Is God ever uncaring?

Guest post from Bob Cummings: Is God ever uncaring?

Bob Cummings is from Michigan and in this re post of his blog, he’s addressing an age old question that quite a few have been asking here in Australia lately due to the fact that vast areas of Australia have been dealing with homes being washed away  - sometimes several times in less than a year, huge cyclones leveling whole towns, laying waste to farming lands and ferocious bush fires razing homes.   Is this the work of a vengeful God?

Bob makes the point that most people agree that God is, in fact, Love, whose presence can be felt – anywhere. “

We all have so much in common that supports and unites us – and brings us healing.    Thanks Bob, for reminding us of this.

Posted on January 3, 2011 by admin

“Would Americans, in the face of unemployment, home foreclosures, two wars and an uncertain economic future, describe the Almighty as a wrathful, cold critic of our failings, or maybe a distant, uncaring force?”

The answer?   “For Americans today, God, quite simply, is love.”

This is Cathy Lynn Grossman’s synopsis of contributions from readers sharing their concept of God in her 12/19/2010 article in USA WEEKEND entitled, “How Americans imagine God.”  She pointed out that the responses are personal and individual.  “Still, one gleaming, common thread weaves throughout: For Americans today, God, quite simply, is love.”  Her readers “describe a loving presence”.

So, how does Christian Science imagine God?

How does Christian Science imagine God?

In her major work on Christian Science, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy writes (on page 40), “The Christian Science God is universal, eternal, divine Love, which changeth not and causeth no evil, disease, nor death.”  In Christian Science viewing God as uncaring is unnatural. In an article entitled, “The People’s Idea of God” (on page 6) Mrs. Eddy wrote, “Believing that man is the victim of his Maker, we naturally fear God more than we love Him; whereas “perfect Love casteth out fear;” but when we learn God aright, we love Him, because He is found altogether lovely.”

God loves us.  He does not send us trouble or cause us to suffer. God’s love is so amazing, so deep, so high, so good that God is Love itself.  Christian Science teaches that God is Love.  So much so that He is known as Love and “Love” is therefore regarded as another name for God (and capitalized to indicate this).  God always loves us.  He is always bestowing good, and only good, to His children – to all of us.

I have found relying on God to be an effective, reliable choice in all sorts of situations. In Christian Science I do not hold a blind faith in a God who at times is “a distant, uncaring force” and who may or may not take good care of me. Not at all!  But rather, I hold an understanding trust in a most loving God gained through years of experiencing God’s “loving presence” in help, in guidance, in healing.  This is not a new view of God.  The Bible says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (KJV Psalm 46:1).  And now from this article in USA WEEKEND I see that perhaps this is not such an uncommon view.

So, how do you imagine God?

Feeling out of love? – say no!

As I walked through the city mall this morning I was handed a single red rose by a young woman who was with a group of other young people all handing out roses.

I was touched by this lovely gesture and expressed my gratitude to these delightfully exuberant young people.  And I was equally touched by the message attached to the rose: ‘GOD LOVES YOU AND WE LOVE YOU!’.

They were members of a local Christian group and there was a contact number on the back of the card.  I felt blessed that they had taken the time to connect with their fellow man in this way.

On returning home, I read friend and colleague, Carey Arber’s take on Valentine’s day -  the concept of God as Love and the idea that we, as God’s spiritual offspring can never be out of His/Her love.

Relax in the arms of divine Love and read on……

 

posted by Carey Arber, 14th February 2011.

We all know how human affairs go up and down like yoyos.  Take love as the topic.

This article by a doctor refers to Valentine’s Day as a terrible battle for some clients.  It’s true that people have made rituals out of love, but we don’t have to be part of destructive thinking - say no!

I trust the teaching that “God is love” – found in the Bible.  Because God is not and never was a person, as taught in Christian Science, it takes love to a whole other level.  It’s possible to draw from, and lean on that higher sense of love – divine Love – to fix our relationships with our spouses, family, partners and friends.

What do you want to feel from love? Some of the top needs are happiness, security, a sense of belonging and being needed.  We need love to cancel feelings of loneliness, hate, rejection and fear.

People through the ages have found that when they turn to divine Love for those needs - already there but needed to be realised - that their relationships were healed.  A work in progress? – yes!  Our hunger for spiritual nourishment is natural, and shouldn’t be mistaken for human satisfaction alone.

“… seek ye first the Kingdom of God… and these things shall be added unto you.” ~ Christ Jesus.

Realistically then, should we ever feel out of love?  Say, no!

