It’s an Easy Way to Access the Wisdom of Ernest Holmes Each Day »

We’re excited to bring our readers a checklist to help you catch up on “The Science of Mind” textbook and inject daily inspiration into your lives.

This comprehensive list was compiled with love by Rev. Dr. Edward Viljoen of Center for Spiritual Living, Santa Rosa. You can find the entire year of readings here.

» January 2024

The post January 2024: Dive Deeper Into SoM appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

We are struck and saddened by the realization that during the celebration of the Season for Nonviolence¹, our world is experiencing armed conflict in more than 70 locations on the planet.  We are saddened, too, by what appears to be an overarching concern about the impact of war on the economy.

We are concerned about war’s impact on life, families, children, the environment, habitats and ecosystems on which we all depend. The current war in Europe brings to our attention the recent daily themes of the Season for Nonviolence — harmony, friendliness, respect and generosity — and rightly causes us to question if our spiritual work is having any beneficial impact on the world.

We believe it does, based on our teaching that consciousness is cause. Therefore, in light of what is happening, we feel called to reinforce our spiritual practices and affirm our support of and advocacy for peace everywhere².

We invite you to join Centers for Spiritual Living’s Spiritual Leader Dr. Edward Viljoen in a daily devotional at 6 a.m. PT³ (or whenever you feel called to participate), to light a candle as a symbol of our commitment to keeping our hearts open to love, our trust open to peaceful resolution of conflict and our minds open to the guidance from a Power greater than we are.

• Join Dr. Edward on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CSLSpiritualLeader
• The devotional is also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CentersforSpiritualLiving

We stand with people everywhere who are standing for peace and protesting violence. We stand with people everywhere who are praying for all leaders and all governments. We stand with people everywhere who dare to grieve the use of violence as a means to attain dominance and economic security. We stand humbly with people everywhere who can look to their personal and national history of complicity in violent means without losing courage or hope for a better world. We stand with people everywhere who help in times of crisis and who refuse to celebrate death, innocent or otherwise.

In our spiritual work of embodying oneness, we feel called to embrace:

• Haiti and the threat of further instability in that country
• Myanmar and the escalating fighting there
• Kazakhstan and the loss of lives during the fuel price-related nationwide riots
• Colombia and Venezuela, whose people are enduring armed clashes on the countries’ borders
• Burkina Faso and the widespread political anger there
• Syria and the thousands of displaced Syrians
• Ukraine and the hundreds of thousands of displaced Ukrainians fleeing the invasion of their country
• Everyone, everywhere violence touches our planet

We call you to join us in teaching strategies for peace⁴ and what it means to engage in peace consciously. We call you to share your views and concerns with family, community members and congregations, considering the question, “What can be done to end conflict?” We call you to connect with other spiritual and religious communities to discuss these issues and take collective action.

We call you to join us with affirmative prayers, vigils, meditations and hymns of peacemaking.  And we call you to reaffirm your trust in the power that these tools have to help mend feelings of helplessness and contribute to peace.

With love,
Rev. Dr. Edward Viljoen
Spiritual Leader, Centers for Spiritual Living
Spiritually Motivated Social Engagement Committee

“We are now seeing the necessity of a world law, to the maintenance of which all nations, great or small, shall contribute the best they have that the strong shall protect the weak without overpowering them; that the great shall live with the small without subduing them; that cooperation shall take the place of aggression; that government shall rule without tyranny through the common consent of the governed and that individual freedom shall unfurl its flag of liberty on the ramparts … .”

— From “The Essential Ernest Holmes,” page 178-179

1. 64DaysLenEllis (agnt.today)
2. https://www.crisisgroup.org/crisiswatch
3. Join CSL’s Spiritual Leader Rev. Dr. Edward Viljoen in a daily devotional practice at 6 a.m. Pacific Time. You can watch a recording of it and previous devotionals at any time afterward. Go to https://www.facebook.com/CSLSpiritualLeader. You can also watch the daily devotionals on the spiritual leader’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/CentersforSpiritualLiving
4. Thich Nhat Hanh: “Order of Interbeing” | Tiep Hien

The post A Call to Prayer appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

The following is the transcript from CSL Spiritual Leader Rev. Dr. Edward Viljoen’s opening comments at the organization’s 2022 Spiritual Living Convention in January 2022. An excerpt appears in print in the July 2022 issue of the magazine.

Is tolerance deep enough? Does it go far enough for one who is a practicing Religious Scientist?

