GOD asked me to begin this writing by talking about LOVE first. Why?! Simply — because GOD is love, and when we begin with love and explore love, everything else just makes sense. And when we experience love, we grow in wisdom, understanding that love is the foundation of all wisdom.
Some out there will probably want to stop reading now… Some will say… Danny, you talk to “Spirit.” Who is “Spirit?” Must be a “demon.” And, then, there is my favorite excuse for not allowing a new perspective, or seeing and experiencing GOD in a different way… “that’s not what the Bible says!” Oh and the other favorite is, “This is the way we have always done it.” So there, are some who will call me “fucked in the head!” and be done with it. Why?! Because, there are those who will say, “Danny, you can’t speak to GOD!”
YEP, I used to think that way too! And I found out, if I SHUT UP long enough to listen — GOD, Spirit, Source, will talk to you and me! Just like I experienced in my youth, you and I can experience GOD and her energies within you and all around you.
Contrary to popular belief, GOD is not angry. GOD does not punish for “sins.” GOD does not divide people based on religion, race, color, sexual orientation, gender identity, or anything else that seems to divide humans… GOD does not do these things — humans do! Those in “power” use division as a way to control people, for hate and bigotry are powerful tools — especially in the name of GOD. The Bible is not the final answer, and there is no book or scripture in the world that provides the final explanation of GOD.
So, this is where GOD asked me to begin — love. (Warning, another rambling…) No, GOD is not dictating this to me. No, GOD did not hand this to me and say, “Publish it.” Spirit, simply and gently directed me to see signs and hear her voice within me and all around me — through my intuition and through friends and family who affirmed her words.
Have you ever had an instance where you had a question floating around in your head or believed that you were supposed to be doing something right now but couldn’t figure out what it was? — And then a thought popped into your head, or someone said something, and you had an “oh shit!” moment. “Oh yeah, that’s the answer!” Or “Oh yeah that’s what I forgot to do!” For me, that “oh shit!” “aha,” moment is GOD! Yes, it can also be spirit guides and angels… we’ll delve into that at another time.
Sooo… using the words that are attributed to Jesus —
“You have heard it said… but I say to you…!”
Let’s talk about GOD… “You have heard it said…” that I am an angry and vengeful god, punishing folks for their “sins.” You have heard it said… I hate the “wicked.” You have heard it said… I will smite and judge those who do not believe in me. “But I tell you…” I LOVE YOU! — I have never and cannot hate anyone, any being, any creature, because I Am the source of creation… I can’t hate myself! — I Am Love; I cannot hate, judge, or smite anything that I love! — anything that is ME, who I Am!”
Again, “You have heard it said…”
A big storm happened; it must be god punishing us for doing something wrong! Oh, it must be GOD punishing the “gay people.” “But I tell you…” study science and the knowledge that converging and circulating air masses create storms naturally — why? — because we live on Earth.
The earthquake, volcanic eruption, tidal waves… are all punishments from an angry god who wants to smite and punish the evils of humanity. “But I tell you…” science says that the natural shifting of tectonic plates creates earthquakes. Volcanic eruptions are caused by hot magma pressing to the surface through vents, erupting with force. Tidal waves happen because of a natural response to forces on the earth. All of this happens — why? — because we live on Earth.
Also, I just have to say this… in the “olden days,” erratic human behavior, seemingly always got attributed to demonic possession. “But I tell you…” Nine times out of ten, this behavior is an undiagnosed and untreated mental health issue. Mental health is just as important as our physical and spiritual health.
“You have heard it said…” There are those who use the name of GOD to tell others that they ARE “loving them” by telling them that they are going to hell and that GOD hates their “sins.” There are those who adamantly “correct” the wrongs of others, for their opinion, their belief, and their bible is the “only truth.”
“But I say to you…”If anyone believes that you are loving someone by putting fear into their being, condemning another, or taking GOD away from them – they are in need of a lesson in true love. For 1st John, chapter 4 from the Christian Scriptures, says: “Those who say, ‘I love God’ and hates their brothers or sisters, are liars. After all, those who don’t love their brothers or sisters whom they have seen can hardly love God whom they have not seen! This commandment we have from him: Those who claim to love God ought to love their brother and sister also.”
These are all words and understandings from an evolving human mind. These concepts, these articulations of the divine, from the Bible or any other religious writings, were never meant to be absolute or taken literally. They were always intended to be an ancestral record of an evolving mindset. The passing on of generational thoughts and ideas — to inform the present of the past — for the reevaluation and evolution of thought to pass on to the future.