. . .  P S.  G o d   l o v e s   y o u   n o   m a t t e r   w h a t .

Need a Lift?

My guest post today is from colleague Bob Clark of Florida.  The title caught my attention as did Bob’s reference to the Daily Lift podcast which I too receive in my in box.  Each day it’s there waiting with gems of spiritual ideas so helpful to your present circumstances.    I can’t thank the creators of the ‘Daily Lift’ enough.  And thanks to you also Bob for your ‘timely’ reminder…….

Posted on February 8, 2011 by Robert B. Clark| Leave a comment

I’m sitting in a Starbucks at Tampa International waiting for my flight to LAX and contemplating my next blog. I hear my name on the PA system. First time that’s happened! I rush to the courtesy phone, realizing as I go that it must be my wonderful wife, who has discovered my cell phone, which I hadn’t yet realized was left in the car. Sure enough. I dash back to the main terminal, grab the phone, kiss my wife and go back through security.

Small personal crisis averted. But there’s a sub-story here.

Earlier in the morning I had listened to my “DAILY LIFT”. This is an award winning, spiritually focused daily podcast, which arrives in my email inbox every morning. It’s a short, spiritually compelling message from a variety of experienced Christian Science healers, new each morning. This morning’s Lift had been titled, “Pack Wisely”.

The focus had been packing for a trip and making sure to include all your “mission-essential” gear. More importantly, the speaker emphasized the importance of making sure all your “mission-essential” qualities were present in consciousness. One quality mentioned was the expectation of good, a God-given quality. That stuck with me and I was pondering it further when I heard my name on that PA system.

My wife discovered my phone in the car because it rang a few seconds before she would have crossed back over Tampa Bay and passed way beyond the possibility of returning it to me before my flight. That phone call was completely unexpected, from someone I had never met. Yet I had been expecting good…and here it was. A very close call…being without my smart phone for 48 hours in a distant city…unthinkable…was narrowly averted.

Coincidence? Random occurrence? I don’t think so. This was clearly something else. I needed a lift this morning…whether I knew it or not. My early morning commitment to expecting good, impelled by the “Daily Lift”, had prepared my thought to receive a small but vital blessing in the form of an exquisitely timed phone call. Minor crisis averted; major confirmation of the power of spiritualizing thought on a daily basis.

Getting to the Heart of political influence

Manager for the worldwide Committee on Publication, Russ Gerber’s latest post from the Washington Post’s ‘On Faith’ column is my re-post for today.  He talks about religion in public life and also the influence it may have in the political arena.

ON FAITH PANEL

The Washington Post, February 1, 2011

Q: Mike Huckabee, the conservative former Arkansas governor, this weekend said that he is concerned about Islam’s role in Egypt’s future. As On Faith panelist Reza Aslan this week noted, Huckabee has also called for Americans to “take this nation back for Christ” and, while running for president in 2008, declared that “what we need to do is to amend the Constitution so it’s in God’s standards.”

In America and in Egypt, should a majority religion inspire political life? How will Islam play a role in the struggles for democracy happening now in Egypt and other parts of the Muslim world?

About an hour before I read this question I was in New York having lunch with a couple of colleagues and the conversation turned to religion in public life.

We talked about one of the keys to any religion’s success in the public sphere: the perceived value it adds to the lives of the those who embrace it. Without this recognition of value-added, there are serious challenges to any religion’s influence over the long haul.

This has a direct bearing on the degree to which a majority–or minority–religion shapes individual lives, including one’s politics. We believe religion can provide the greatest value and answers to the pressing issues that confront us, be they social, political, economic, or health-related.

Religion can be a wonderful resource in the public square and throughout politics as it encourages people to be caring, unselfish citizens. Yet it’s a mistake to think that this can be dictated. It can’t. Ultimately, what forges loyalty and inspires action at the deepest level is what people accept in their hearts, what has won its way because it has proven its utility as a positive, healing force in the lives of human beings and communities.
Russ Gerber | Posted: February 2, 2011 | 8:20 pm

Turmoil in Egypt

Colleague Ken Girard from Massachusetts posted a blog about ways we can all help to bring about a cessation of the current political unrest in Egypt through prayer.  He uses the fall of the Berlin wall as an example of individual’s effective collective prayer for peace in the world.  Read on……..

As I watched CNN’s coverage of the street protests and violence going on in various cities in Egypt this morning, I thought of the anger and frustration which spawned these actions. I saw the anguished faces of the wounded. The panic and fear that appeared to be rampant in the crowds. And the violence that was taking place on both sides – police and protesters.