Hello, beautiful people of Centers for Spiritual Living. How wonderful this is for us to be together here in our convention and wherever you’re watching from, welcome. This is an auspicious occasion for so many reasons. Yesterday was the 27th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day here in the United States, where we are gathering for our convention. It’s an important event for us here.

There’s another reason this is an auspicious occasion for us. This is the 10th anniversary of Centers for Spiritual Living becoming the organization we are today: one integrated family of spiritual seekers. That happened in New Orleans in 2012, where we voted to be what we are today. So congratulations to us. That is wonderful. The seeds for our current reality were planted back then.

That is the way of things. Things are always created first in mind, in consciousness, before  they arrive in form. Today, we are experiencing the results of a creative impulse that was set in motion back then.

I wonder if the delegates and the attendees at the conference back then in New Orleans knew how much we would benefit from being one united family for these times? My goodness. I wonder if they knew back then. I wonder if they knew we would have to brace ourselves and call on strengths we didn’t even know we had. We had no idea of the skills and talents we would need to develop.

How visionary it was and how fortunate it was for us to say a loud, bold, hearty yes to becoming one organization. Thank God we did.

I wonder what the beloved community of Science of Mind in 10 years will need to feed on that we must confidently plant now on their behalf.

I mentioned we had to call on strengths and resources we didn’t know we would need. We’ve had to learn to adapt, pivot, change and then rinse and repeat. Just when we thought we were getting out of the shelter in place directives, we had to adapt again. Do you remember when it first became apparent that the spiritual community we knew and understood and were good at would have to change and go online?

Oh, I remember. I do because it was one week after I was elected to be CSL’s spiritual leader. I had other plans for this position. I was not expecting to sit in front of a webcam for two years in my study at home. No point in complaining. We adapted, got smart, got clever and got technical and creative — fast. With some glitches. Did you experience some glitches? I did.

Early in the pandemic, I was speaking to an education conference on a zoom call with some 20 people. Someone in my household was in the backyard in the hot tub, wearing what people wear when they are in their hot tubs. My computer’s study opens to the back garden, which is the only way back into the house. So, there I am in mid-sentence talking about the power of Mind — you can’t make this up — when the door behind me opens and a wet person, naked, walks in.

What I appreciate so much about that CSL Education Committee members is that they didn’t say a word. Not a word. We just carried on.

And we’ve had to learn how to carry on. And to keep carrying on. And to help each other carry on. And to be with each other in our awkward breakdowns and challenges, with forgiveness, flexibility and heart, haven’t we?

I’ve come to appreciate some of the zoom features, like the “touch up my appearance” feature. I’m not going to lie; I’ve had some concern about appearing before real-life people without that filter on. I also love the “blur your background” feature; I don’t have to clean up.

On the other hand, I also have some concerns about these features. Am I touching things up for appearance’s sake? I am concerned about the glamorization of what is real. It plays into that spiritually  challenging habit of pretending that things are much better than they are.

I’ve been reading about the complicated impact of social media on teens these days and how they are being exposed to an unrealistic view of other people’s lives and feeling like they must live up to that. I’m guilty of that myself when I put up a shoji screen behind me because I want to hide what is going on. Or when I use that blur the background filter. Behind the filter or screen is a beautiful and realistic mess called being human.

I signed on to one of those zoom meetings, and right in the middle of it, the shoji screen came down to reveal what was happening in the study. Note to self: Is this a metaphor for my life? Am I overly concerned with appearances of how things ought to be? Do I really need to touch myself up to appear in the spiritual community of my choosing? Do I really need to hide my mess? Is pretending that there is no mess in my life one of the downsides of being obsessed with positivity?

And is that the Science of Mind message that the community of 10 years of the future will want?

I doubt it. I don’t want that for myself, and I don’t want it for our movement. I know I can do better than hide behind a screen or filter. I want to know that we can be present for each other in our moments of chaos, distress and disappointment — and be with the raw, complex emotions that go along with being human. I want to plant that seed so that 10 years from now, or even right now, young and older alike will not have to hide when we are feeling sad, disappointed, frightened, angry, confused, or mystified.

When I was younger and I first found Science of Mind, I developed a fear of negative thinking, so I avoided or hid anything disturbing or conflictual because I thought it said something about my wholeness as a spiritual being.

I’m so sorry that I went that way. I wish I had read these words of the activist and child advocate L.R. Knost, who wrote:

Do not be dismayed by the brokenness of the world. All things break. And all things can be mended. Not with time, as they say, but with intention. So go. Love intentionally, extravagantly, unconditionally. The broken world waits in darkness for the light that is you.

