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Welcome to OneLife Ministries. This site is designed to lead you prayerfully into a heart experience of Divine Presence, Who is Love. While it focuses on Christian teaching, I hope persons of varied faiths will find inspiration here. Indeed, "God" can be whatever image helps us trust in the Sacred, by whatever means Grace touches us each. Please share this ministry with others, and please return soon. There is a new offering daily. And to be placed on the daily OneLife email list, to request notifications of new writings or submit prayer requests, write to briankwilcox@yahoo.com .
Blessings,
Brian Kenneth Wilcox MDiv, MFT, PhD
Interspiritual Pastor-Teacher, Author, Workshop Leader,
Spiritual Counselor, and Chaplain.
Brian encourages support of the 4-Star Christian organization Compassion, which supports children worldwide; see www.compassion.com .
Spiritual Teaching
Someone said to the Buddha,
"The things you teach, sir,
are not found
in scripture."
"Then put them in there,"
said Buddha.
After an embarrassed pause
the man went on to say, "May I
be so bold as to suggest, sir,
that some of the things you
teach actually contradict the
scriptures?"
"Then the scriptures need amending,"
said Buddha.
A proposal was made at the United Nations that the scriptures of every religion be revised; everything in them that leads to intolerance or cruelty should be deleted; everything that damages the dignity of human beings should be destroyed.
When it was found that the author of the proposal was Jesus Christ, reporters rushed to the residence. His explanation was simple, "The Scripture, like the Sabbath, is for human beings," he said, "not human beings for scripture."
*Anthony de Mello. The Song of the Bird.
* * *
While I have high regard for the Christian scriptures, and all inspiring scriptures, Scripture is not an inerrant recipe book, or an infallible digest of answers, once for all.
Scripture is not primarily about giving us answers. Scripture evokes responses, and is best at fertilizing the imagination, not giving propositions.
Christian Scripture is a divine-human book, offering us as community and individuals an invitation to enter into the continuing journey of a particular tradition, the Judeo-Christian, and its resonation with other faith traditions and their scriptures.
To disagree with something in the Bible is not to disagree with God. We can disagree, realizing the fallibility of human authors and the effect of the religio-social contexts, and the prejudices of past ages - even as we mishear the Divine due to our prejudices. We can do this, affirming Scripture is not God, and Revelation continues, and the human authors, like you and I, were not always right, regardless of how sincere.
In that tension human and divine, we find a fruitful discourse between scriptures, our lives, the world, and the Kosmos. If we hold that tension, arising from the questioning and openness can emerge fresh insights.
Does this mean one has less esteem for Scripture, for he or she does not maintain its inerrancy? No. This may mean that a person has a different, more intelligent, wiser, and more living-relational relationship with Scripture, as well as greater respect for the many other scriptures in the world that have expressed words of men and women inspired of the one God, and one Word.
Likewise, this does not mean one does not agree Scripture is inspired. Yet, inspiration does not mean the same thing as inerrancy, or infallibility, and inspiration does not take out the human element.
Inspiration is better seen as a dynamic involvement between the human and Divine. Inspiration need not be seen as communication of perfect script - the Mind of God word-for-word, or even thought-for-thought.
Also, inspiration is better seen as a process extending from the past into the moment. Scripture was and is being inspired in the intimacy between person and God, community and Spirit.
Even as God has many Faces, the Word can come to us in many ways, through many scriptures, and outside words. We simply need to be open, to sense, see, hear, and discern the Voice among all other voices That speaks Truth always, for the One is Truth. Amen.
Responding
Questions
1) What scriptures do you engage in your spiritual Walk?
2) How do you use Scripture in your spiritual practice?
3) Have you explored scriptures outside your faith Path? What was your experience of that?
4) How might the living Word come to us in ways outside the Scripture?
5) What does inspiration of the Scripture mean to you? Explain your response.
A Meditation on a Sacred Passage
1) Take a passage from a scripture or another written source - a hymn, an inspirational quote from a favorite author, a sacred mantra....
2) Go into Meditation and mediate on the passage, slowly ruminating on it as you pass it through your heart-mind.
3) If a particular word or phrase speaks to you, rest your heart-mind there and delve deeply, prayerfully into its meaning for you.
4) Let this lead you, when ready, into Silence beyond thought.
5) Rest in the present, open awareness, before coming out of Meditation.
* * *
*OneLife Ministries is a ministry of Brian Kenneth Wilcox, SW Florida. Brian lives a vowed life and with his two dogs, Bandit Ty and St. Francis, with friends and under a vow of simplicity. Brian is an ecumenical-interspiritual leader, who chooses not to identify with any group, and renounces all titles of sacredness that some would apply to him, but seeks to be open to how Christ manifests in the diversity of Christian denominations and varied religious-spiritual traditions. He affirms that all spiritual paths lead ultimately back to Jesus Christ. He is Senior Chaplain for the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office, Punta Gorda, FL.
*Brian welcomes responses to his writings or submission of prayer requests at briankwilcox@yahoo.com . Also, Brian is on Facebook: search Brian Kenneth Wilcox.
*Contact the above email to book Brian for preaching, Spiritual Direction, retreats, workshops, animal blessing services, house blessings, or other spiritual requests. You can order his book An Ache for Union from major booksellers.
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