And as I stopped to write this blog, reports were coming in that President Mubarak had ordered the Egyptian army into the cities to restore order. Tanks were entering Cairo.

Egypt is one of the oldest continuing civilizations on the planet – from 3150BC.

This is the country of the pharaohs, the pyramids, the Sphinx. The country where Joseph of the Old Testament was sold into slavery. The country where that same Joseph’s reliance on God caused him to become the 2ndmost powerful person in the government of that ancient time – second only to Pharaoh – and which saved that country from 7 years of famine.

This is a country rich in history, rich in culture, rich in traditions, and rich in its people.

I have to ask these questions: Is violence the only path to the needed reforms for this country? Is there another way?

Of course there is! All any of us have to do is think of how the former Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact countries fell so quickly and relatively bloodlessly in the late 1980’s. Aren’t the images of the fall of the Berlin Wall etched into the memories of everyone that witnessed it in 1989?

Many people attribute that revolution and other peaceful revolutions in part to the prayers of people from around the world. That’s right – prayers!

In an article titled “Peace prayers helped bring down the Wall, says Leipzig pastor,” Christian Fuehrer, the pastor of Nikolai Church in Leipzig at that momentous time, described what took place. An excerpt follows.

“Around 6,000 to 8,000 people were crammed in to the churches in central Leipzig, and a total of 70,000 people had gathered in the city. Everyone was holding a candle, a symbol of non-violence – you need to hold a candle with both hands to keep it from going out, which makes it impossible to throw stones.

Later, a member of the SED Central Committee said: “We had everything planned. We were ready for anything – except candles and prayers.” The police had not been briefed for this possibility. Had we thrown stones, they would have known what to do: They would have attacked. But the tanks had no choice but to withdraw without a single shot being fired, and that’s when we knew that the GDR would never be the same again.

We had a sense that something extraordinary had happened, but we only really understood the enormity of it later.”

Can’t the same be true for the people of Egypt, for people in all of the Middle Eastern countries where unrest is fomenting – for people everywhere? Of course it can!

I’ve learned in Christian Science that God really does provide the guidance, the understanding – the right actions – that reform individuals as well as countries. That brings a sense of harmony right where discord appeared to be predominant and inevitable.

I’m sure that I’m not alone in praying that these dear people in Egypt and elsewhere – our brothers and sisters – find and experience the right resolutions that bring peace, harmony, and prosperity to their as well as future generations’ lives.

And I am sure that all of our collective prayers are having effect.

Australia Day – A Celebration of Unity

Colleague, Kay Stroud of Queensland writes about unity among men and nations.  And if anyone should know about unity over the past few months, it is our fellow country men and women of Queensland………….

“The level of patriotism is expected to be higher than ever this Australia Day, in the wake of the heroism displayed during the floods and the overwhelming efforts of thousands of volunteers”, states Brisbane’s Courier Mail.

There is so much good and progress following on the heels of Queensland’s worst floods in history and I, for one, am sincerely grateful for the work of the State Emergency Services staff, along with every man, woman and child who has aided in the clean up and support of those affected.

I love being Australian and part of its heritage of people who are independent, unfettered by a ‘class’ system, friendly and slow to criticise.

I was interested enough in the subject of ‘patriotism’ to research its meaning recently. And I was pleased to see that it is a desirable quality for us: meaning putting our country’s (or city’s or state’s) interests above our personal interests.

What a demonstration of patriotism has emerged from the flood ordeal!

However, I also looked up the word ‘nationalism’ and I wasn’t quite as thrilled by its meaning. It includes a feeling of superiority over other nations and when associated with a single ethnicity leads to national self-righteousness, distrust of other nations and an inclination to conflict and war.

I usually refer to the Bible and what Jesus said and did as my guide. He broke away from the nationalistic sentiments of the Jews of the time by talking to and healing people from all backgrounds and cultures (something pretty radical for the time), and asked us to “Love our neighbour as ourselves”. One of his dedicated followers, Paul, put it this way: “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female”. And I guess I could add – there is neither Australian nor Iraqi, there is neither Congolese nor Afghani – for we are all one.

And I’ve been thinking that if WE are all one, then there really has to be only one God.

As a Christian Scientist, I also refer to my other pastoral reference book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, which puts it this way, “One infinite God, good, unifies men and nations; constitutes the brotherhood of man; ends wars; fulfils the Scripture, “Love they neighbour as thyself;” annihilates pagan and Christian idolatry, – whatever is wrong in social, civil, criminal, political, and religious codes; equalizes the sexes; annuals the curse on man, and leaves nothing that can sin, suffer, be punished or destroyed.”