Is that not a clarion call for our teaching? To love intentionally, extravagantly, unconditionally? Oh, let us plant those seeds now because I think the beloved community of 10 years from now will benefit from the fruits of those seeds. I do.

We’ve had so much loss in this past year (2021). More than 5 million people worldwide dead from the pandemic. Bishop John Shelby Spong died in September last year (2021), and Archbishop Desmond Tutu died on the day after Christmas. Two giants of spiritual heroism, each with their clarion call to spiritual people like us to stay relevant, engaged and real, to stand in the glorious mess that is humanity and face it all and not hide from it or avoid it, and to love intentionally, extravagantly and unconditionally. They were not afraid to stand in the darkness and shine their light.

Bishop Spong was a friend of Centers for Spiritual Living. He spoke at our Asilomar Summer Conference one year; maybe some of you were there. Oh my goodness, I remember it. He said something about how Christianity, for it to remain viable and survive, had to examine and rethink its teachings. Oh, and we applauded. We applauded his boldness. And I remember clapping my hands, thinking, should the same not be true for our Centers for Spiritual Living? Should we not rigorously examine our teaching in light of what is known today so that we can stay relevant. I’m certain Dr. Ernest Holmes would want that.

And it’s happening anyway, whether we want it or not. The difficult questions are asking themselves without permission. Because as we learn about privilege and bias, and classism the world over, these questions cannot be held back. It doesn’t matter if we want to hear them or not.

A colleague of ours, a Science of Mind colleague, talking about himself, asked me, “Is it only my consciousness that brought me to this experience of success, or did my privilege have something to do with it?” In the same week, another colleague, a Science of Mind minister, called me and said “Edward,” he was talking about himself, “am I in a position of power and influence solely because of my spiritual practice, or did the societal bias toward my gender and race have something to do with it?”

These questions cannot be stopped — and to remain relevant and viable we have to keep step with the questions and answer them. We have to find a modern expression of our beloved Science of Mind that does not blame victims for their experiences but instead teaches us to have minds that can hold the complexity, ambiguity and contradictions of being human, with all of its nuances, and to remain open to the full range of feelings that go with being a messy human being, perched behind a filter of perfection.

In a way, we are being invited to the table to investigate what exactly spiritual bypass means. And are we complicit in it? And how may we avoid teaching the next generation to look away when terrible things happen to good people? The Science of Mind of the 1930s must and will evolve. That’s just the way of things, and nobody can stop it.

In May 1992, Science of Mind magazine published an article by Holmes that stated: “The one who understands the Science of Mind will be tolerant, kind and sympathetic.” Now I wonder, if Holmes were alive today, would he want us to go further and do better than that?

I wonder if he would expand on the idea of tolerance.

I’m guessing yes, he would. I’m guessing he would invite us as students of Science of Mind to ask: Is tolerance deep enough? Does it go far enough for one who is a practicing Religious Scientist?

I believe he would invite us to lean deeply into it, to go further than tolerating appearances to rejoicing in them as the natural  state of the universe and to boldly proclaim to the world that our teaching, the Science of Mind, is a teaching of oneness; how from the one come the many and that’s holy; about the thread of Divinity that connects us; about the healing power of loving kindness and the sacredness of life and the equalness of that sacredness in all; and how it is about the power that we have to heal or to harm.

Tolerance may not be enough for that.

It’s a good start it’s a good starting point. I can tolerate someone I hate. I can put up with them. Oh, but when I abandon hate, tolerance is no longer useful.

So I reworded Dr Holmes’ statement with more contemporary words: “The one who understands the Science of Mind will be inclusive, compassionate, loving,” and I can add curious, appreciative, radically welcoming, fearless, helpful and engaged. You probably have a whole bunch of words you can add to this.

Ah, to take a stand for that!

We have been cautious about taking a stand as a movement and boldly proclaiming this is who we are. And I wonder what the reason for that is? Why are we so cautious? My therapist says that I am conflict-avoidant. I like to maintain positive relations with people I like, to be considered nice, good, harmonious. I don’t want to rock the boat. The problem with that is that when things happen — and things always happen, something I don’t like is always happening — and even though I saw it coming, I didn’t say anything, because I want to avoid the conflict.

When that something happens, I realize my silence helped it happen. I was a silent partner when I didn’t speak up for what I stand for. I see that now.

I think our Centers for Spiritual Living may be conflict-avoidant.

