Let's talk about God, shall we? Whoa. Yes, I went there. They say you should never discuss politics, religion, or sex in mixed company, but what use do I have for repressive social mores? Besides, it came to me in meditation and you know how I feel about those inside messages.

I never thought of myself as a "religious" person. And I would venture to say that no one who knows me thinks of me as being religious. But Merriam and Webster may have just changed my mind - because I do subscribe to the belief that dictionaries are holy and sacred. According to our erudite friends, religious means: "relating to or manifesting faithful devotion to an acknowledged ultimate reality or deity." Now, I can go with that ultimate reality part but I don't know about that "deity" thing because it has almost as many connotations as the word "God." And that "devotion" reference - that is also widely misconstrued in my experience.

I suppose that's part of the problem, isn't it? Instead of letting ourselves feel a connection to our spirituality, we get hung up on the words used to describe it. And we tend to want to prescribe it - especially when it comes to talking about God. We want people to prove their faith by going to church or temple, or by doing penance for what we like to call human sins, and - above all else - by renouncing religions that aren't our own. Whether you be Christian, Jewish, Catholic, Muslim or Buddhist- they all teach that theirs is the only true and right way to believe in God. So how does one go from the belief that God is all loving and all accepting of everyone - and then say, "oh, yeah, except you that believe differently?"  It's called human interpretation, and it is the stuff of Crusades and other holy wars.

Interpretation also confuses things when people think of God as a person - as in Jesus Christ (God incarnate) or as in the Pope (God's appointed representative, the next best thing to being there). First of all, if God is a deity, what's he doing walking around here with us and, more importantly, why do people always think she's a man? How can God be God Almighty - On High - In Heaven - and then still be in each one of us? If you remove deities and personalities and let yourself acknowledge spirituality as a Universal flow that runs through each of us, the answer is patently obvious.

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What if we thought of God as beyond religion, beyond the prescribed practices of ritual and worship? Julia Cameron, a marvelous author who writes books about the connection between creativity and spirit, refers to God as "Good Orderly Direction." The Universal source of all creation that is everywhere at once, guiding us to our higher and greater good. This makes sense to me, and it's a lot simpler than all that Bible stuff. (No offense.)

You can see good, orderly direction everywhere no matter what religion you like.
Look at the human body, which is an incredible construct of good, orderly direction. When we're healthy, every cell, every function works in perfect unison and complement to every other. Each one knows exactly what to do at every second of every day, from keeping a steady heartbeat to shedding an eyelash. They all conspire collectively and individually to help our bodies function properly and at the highest level it can.

Look at Mother Nature. Look at the perfect order with which plants reach for the sun, or how the soil feeds them without prompting or intervention. Look at the way the Earth spins perfectly on its axis with nary an interruption - except an occasional earthquake or two.

There are tomes and tomes and tomes and tomes written on God and what that means, and even more conflicting tomes that will say something different. Each one with its own merit, perhaps. However, if you think larger than words and theory and persona, which of course God is, things begin to take on a new shape. That shape is the Universal flow.

And if we're all a part of the same flow, and we all act in unison for the highest and greatest good of all, that's good orderly direction, is it not? Like God, it doesn't matter what name you use as long as the message stays true.


Looking forward,


Lisa V.