This month, as I have been thinking about the practice of faith, I have come to realize the importance of reflecting on the beliefs on which my faith is built and which govern the way I live my life and practice my faith. What I believe has been influenced by what I learned while attending Hebrew School, growing up in a Jewish home, my study of scripture, and my readings. Probably most influential in my life has been the writings of don Miguel Ruiz, Pema Chodron, Osho, Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Ghandi.
I believe that we are born in the image of the Ultimate Consciousness, who is love and that we are called, as stated in Micah 6:8, to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God. I believe that we are all called to speak the truth in love and to do justice with a spirit of non-violence. I believe the Ultimate Consciousness is greater than any single denomination or school of thought. I believe the Ultimate Consciousness has spoken to people through a diversity of sacred texts and is present in a diversity of worship communities.
Over the course of my life, I have come to believe some key things about myself and those with whom I disagree. I believe that I am a child of a loving Creator. I believe that the Ultimate Consciousness knows me and loves me just as I am. I know that the Ultimate Consciousness brought me here for a specific purpose and that was to love the Ultimate Consciousness and to assist in the Ultimate Consciousness’s everlasting struggle to win justice for all of the Infinite Presence’s creations who suffer injustice. It is through doing the Ultimate Consciousness’swork on earth and through working with the Ultimate Consciousness to continuously transform my life that I will become increasingly aware of all the gifts buried within me and the work the Ultimate Consciousness created me to do. I know that when I am working with the Ultimate Consciousness in doing justice for the Ultimate Consciousness’s creations, that I find myself most renewed, empowered and feel most meaningful. I know that I have an obligation to refuse to cooperate with evil. This is as important in my life as it is to cooperate with good.
I believe that we are called to be ministers of reconciliation. To do so, not only must what I believe about ourselves be changed, but also what I believe about others. I have to recognize that we are all the Ultimate Consciousness’s creations and everyone is a part of my human family, albeit in need of reconciliation. I have to remember that just as I have been exposed to misinformation at times in my life, so have those with whom I might be having an adversarial relationship. I have to remember that the task that the Ultimate Consciousness has given me is to bring my adversaries truth in love via non-violent means without ceasing. While I might be prone to want to understand what other’s motives are, I have to remember that our personal motives are of no relevance to the discussion. They are as committed to doing what they believe is the Ultimate Consciousness’s work for their life as I am to doing what I believe to be the Ultimate Consciousness’s will for my life. I believe that prayer changes things and know that even my worst adversary had an amazing potential for transformative change. I also know that my understandings are not the Ultimate Consciousness’s understandings, so I must be open to insights that might come from those that I might view as my adversary. Finally, I have to believe that if I continue to bring the truth to others in a loving and non-violent manner without ceasing that we will come to a new position that will satisfy us both, if we conduct our search for truth guided by the principles of love.[1]
I believe the Ultimate Consciousness created me to be one who tears down the walls that separates people from one another. I believe that my being born biracial is an example of how the Ultimate Consciousness can reconcile two groups in one body. Biracial individuals, such as myself, are literal reflections of the two becoming one that the Bible talks about. I believe in releasing all agreements that contribute to the creation of the other and replacing them with agreements that are about promoting unconditional love for all of humanity. I believe in making choices which enable situations to be seen as gateways to growth rather than obstacles to evolution.
I am sure there is more, but for now, this is what is in my heart in terms of what I believe.