We are very cautious about taking a stand. We like to maintain a positive perspective. We like to see the good and praise it. We love that.

The problem with that approach, we are discovering, just like in the personal realm, when something happens — and something is always happening — when something does happen, no one will know what we stand for until we say so clearly, kindly, compassionately. When we don’t say what we stand for, we might inadvertently become supporters of things that are not harmonious with our teaching.

In the United States, public shootings have been a problem for a long time and one of our Science of Mind colleagues wrote these words a couple of years back. You can just feel the pain in the words.

My biggest fear right now is that we as a nation are getting used to the mass shootings and letting it become a new normal. Period. There are no simplistic solutions, but we need to tackle the issue come with eyes and ears and hearts wide open. This isn’t right, and we need to demand our leaders address all the components of the situation, and we can’t let anyone off the  hook because of finger pointing and budget constraints. If it’s not safe to go to an outdoor festival a mall or Walmart, for God’s sake, then we are not the land of the free. And if we can’t speak up and demand our safety, we are not the home of the brave.

Oh, I may be conflict-avoidant, but I love it when I know some when somebody stands. And I am learning in this position as Spiritual Leader that disagreement is not that terrible of a thing. People can disagree and still love each other. Disagreement, it turns out is survivable. Being shot at a festival or in a nightclub or a supermarket or while jogging in a white neighborhood, it turns out, is lethal.

Maybe, respectfully, we are conflict-avoidant because of something our founder, Dr. Ernest Holmes, said. He suggested that we were to stand for something and against nothing.

I think we could be better, much better at standing for something. And coming out for something. Or at least getting clear on how this beloved Science of Mind instructs us to live in this world. We might want to also ask ourselves what the imperative is. What is the moral, spiritual imperative of the Science of Mind?

We don’t have to have the same opinion, we don’t have to agree, but surely, we must ask the question — and answer it. What does this teaching of oneness, compassion and love compel me to take a stand for in this world right now? No matter which nation I am living in, how does my faith tradition compel me to stand for liberty, equity, inclusion, justice?

Many years ago, our movement had its annual convention. I believe it was in Chicago. One of the topics on the table was whether to make a statement as a movement in support of same-gender marriage. The statement was defeated. Some objected to it, expressing concern about losing membership. Some said it was political and that we ought not to get involved with politics. At that moment when we defeated the statement, in my opinion, we didn’t stand for anything. And by not taking a stand and not making a statement we communicated something to those who were affected: We tolerate you. We tolerate what you are going through; now work on your consciousness.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu did not tolerate intolerance. Oh no, he took a stand for the LGBTQI+ clergy and community long before it was popular for spiritual leaders to do so. And he was one of the strongest formative voices in creating South Africa’s new post-apartheid expression as a rainbow nation. That’s what it was called. It was the first nation on the planet, I understand, to constitutionally outlaw discrimination based on sexual identity. And he stood for the right of every single person to vote.

I would like the seed we are planting now for the Science of Mind community of the future to be that bold. To be larger than tolerance and to be larger than self-interest.

Maybe it begins by allowing those questions. What am I promoting, allowing, permitting when I don’t take a stand for oneness? What am I promoting, allowing and permitting when I ignore those who are unnecessarily oppressed, marginalized, maligned, killed or starved?

I join those people who say it is the moral duty of the spiritual community to explore social issues in the light of their faith tradition.

I believe we must ask ourselves:

• If Oneness had an opinion about racism, what would it be?
• If unconditional love did something about homophobia or any of the other phobias, what would it be?
• If the Infinite, all-inclusive, all-knowing mind had a voice about inequitable distribution of opportunities and access to services and resources, what would it say?

And then, according to our practice, listen. Listen for the answer.

And if the voice says turn away and let each of them tend to their own, if the voice says take care of yourself first, if the voice says that consciousness created it, if the voice says don’t think about those who suffer because it’ll take you down, if the voice says ignore those who are oppressed and marginalized, then I question if that can be the message of our Science of Mind.

One social media influencer said about this pandemic it is as if Mother Earth sent us to our room to think about what we have done — so that we can do better.

Oh, my goodness. How can we do better?

Look, this is a question being asked across societies and faith traditions. Just watch TikTok. You will see every day, thousands of people unpacking white supremacy, deconstructing evangelicalism, challenging the effectiveness of prosperity teachings in an inequitable society, calling out the generational impact of global colonialism, identifying the damage done by victim blaming when we say, “What’s in your consciousness?”

You see, this is happening whether we like it or not.