Human experience has seen individuals and groups of individuals exploit hate-filled mindsets for their advantage and purpose. Wars are fought over ideologies. People are subjugated by someone’s interpretation of the written and spoken word. Some folks use ancient words and traditions to bring fear and/or hatred to work against others, because of their way of life, because of their way of belief, because of their way of expressing themselves — why? — so that they have power over another person or group of people — so that they can control their ideas, beliefs, dress, words, expression of love, and identity within themselves. For the fear of the unknown and the invocation of hate against anything and/or anyone that does not conform within a specific ideology: is evil, is of the devil, is going to hell, is not worthy… and the list goes on.
“But I say to you…”
Over the years, with learning and scientific/scholarly discoveries — the human mind and experiences have evolved — to see, to understand, to experience, and to accept, ever-expanding narratives of I-AM. Many are awakening to the reality, that GOD, Source, I-AM, is so much more than a set of beliefs and right doctrines — GOD is bigger than dogmas… GOD is LOVE. Universe is LOVE! Source is LOVE! I AM LOVE!
No matter how you define GOD, your higher power, or your sense of self — it is all part of the essence of love! Even if you do not believe there is a GOD or higher power, everything life-giving flows from a place of love. Some profess themselves atheists and live a life of love for their fellow human beings that is more profoundly loving than many who profess a belief in GOD.
The beginning of all human interaction, the continuation of all human experience, the essence of all human wisdom (eagna), will always find itself with and in the ebb and flow of LOVE — unconditional and life-giving LOVE!
Defining Love… Love is an unprovoked desire that pervades from within our very being, a deep affection for self, neighbor, and all creation.
Saint Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians, “If I speak in the tongues of humans and of angels but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers and understand all mysteries and all knowledge and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions and if I hand over my body so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable; it keeps no record of wrongs; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in the truth.1 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” (1 Corinthians 13:1–8 NRSVue)
1 The “truth” that Paul refers to is the very truth that GOD is trying to tell us here, and that the writer John states in the second letter written in his name: “I ask you, not as though I were writing you a new commandment but one we have had from the beginning: let us love one another.” (2 John 1:5 NRSVue)
Yes, I will admit that the word “love,” in English, is seemingly said so often that it may have lost its meaning. We tend to use the word “love” more as an adjective and as a noun, forgetting that it might be more appropriate and life-giving as a verb — an action. The problem in English is we only have one word for the understanding of “love.” As an adjective, to describe a feeling or a concept, you know… “that loving feeling.” As a noun, you know… “the love I have for you is strong.” Yet, within the teachings and understandings of most world religions, the command to “love one another” is to be understood as a verb — an action.
For me, and how I will articulate my understanding of GOD as we move forward, is this: Love is an action, a force, an energy, an ebb and flow, a feeling, an expression, an experience, a being, a mystery, a wisdom (eagna) — yes, all of these in ONE. Love cannot sit still, it must ebb and flow with and in the universe. Love must BE part of every aspect of existence and experience. Love is the fabric; Love is the DNA, and Love is the foundation of all — light and life. Love must learn, and be learned. Love(Light+Life) IS one, with and in all that is seen and unseen — all that has existed, all that exists and all that is still to come. Love(Light+Life) IS… GOD, Source, I-AM, the Universe, the Divine, the One, and Oneness of all. Nothing can separate LOVE and GOD, because GOD IS LOVE!
GOD says, “I am LOVE”… The Beatles said it best… “All you need is love.”
Of course, Jesus said it too, and I will begin this focus on GOD, focus on LOVE, with a reflection of Jesus’ teaching on the subject. In the teachings of Jesus, the main understanding, the main focus, the main expression of GOD — is that of LOVE :
A legal expert, tested [Jesus]. “Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the Law?” He replied, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: You must love your neighbor as you love yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.” (Christian Scriptures, Matthew 22:35–40 Common English Version)
The first thing to think about in this passage is that Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was – he wasn’t asked what the two greatest commandments are. Yet Jesus answers with two. He answers with two responses because — I truly believe and know from my very being that Jesus is emphatically teaching that his answer is absolutely one commandment – to Love God and neighbor and self is the same thing!
Loving GOD and loving ourselves and loving our neighbor, is most certainly one action, one ebb and flow, one feeling, one expression, one experience, one being, one mystery, one wisdom (eagna).
(remembering the definition of love expressed earlier)
Loving ourselves is an action of seeing, understanding, accepting, and receiving the love, light, and life of GOD pervading from within and in our very being. For we are of the same essence of GOD, with GOD, in GOD. We do not see ourselves as better than anyone else. We do not see ourselves as less than anyone else. We see ourselves as one with and equal to, all peoples, all existence.
