July 26, 2004

• How to hear God and discern God’s will re the national political scene and world stage [Note: the Democratic Convention commenced this day]

God speaks to all, even to those who do not listen. The voice of God is seen as much as heard. We speak of the “voice of God,” but in referencing that voice we of course mean God’s presence. God does not “speak” in anthropomorphic terms. God Is, God is present in everything. That presence is a kind of voice, for a voice gives evidence of the speaker. All that is gives evidence of God’s presence.

When you wish to hear God, open your heart, open your eyes, open your ears. You will hear God, you will see God, not as a form, not as a face, but as a commanding and quiet presence. When you hear God’s voice truly, you are at peace. You may feel motivated to act, but that action is generated from an internal balance, an internal resonance that acknowledges God’s presence in all things. You can be motivated to act and yet be at real peace. The peace we speak of is not passivity. The peace we speak of is a recognition beyond all doubt, an overwhelming conviction of the presence of God. Enveloped by that acknowledgment, one feels the connection to the spiritual center that is God, and you are at peace. You can be in pain and yet feel the connection with God, and in that pain you can be at peace.

It is clear from your sharing together at this time that you are all searching. You search for understanding of the value, the meaning, the importance of human life. You’re searching for recognition of God in all that life presents, whether physical, emotional, political, environmental. Where do you go to hear God? Where do you go to see God in the midst of your concerns? Is God present at everything? Is God responsible for anything, or is it only human beings who are responsible for what happens? The answer to God’s responsibility as opposed to human beings’ responsibility is mixed and you may feel convoluted, but the reality is that what you experience is indeed a combination of both.

You are interested in whether there is significance to this date. You want to know how best to respond to the political realities that surround you. Is God presenting these issues, and if so, what is your response? If God is not presenting these issues in your lives, the question remains the same: what is your response? We start by affirming that God is present in everything, but that you already know. God created all that is in the physical world, but God also created everything that is spiritual. Because God created all that you see and can touch and feel and hear, you must acknowledge, therefore, that God is a part of the equation of all that you encounter in your human lives.

You are concerned about the politics of the day and of the moment, but you must remember that God created all people, those with whom you agree and those with whom you strongly disagree. God is, in fact, a part of both sides of the argument, as you may wish to identify it. God is not on one side. God does not take sides. Both sides of the political world dilemmas that concern you claim that God is on their side. The truth is both sides are right. God is on both sides.

But where exactly does one find God in your current concerns? You find God within yourselves, and it is here that humankind becomes an equal part of the equation. Both sides claim a vision of God, a perception of God, an understanding of what God would wish. In the end, both sides agree on some points. Both sides agree there should be no need for war. Both sides agree there is a need for respect. Both sides agree there is a need to acknowledge the value of individuals. Both sides agree of the need to be respected. All want peace. All want respect. All seek dignity. How these terms are defined differs, of course, from individual to individual and between sides of disagreement. But these are all goals that are centered upon some awareness of God.

Yes, there are those who crave power, who wish to be dominant, who are motivated by the desire to be influential. But every individual wants to be loved, every individual has the potential of being loving. So God is indeed present on both sides. The differences are due to human frailty, to human weaknesses. The differences are focused on the self, on the me, on the I, on us as opposed to them. But God’s objective is that the emphasis should be on the collective we. In the world you live in, given all the tension, all the suffering, all the emphasis on I, me, us, there is still much more that brings you together than separates you.

What do you do when faced with issues that bring each of you such remorse, fear, worry and anger? You must choose to act in ways that are centered on how you are all alike, not centered on what you can do to defend your differences. The differences are transitory. What unites you all is permanent. But what sorts of actions can you take? How do you draw an understanding of where to go, what to stand for, what truths to build your foundation upon?