An African American colleague of ours recently said to me — and I want to get it absolutely correct —  “Edward, I work with Fortune 500 executives as the only African American woman in a strongly male-dominated conservative business setting, and yet,  I have not experienced the kind of racial and gender micro-aggressions there as I do in my own Science of Mind communities.”

Should I have asked her, “What is in your consciousness?” No.

Or ought I to hear the uncomfortable and painful truth from one of our own that we can do better than tolerate and blame.

Lest I give you the wrong impression I’d like to complete our message by saying: I’m extremely optimistic about our future as a movement because of the vision we have for our world. And I’m optimistic because that vision is doing what the vision ought to do — it is working as it brings these big questions into view in such a focus that we cannot ignore them. We cannot avoid answering them. And digging deep into them. They are not going away.

I’m extremely optimistic about the future because I believe that you and I — we — have the heart to do this. We can do this. And by this, I mean we can grow, evolve, learn, change and be relevant. We can pivot, change, rinse and repeat.

I’m extremely optimistic about the future because a community of people like you and me love each other and love the Science of Mind enough to let its moral and spiritual imperative come alive in us and shape us.

I’m extremely optimistic about the future because there is a powerful good in the universe. It is flowing through us even now in a constructive, creative, powerful way in the direction of the vision we have. It is creating a post-pandemic reality in which we are together again in a new way, in a vital form drawn forward by relevance and engagement in a modern way. Oh, in 10 years’ time, they will be grateful that we said yes.

And that vision, oh so beautiful:

• We envision all people, all beings and all life as expressions of God.
• We see a world in which each person lives in alignment with their highest spiritual principle, emphasizing unity with God and connection with each other; a world in which, individually and collectively, we are called to a higher state of consciousness and action.
• We envision humanity awakening to its spiritual magnificence and discovering the creative power of thought; a world where every person discovers their own personal power and ability to create an individual life that works within a world that works for everyone.
• We envision a world in which we live and grow as One Global Family that respects and honors the interconnectedness of all life; a world where this kinship with all life prospers and connects through the guidance of spiritual wisdom and experience.
• We envision a world where personal responsibility joins with social conscience in every area of the political, corporate, academic and social sectors, providing sustainable structures to further the emerging global consciousness.
• We envision a world where every person has enough food, a home and a sense of belonging; a world of peace and harmony, enfranchisement and justice.
• We envision a world in which resources are valued, cared for and grown, and where there is generous and continuous sharing of these resources.
• We envision a worldwide culture in which forgiveness is the norm.
• We envision a world that has renewed its emphasis on beauty, nature and love through the resurgence of creativity, art and aesthetics.
• We envision a world that works for everyone and for all of creation.

The post CSL: Planting a Bold Future Today appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

By Rev. Dr. Ron Fox
Senior Minister at CSLSpaceCoast.org
We gather this day to pray for peace in our day. In this moment, we recognize we are all one, blessed in our diversity, honoring our differences.
We may speak different languages, pray in our own way to the God of our choosing, wear skins of different colors and express our love in ways that differ.
Yet beneath all these differences, there remains an ever-present truth: We are all children of a loving God.
So I now speak these words of peace for each and every one of us.
Let us come together and cherish the gifts we all share on our beautiful planet. Let us planet seeds of love and compassion as we turn away from violence and hatred.
Let us embrace our children and create a world where they feel safe and protected, no longer living with the effects of war and anger.
Let us work together to be sure that each of us has enough to eat and feels free to turn to the God they believe in.
Let us welcome our differences as we glorify our oneness.
Let us remember that the choices we make create the world we live in, so make choices that speak to peace, compassion, dignity, love and forgiveness.
And lastly, let us always remember there is One Life and that Life is God. That Life is expressing as each of our lives right now. Thank you, God. Amen.

The post Thoughts on Peace appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

Here is an excerpt from one of Dr. Ernest Holmes’ unpublished works, “World Peace Is Not an Illusion” from July 1955. This was found recently in the Science of Mind Archives and Library Foundation.
As we celebrate freedom in the United States this month, please enjoy this timeless wisdom.
So we want peace on Earth? Then let us pray for peace in our own hearts, let us affirm peace in our own minds. Let us live as though peace were the mandate of God because it is. Together let us affirm it and let us encourage others to, no matter what the opposition appears to be, for it is a fundamental reality of God. “Blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed.”
Let us face the future without fear but let us all also face it intelligently as men and women who are not afraid of anything. There is nothing in the universe to be afraid of. Some things could be avoided. Let us realize if the world is healed of war and brought into peace it won’t have been because guns were bigger and better or more of them. We need them until it does heal itself, but that will come to pass only because somewhere along the line the balance of the scales of eternal truth shall fall on the side of peace.
Let us, you and me, pray for peace and let us make our hearts fit to accept it when it comes. Let us make our intellect and our soul and our will and are feeling ready to receive it and embrace it even before it comes. Let us in the stillness of our own soul go back to that ineffable Presence which is Peace and proclaim It even in the midst of confusion, that Peace which is the Power at the heart of God. And so it is. Amen.

