is that it will bring inspiration.