So, I guess the result of my research is that I’ve realised that as Australians, when we, as a nation, emphasise good (God) and love (another name for God) instead of hate or disinterest, we are blessed.

And there is plenty to celebrate this Australia Day – we can all help to keep the blessings coming!

Since when did your hair colour determine your security?

Friend and colleague, Daryl Francis is my guest blogger for today.   I love the way he approaches the issue of how the impending retirement of  ‘baby boomers’ will impact on society from a spiritual point of view.  Thanks Daryl.

Since when did your hair colour determine your security?
Posted on January 19, 2011 by Daryl Francis

Media around the world is more frequently reporting on the impact of a graying society on populations’ economic and social well-being.

The Economist ran a feature on the future of an aging society last November, with particular reference to Japan, then in December, a more upbeat article subtitled “Why life begins at 46”, discussing why people get happier as they get older. The cover story on the weekly Christian Science Monitor for January 17 is “Retirement reworked.” Local papers are running stories on the issue more frequently.

This is definitely an issue lurking in the back of public thought.

The latent fear is that unless governments cut social security benefits they will require large increases in taxation from a decreasing number of people in the workforce. That translates to political anathema and great unrest. It’s a prospect that frightens economists and scares political parties.

It concerns anyone thinking ahead.

But does it need to scare us all?

I don’t think so. Neither do I believe it wise just to ignore the issues in hope that one fine morning they will magically disappear as the frog turns into the prince all in a shower of sparkly goodness so we all live happily ever after.

Why don’t I think we need to be scared? Because I’m certain there are practical answers. Answers that may not come from the expected places. Do I know what the answers will be? No. But I have no doubt they are available to every individual.

Dear reader, you may well ask, Aren’t you just being “terminally optimistic”? (Don’t you love that phrase?!!)

Not at all.

Here’s why…

Experience.

What?

It’s taught me that I never need to doubt that God, the divine Mind – the intelligence governing the universe – is taking care of all my needs. If that’s been true for me, why wouldn’t it be true for my neighbor and their neighbors?

My God is not like a clever person, fickle and finite, but the power of the presence of pure unadulterated goodness. Such a God is not scarce on Thursdays, or any other day or year. Nor is such a God only in certain places. Does goodness have boundaries? Right where disaster seems rampant, goodness shines in acts of kindness, integrity, inspiration, love, even humour. Goodness has no boundaries. It is omnipresent and, no, it cannot be thwarted by any disaster.

Experience has proved to me that whatever form a disaster takes, it’s just trying to tell us that we can be stranded: stranded – quite literally in a desert place, with too little money to get to safety; stranded without employment: stranded by ill health: stranded in a sea of conflicting opinions without a friend in sight. When I’ve refused to be mesmerized by situations like these trying to strand and flatten me and turned wholeheartedly to what I’ve learned about God’s unchanging, omnipresent goodness in my study of Christian Science I’ve been lifted to safety – countless times. Solutions have always been available. Almost always very surprising solutions. I’ve never been left stranded.

Some economists have been mesmerized into believing the graying population is a disaster waiting to happen. That doesn’t need to be the case. Surprising, timely solutions are always at hand.

It’s so easy to be mesmerized by a problem! I remember watching my brother learning to ride a bicycle on a football field. Nothing to run into one would think. Wide open spaces. He was going well until his eyes locked grimly onto the goal posts a long way off, then fear took hold – he was just mesmerized by the prospect of hitting a post – as he made a white knuckled 80 yard beeline right into his nemesis. And there was a whole football field to ride in!

Watching that taught me a life lesson, and my brother has served as the safety officer for his motorcycle club since then…

In Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Eddy’s seminal work on Christian Science, she writes:

“Mortals must look beyond fading, finite forms, if they would gain the true sense of things.
Where shall the gaze rest but in the unsearchable realm of Mind? We must look where we would walk, and we must act as possessing all power from Him in whom we have our being.

As mortals gain more correct views of God and man, multitudinous objects of creation, which before were invisible, will become visible.”

Solutions are always at hand “as we gain more correct views of God and man.”

I believe the economic and social challenge of a graying population is an opportunity to witness the power of the presence of pure unadulterated intelligent goodness – God – in operation. The challenges of a graying population needn’t strand us, or separate us from good, for there is nowhere that God, the divine Mind – infinite wisdom, is not present.

Let’s just watch where we’re riding our bikes, and know that we have divine authority to refuse to be mesmerized by the thought that our hair color determines our security.