The post World Peace Is Not an Illusion appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

The Archives contain artifacts from the history of United Centers for Spiritual Living and International Centers for Spiritual Living. Priceless treasures include copies of all of Science of Mind magazines since October 1927 and a complete collection of Creative Thought magazines. Explore Science of Mind books in Russian, Spanish, French, German, Dutch, Afrikaans, Japanese and Braille. You’ll find numerous reel-to-reel tapes and transcripts of Science of Mind founder Dr. Ernest Holmes’ radio talks and classes.

Monthly and annual subscriptions to the Archives allow you to access hundreds — if not thousands — of pieces of our Science of Mind history for your personal spiritual evolution as well as to use for research, class materials, Sunday talks and readings, and much more.  You can also choose to purchase individual items.

The post The Archives appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

By Barbara Doern Drew and Walter Drew
» Please enjoy a meditation on forgiveness by Jack Kornfield and a guided forgiveness practice by Charles Filmore at the bottom of this online exclusive.
Nature’s gardens are always rife with pithy lessons about personal growth, and last spring we received one about forgiveness from our giant Oriental poppies. In the process of ultimately revealing their brilliant orange and coral flowers, they must burst through their protective pods, which serve a purpose only to a certain point in their evolution and then they must expand beyond them.
Dr. Barry Heermann, author of “Noble Purpose,” refers to this “sheathed” state as the “bounded self.” He describes how when we are infants, we relate to life from the pure essence and unlimited potential of our “essential self,” in which such qualities as love, trust, joy, spontaneity, creativity, and openness naturally abound. However, as life unfolds, for most of us painful and challenging things begin to happen, and to protect ourselves and survive we begin to develop a “hard, outer veneer, especially into adolescence, perfecting it throughout adulthood.” While understandable, the end result of this impermeable facade is a diminishment of the valuable life energy that can assist us in accessing and living from what he calls our “noble purpose,” unique for each of us.

These photos of a poppy’s life cycle were taken by Walter and Barbara Doern Drew, 2016

Misconceptions About Forgiveness

If forgiveness is so essential to the full functioning of ourselves, why do so many of us hesitate to engage in it, or perhaps only dip our toe in its waters but do not fully immerse ourselves in the process? There are many reasons, and some of them are based on “misconceptions” about forgiveness. Four of these are discussed by Dr. Frederick Luskin, director of the Stanford University Forgiveness Projects, and then summarized in the Institute of Noetic Sciences “Conscious Aging” facilitators guidelines:

• Forgiving an offense means that you condone the offense.
• Forgiveness means you have to reconcile with someone who treated you badly.
• Forgiveness depends on whether or not the abuser or lying person apologizes, wants you back, or changes his or her ways.
• Forgiveness means that we forget what has happened to us.

None of these is true, says Luskin, and he stresses that forgiveness is really about us, not the other person. “Forgiveness is primarily for creating your peace of mind. It is to create healing in your life and return you to a state in which you can live and be capable again of love and trust. … [It] can neither be compelled nor stopped by another.” He emphasizes that painful events can actually be life-enhancing experiences when we grieve and learn from them.
Another critical reason to practice forgiveness is that not doing so has a direct impact on our health. Naturopathic physician Dr. James Rouse, in his article “Choosing Healthy Forgiveness,” points out, “Unresolved anger and bitterness are toxic emotions. Holding on to painful emotions can eventually lead to health problems including depression, insomnia, and stress. Prolonged anger greatly increases the risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, asthma, and angina.” In contrast, he says, “forgiveness heals. Forgiving others isn’t about them; it’s about us, loving and caring for ourselves enough to move from bitterness to owning our happiness.”

