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Don't ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive. ~ Howard Thurman
Hi, I'm Sophy ~ your editor for this edition of the Spiritual Newsletter. This week we'll talk about the importance (and spirituality) of passion/zeal in our lives.
The Rev. Scotty McLennan, author of the book "Finding Your Religion," compares humanity's innate need for spiritual searching to climbing a mountain. In his view, we are all endeavoring to climb the same figurative mountain in our search for the divine, we just may take different ways to get there. In other words, there is one "God," but many paths. I honor whatever path or paths you have chosen to climb that mountain in your quest for the Sacred.  |
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A Zest for Life
Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion. ~ Hegel
Last month I started a series based on the Alphabet of Spirituality Literacy, using the first letter of the Alphabet, "A" for Attention. This week we'll jump to the end of the alphabet to the letter "Z" -- and then in future issues of this newsletter I'll visit the letters in between.
Z is for Zeal (aka Passion) -- which is described on the website http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com:
"The spiritual practice of zeal means being fully aroused by life. We tap into the divine energy that pulsates within us and around us. We are ready for anything that comes our way, and every moment is a golden gateway to new possibilities. This spiritual practice includes a wholehearted delight in the senses and a passionate love for who we are and what we have been given. We are encouraged in its pursuit by our companions on the path and the countless teachers who stretch our souls. Our zeal moves us to live compassionately and to serve others. It shows up in our prayers, rituals, family life, and community activities.
Zeal/passion means living abundantly — and we are more likely to do so when can pay attention, live in the present, have gratitude, and experience wonder. Zeal/passion is an energetic and committed response to opportunities and challenges that come our way. How much more likely that is to be when we have regular practices of devotion, when we are committed to justice, when we have a faith relationship with Spirit, and when we see life as a quest. Zeal/passion is the essence of the meaningful life."
While the word "zeal" seems innocuous enough, the word "passion" sometimes gets a bad rap in some religious circles, even though they essentially mean the same thing. The word passion tends to be associated with bodily passions, which are seen as negative and/or sinful in some traditions. Further, within Christianity, it can be narrowly viewed only as the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross, ignoring Jesus' own passionate zest for life. But passion is so much more than bodily passion and/or suffering and death. It's about following and pursuing our dreams, those things that we are most passionate or zealous about -- living our passions so that we live our lives to the fullest and most authentically.
One of the things to keep in mind as we pursue this spiritual practice is that what we are passionate about doesn't only have to be for something noble or for the sake of others. In other words, what we are passionate about doesn’t necessarily have to be earth shattering, world changing, or ground breaking. For as Howard Thurman said, “Don't ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” And that realization can be very freeing for some of us, because instead of feeling guilty that we might not have a passion for stamping out world hunger or saving the planet, we may be freed to embrace the passions we do have and see them as valuable and meaningful. In effect if people are living authentically and pursing something that makes them feel and come alive, that in and of itself can be life and world-changing.
In The Power of Myth Joseph Campbell said, “People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. I think that what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonance within our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive.” I love that phrase, “the rapture of being alive” –– it gets at the heart of the best and most profound meaning of living passionately, and is something that, whether whether we experience it for ourselves or witness it in someone else, can be so contagious and inspiring.
Have you ever experienced "the rapture of being alive?" If you have, write about it and share it with us! If you haven't, write about what's standing in your way.
Until next time, Sophy |
Below you'll find some offerings from other WDC members about exploring/seeking our passions or living blissfully and zealously. Please let the folks know if you read their piece by leaving a thoughtful comment or review.
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Now for a few comments about my last newsletter about "paying attention:"
From From sawyer 
Attention - what an overlooked concept. For lent I gave up focusing on what I wanted to say and tried to pay attention to what others were saying. It is not hard but it is worth it (usually).
What a great thing to do for Lent (and the rest of the year) -- listening to others. Such a gift, for yourself and for them. Thanks for sharing this.
 
From embe
To be aware of God's kindness
I wrote a poem to tell him -
I love him dearly.
"Someone Who Cares"
To be simply positive
With thoughts of kindness
One needs someone who cares
In this troubled world of hopelessness.
Reaching out to the lost and lonely
In this hour of need to pray
Holding hands together
Joyously accepting it,
Without stumbling in sinfulness
A devil knocking on my door
With chains to bind me
Dark in my room,
Where to now and hide
Who will dare to save me
His hands torn and bleeding
Weeping away my fear of dying,
In a war between good and evil
Jesus my savior smiling now
So kind and gentle
Peace at last.
Where God resides
Beyond our seeing him
His display of compassion
Christ on the cross of Calvary.
By embe.
Thank you for sharing this with us.
From Christine Cassello
This is a very helpful piece of advice. I have sometimes gotten journal entries from notes I jot down during the day and I wrote some of my poems that way too.
Glad it was helpful!
Please keep your comments and suggestions coming, they are greatly appreciated!
Sophy |
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Spiritual: May 05, 2010 Issue [#3706]
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