Loving our neighbor is an action of seeing, understanding, accepting, and receiving the love, light, and life of GOD pervading from within and in our neighbor's very being. Our neighbors are of the same essence of GOD, with GOD, in GOD, the same as we are that very essence. According to Jesus, who is our neighbor? Jesus stated through the parable of the “good Samaritan” that anyone and everyone is our neighbor, regardless of social standing, ethnic/cultural background, religious understanding, color of skin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or anything else that typically separates us from each other. We don’t see our neighbor as better than us. We don’t see our neighbor as beneath us. We see our neighbor as one with and equal to ourselves, all peoples, and all existence.
Loving GOD is an action of seeing, understanding, accepting, and receiving the love, light, and life of GOD pervading from with and in all creation, all being, all existence, all experience. When we love ourselves, we love GOD. When we love our neighbor, we love GOD. When we love our pets, we love GOD. When we love the Earth, we love GOD. When we love GOD, we are experiencing love for ourselves, love for our neighbor, and love for everything around us and from within us.
Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as your own soul. Guard them like the pupil of your eye.” (Gospel of Thomas 25:1)
Meister Eckhart, a Christian mystic and theologian, writes: “We begin to act out the truth of what we have grasped: that we are one body, one sole word of God. Furthermore, in loving God we are loving neighbor and vice versa, for our neighbor is in God and God is in neighbor.” (Eckhart & Fox, 1980, pg 74.) “With His love God gives all creatures their being and life, and maintains them with His love.… Should anyone ask what God is, this is what I would say now: that God is love…” (Fox, 2014, pg 17-18.)
Buddha says, the thought manifests as the word; the word manifests as the deed; the deed develops into habit; and habit hardens into character; so watch the thought and its ways with care, and let it spring from love, born out of concern for all beings… - from The Dhammapada, Sayings of the Buddha
Jesus finishes his explanation of the greatest commandment with this, “All the Law and all the Prophets depend on these two commands.” This speaks volumes. In this statement, we conclude that Jesus not only expects these “two commandments” to be ONE; he also teaches that everything written in/about the “Law and the Prophets” (The “Law and the Prophets” is referring to: all Scriptures, Hebrew and Christian — all the commandments in the Hebrew Scriptures — all the Commands of Jesus* in the Christian Scriptures.) are to be read and interpreted through this lens of LOVE — through the definition of love… Matthew 22:35–40 [*note: it is my understanding, my knowing that the only “commandments” of Jesus, is to LOVE.]
Everything that Jesus taught came from the wisdom (eagna), the definition, and the essence of LOVE. Everything that Jesus taught pointed humanity to GOD, the very wisdom (eagna), the very definition, and the very essence of LOVE.
GOD is LOVE is GOD
SOURCE is LOVE is SOURCE
BEING is LOVE is BEING
ONENESS is LOVE is ONENESS
The writings of Meister Eckhart further compel the reader to take a second look at the wisdom (eagna) of GOD and the love of GOD. Matthew Fox in his book Breakthrough, quotes Eckhart (Note: Eckhart uses the masculine pronouns, it is my knowing that GOD has no gender and all genders):
“'God loves.’ What mystery! What Is God's love? His nature and his being: that is his love. Whoever would take away God's love for us would take away his essence, because his being is dependent upon his love for us... What a mystery that is! God loves me with his whole being-his being depends on it-God loves me as if his being and his becoming depend on it. God knows only one kind of love, and with exactly that same love with which the Father loves his only-begotten Son, with the same love he loves us. God is dependent on us for his essence, which is to love.
Eckhart develops this theme elsewhere as well:
‘God is love.’ O my beloved, listen to me! This I ask of you! God loves my soul so much that his life and his being depend on it, and he must love me whether happily or unhappily for himself. Whoever should rob God of this, namely, that he love my soul, would be taking his divinity from him. For God is as truly love as he is truth.
We rob God of divinity to the extent that we fail to wake up to his love for us.” (Eckhart & Fox, 1980, pg 134.)
GOD is LOVE is GOD
SOURCE is LOVE is SOURCE
BEING is LOVE is BEING
ONENESS is LOVE is ONENESS
Yep, lots of words, quotes, and more words to say something that should be simple: GOD is LOVE is GOD. No matter how you define the force, the energy, the ebb and flow of all things seen and unseen, I ask you now to take hold of LOVE. Whether or not you believe in or want to call this force, this energy GOD, I truly believe and know from with and in my very being that we can universally call all of this — LOVE.
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