Elements of Forgiveness

Ron Pevny, author of “Conscious Living, Conscious Aging,” describes what he terms the “elements” of forgiveness: (1) uncovering and feeling what happened, (2) committing to forgive, (3) humanizing the offender, (4) honestly looking at your role in relation to the hurtful situation, and (5) forgiving and continuing to forgive.
While all of the elements are essential to the process, we have found the third one to be especially powerful in our own forgiveness work. Pevny explains, “Try to separate the hurtful act from the person who did it. … What might the other person have been experiencing internally and externally? In what ways has he been wounded, and how did he carry that wounding into his relationship with you?”
Barbara had a painful childhood incident involving her father that she had worked to resolve for decades. She describes, “In 2014, when we were taking practitioner training, the issue surfaced yet again. Soon after, unexpectedly at a conference a minister did an unconventional affirmative prayer process in which I became my father and she became me, and the two of us had a heartfelt dialogue. Though my father had died in 2000, this role reversal significantly shifted my perspective about and my relationship with him. When I returned home, synchronistically the next week’s class theme was forgiveness! For the succeeding two weeks, I forgave both my father and myself 70 times each day and feel that the healing work is now complete, which has cleared me on many levels to do the creative work in front of me at this time.”
In alignment with Pevny’s fifth element, Dr. Martin Luther King states, “We must develop and maintain [italics ours] the capacity to forgive. The one who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. Forgiveness is not an occasional act. It is a permanent attitude.”
Walter understands the importance of an ongoing forgiveness practice. “A few years ago,” he shares, “at a nephew’s rehearsal dinner I made an inappropriate toast to my brother and sister-in-law. Within in a week, I had sent them a letter of apology asking for their forgiveness, which I received.
“The more difficult part was forgiving myself. I ran through the usual cursory excuses like, ‘Well, I was just trying to be funny, we all make mistakes, I will never make a toast again,’ etc. The truth was that I needed to examine the deeper underlying causes of my behavior, which months of self-reflection revealed more clearly. With this new understanding I was able to forgive myself, though I still shudder at times with the memory and wish I could take it all back. And then I start the forgiveness process all over again.”
According to Pevny, “Self-forgiveness depends upon our willingness to carefully examine our choices and actions and, in many cases, acknowledge that we did the best we could with the awareness we had at the time. … The biggest catalysts for our growth are often (perhaps mostly) what we learn from our mistakes, weaknesses, and poor choices. …
“It is also worth noting that in the bigger picture—the soul’s eye view of our lives—things are often not what they seem. What may seem to be mistakes or poor choices from the perspective of our ego and culture may be (from our soul’s perspective) what needs to happen to move us forward on our unique life paths. Rather than forgiveness, what may be needed in such situations is honoring ourselves for making difficult yet important choices.”

A Greater Impact

There is a larger sphere beyond our personal work and immediate relationships that is impacted by our forgiveness work. Azim Khamisa, who 21 years ago made the choice to forgive his son’s killer rather than seek revenge, states in his April 2016 online newsletter, “One is not able to perform at their zenith if they are mired in resentment and guilt. You cannot be out in the world giving 100 percent of yourself if you are hindered by these negative emotions. It is important that we are all out there fully if we are going to shift our world from so much anger, hostility, hatred, resentment, war and violence—things we experience in the media and our world on a daily basis.”
We are all being called to the great work of “unbinding” and freeing ourselves so that the “good” that wants to immerse our entire planet can do so. Are you ready to make a conscious choice to examine areas where you are holding on to old wounds and grievances? Some helpful questions to ask yourself are, With whom do you need to make amends? What harm have you done to others? What relationships need repairing—with your parents, other family members, someone in your workplace or spiritual community? Have you extended forgiveness to yourself?
The practice of forgiveness is a necessary component of a life well lived. We all make mistakes in our human endeavors, yet we also have the innate capacity to forgive others and ourselves so that we can function at our optimal spiritual and human potential, expressing our vibrant brilliance like the Oriental poppies. The freedom afforded by forgiveness opens the portals of inner and outer peace. Incorporating forgiveness into our spiritual practice is good for our hearts, our minds, our health, our spirits and the world. 