Your lives, individually and corporately, must insist on a recognition of the equality and sacredness of all human life, even those with whom you profoundly disagree. You are not going to be successful in changing everyone’s views any more than they will be successful in changing all of your views. But if you hear what your brother and sister are saying, if you really comprehend the meaning behind what is said, you cannot hate, you cannot dismiss as inconsequential any viewpoint which is taken. All people hold to opinions and attitudes and objectives because they feel relevant. You will not die for something you do not believe in, and so it is important to know what is believed. As the saying implies, “You must walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.” Doing that, you will learn to respect one another. When you act out of respect and are not consumed by disagreement, your actions are appropriate.

If you feel strongly about certain issues, it is important to act according to those feelings. It may be speaking or writing or doing things that reflect your beliefs, but whatever you say or write or do must be done with a loving acknowledgment. This may seem totally idealistic with no place within the practical reality of human life, but approaching such issues in this way will influence how that approach is carried out.

As was observed at your gathering, as individuals you are where you should be. We can say with absolute truth that this applies to all people. Those who are starving are not destined to be starving, but their experience is a part of their growth. Recognizing that suffering becomes a part of your growth. We do not wish for a moment for you to become callous to the suffering and difficulty of others, but if you acknowledge that it belongs in the scheme of life, you can work to alleviate suffering. You can express your compassion in ways that are affirming. It is far better to do that than to just wring your hands and say, “Oh, isn’t that awful,” and then move away. Suffering is a part of life individually, within a community, as a nation. Life is not always carefree.

Each of you is growing in your ability to accept what life has. Accepting is not being passive. Accepting is responding because your response is as much a part of the experience as the event to which you respond. Human presence, therefore, is an equal partner to God’s presence. Both are necessary. Both are participants. God does not create pain, but all that may result in pain comes from God’s creation, manipulated by the physical, manipulated by the human presence. Your bodies were created by God. The suffering that you experience is not created by God, but that suffering, that pain, is experienced physically.

The world events continue to unfold and evolve. They are constantly in a state of change. Is this a specific date that you must acknowledge for its impact on the future? The answer is no, but every day has an importance. Every day must be lived, experienced, learned from. There are new influences, new energies that have the potential for changing the world. These energies are created constantly. If some are focusing specifically on this day, those energies, those events will become known and those who choose to can connect with those events. But there are others that will choose events within a different time frame. There are medical advances, there are scientific insights, there are humanitarian efforts, there are artistic developments that are occurring constantly. For some, the developments of leadership are crucial to their sense of relevance. For others, new medical insight will become the center of focus. Each day is filled with change. Each day is given potential. Look to each day and discover what it has to offer.

You cannot respond to all things at all times. You must be selective. Find what resonates within you and pursue it with energy. If you are pursuing the path that is appropriate for you, you will be energized by that pursuit. If that pursuit is not appropriate, you will be exhausted by it. There is a resonance to life and each individual finds his or her complimentary resonance. It is part of the life experience. Open your eyes to life around you. Look for those opportunities to resonate complimentarily with events, causes, individuals, perspectives that have meaning for you.

Life in the world as you know it is not about to conclude. It will go on. There are always changes to be expected. Human life, societies that have grown up in your lifetime, are vastly different from the nature of human experience five hundred years ago. Such will be the case in another five hundred years. There is no end to life as you know it approaching. Life is energy; energy is never destroyed. It can be transformed, but it is never lost. Ultimately the earth will cease to exist, but the energy of that earth will continue in another form. There is no need to fear a final end of time. There will be changes, but those changes are constant and gradual. There will be moments of peace, there will be moments of war, there will be moments of great idealism, there will be moments of overwhelming selfishness. That is the human life, and each of you is a part of that great crest. It is but a small component of the vast ocean, but it rises and is brilliant, has character and shape. And then it returns to the calm waters.

Go forward in your lives with the confidence that God is with each of you and is infinitely connected to all that surrounds your life. You are blessed by that infinite surrounding as we are blessed. You are blessed in the knowledge of God and you are blessed in the love of God.

Amen.