November 03rd, 2017

  “The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.”  John 1-5
 
     We are now approaching the days of celebration; the day of national Thanksgiving with our celebration of abundance, and the season of Solstice and our celebration of light.  It can feel difficult to claim abundance when so many are in need.  It is also difficult to claim light when so many of our fellow citizens are literally without electricity.  And yet this is when we must banish despair and hold the light as a beacon so strongly that those in storm tossed conditions feel our strength and the hope of brighter days.  We are passing through a time of floods, and storms, and fire.  We also are witness to the acts of humans who have lost control of their minds.  The forces of nature cannot be taken personally.  Destruction from human beings who suffer in minds crazed beyond our comprehension is more difficult to hold to the light.  And yet as spiritualists we must hold all suffering to the light.  When we ordain our ministers, we remind them that it is easy to love our brothers and sisters when they are at their highest and best.  It is also easy to love souls who have become vulnerable through pain or suffering.  As spiritualists we must learn to respond with love and healing to aspects of humankind that might not at first glance evoke love and understanding.  We who witness the suffering must not turn our eyes away.  We are in solidarity with all of life.  The biblical quote from John 1-5 is for all generations for there has not been a time when only peace and only abundance manifested.  We can give thanks for the beauty, and for the storms of our lives for we would not recognize one without the other.  We continue to affirm that we create our own reality.  Often our creations appear less than positive and yet the hand of the Creator is always guiding us.  This too shall pass away!  We continue to celebrate life for there are pockets of light everywhere lifting and blessing the fallen.  In these times it is even more important for us to claim wholeness.  For “you” to suffer does not alleviate the suffering of another.   If we are comfortable and sheltered from the storm; free from pain emotional and physical then it is for us to shine the lamp of hope brightly and to fully appreciate the good that is everywhere present.  To appreciate is more than giving thanks.  To appreciate is also to elevate and improve.  Let us dig deep within our being and elevate the space of healing.   We hold the space for those who are feeling the power of Mother Nature.  We hold the space for those feeling man’s inhumanity to man.  Life’s challenges are not new, nor shall this be the last of stormy weather physical and emotional we may meet.  The master Jesus is chastised by the crowd for accepting the gifts of fragrant oils to perfume his hair and anoint his feet.  The disciples remind Jesus that the oils are expensive.  They suggest the money for the oils could go to the poor.   Jesus responds; “the poor you will have with you always”.   It is an affirmation to life that we celebrate in this season and always.  “You are the light at the end of the tunnel.”  Would we refuse to be the light?  We cannot for we come from the light.  We carry the light.  And it is to the light that we shall return.
     The light of the Solstice brings its own healing of hope as the earth once more turns it face to the sun and better days.  This season we call Christmas has been celebrated since time immemorial as the Solstice.  The Solstice, like Christmas, is a time of giving.  Not all giving must be of monetary value.  The gift of our presence to someone in despair is a gift beyond any tinsel wrapped package.  To be present and to allow another to be recognized and to be heard is a gift worth its weight in gold.  To sit in silence with a friend whose grief is beyond measure is a priceless gift.  We know that light can dispel the darkness.  We also know that darkness cannot dispel the light.  Regardless of how far a being has “fallen” that spark of light within is never extinguished.  Let us rejoice with life as it continues to carry us to sights and places not yet seen.  We bless our brothers and sisters who have physically braved the storms.  We salute them and pray that angels of love light and mercy from the realms of spirit and from this earthly plane continue to guide us all to health and well-being.   May we all enjoy a blessed and loving holiday season!
       Namaste! emmy chetkin