A Forgiveness Meditation by Jack Kornfield

Jack Kornfield, author and cofounder of the Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California, offers the following healing forgiveness meditation in the Institute of Noetic Sciences “Conscious Aging” facilitators guide.
It covers the three essential areas of forgiveness: asking forgiveness of others for ways we have wounded them, forgiving ourselves, and forgiving those who have hurt or harmed us. It begins with an exercise where we relax and breathe into our heart and feel all the barriers we have erected and the emotions we have experienced as a result of not having forgiven ourselves and/or others. Then he says:
There are many ways that you have hurt and harmed others, have betrayed or abandoned them, caused them suffering, knowingly or unknowingly, out of your pain, fear, anger, and confusion. Let yourself remember and visualize the ways you have hurt others. See and feel the pain you have caused out of your own fear and confusion. Feel your own sorrow and regret. Sense that you can finally release this burden and ask for forgiveness. Picture each memory that still burdens your heart, and then to each person associated with that memory repeat the following: I ask for your forgiveness, I ask for your forgiveness.
Next, you repeat the exercise with a focus on yourself, ending with these words: “For the ways I have hurt myself through action or inaction, out of fear, pain and confusion, I now extend a full and heartfelt forgiveness. I forgive myself, I forgive myself.”
Finally, you turn your attention to those who have wounded you in some way and do the steps of the exercise again, ending with: “I now remember the many ways others have hurt or harmed me, wounded me, out of fear, pain, confusion and anger. I have carried this pain in my heart too long. To the extent that I am ready, I offer them forgiveness. To those who have caused me harm, I offer my forgiveness, I forgive you.”
Kornfield encourages us to be gentle and forgiving toward ourselves if we are not yet ready to let go and move on—this is very deep lifetime work. He acknowledges that forgiveness cannot be forced or artificial; however it can be practiced, with a gradual effect over time.

A Forgiveness Practice by Charles Fillmore

Unity founder Charles Fillmore, in the pamphlet “A Sure Remedy” (Unity Publications), offers this comprehensive forgiveness practice:
“Here is a mental treatment that is guaranteed to cure every ill that flesh is heir to: Sit for half an hour every night and mentally forgive everyone against whom you have any ill will or antipathy. If you fear or if you are prejudiced against even an animal, mentally ask forgiveness of it and send it thoughts of love. If you have accused anyone of injustice, if you have discussed anyone unkindly, if you have criticized or gossiped about anyone, withdraw your words by asking him, in the silence, to forgive you. If you have had a falling out with friends or relatives, if you are at law or engaged in contention with anyone, do everything in your power to end the separation. See all things and all persons as they really are—pure Spirit—and send them your strongest thoughts of love. Do not go to bed any night feeling that you have an enemy in the world.”

The post Online Exclusive: Forgive & Your Spirit Blossoms appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

Science of Mind Publishing se enorgullece en presenter cuatro poderosos titulos … Disponible aquí.

 Cómo Usar la Ciencia de la Mente — $10.95

¿Podemos Hablar Con Dios? — $10.95

Lo Esencial de Ernest Holmes — $15.95

Este Algo Llamado Tú — $12.95

The post Spanish Titles: Science of Mind Library appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

Robert Brown created a massive ripple with his heart of service that continues to transform generations to this day.

Mr. Brown may be one of the most remarkable people you’ve never heard of, but his work has touched millions of lives, both through his Civil Rights advocacy in the U.S. and his reading outreach program for the people of Africa, the International BookSmart Foundation. Brown’s life was forever transformed at the age of 12 when his grandmother gave him a little book by Dr. Ernest Holmes, “It’s Up to You” (you can find a copy here).

How have the powerful teachings and philosophy of Science of Mind and Holmes changed your life? How have they made a difference in the lives of those you love?

Create your own ripple like Robert Brown by sharing with Science of Mind Development. »

Your year-end gift makes programs possible like Global Services, World Ministries, Youth Programs, Spiritual Living Circles, Lifelong Learning Classes and Guide for Spiritual Living: Science of Mind magazine.

Enjoy this powerful video below, “Your Wishes Delivered: Mr. Brown’s Books,” and learn more about his worldwide impact born from a seed planted by Dr. Ernest Holmes.

And find the entire feature about Brown by Rev. Dr. John Waterhouse in the October 2016 issue of Guide for Spiritual Living: Science of Mind magazine.

The post Giving Like Mr. Brown appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.

If you’re enjoying June’s “Daily Guides” by Rev. Joanne McFadden, you may have noticed she refers to the “10 Core Concepts” of the Science of Mind philosophy.
Some readers are unfamiliar with this list, which was revised in 1993 for the Science of Mind Foundational Class curriculum. It is not found as a summary in “The Science of Mind” textbook.

You can view, print and download the list here.

At a glance, the core concepts are:

1. Oneness

2. Triune Nature

3. Creative Nature

4. Prayer

5. Wholeness

6. Abundance

7. The Reciprocal Universe

8. Forgiveness

9. Immortality

10. The Christ (as a Principle)

The post The 10 Core Concepts appeared first on Guide for Spiritual Living.