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"And
the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling
and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came
without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled
and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of
something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come
from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?" -
Dr. Seuss
Western
Christians first celebrated Christmas on December 25 in 336, after the
Roman Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the empire's favored
religion. From this point in history forward, Christianity began
its descent into the abyss of the love of power ... over the power of
Love. Misrepresenting the birth date of Jesus was just another one
of the fairytales that Catholicism and Christianity created as
traditions of their faiths. I believe it is a good and wonderful
thing to celebrate the life and teachings of Jesus ... and just as
religion does not have an exclusive on God, neither does Catholicism and
Christianity have an exclusive on the Master Mind Jesus.
I celebrate the Mystical Jesus, because He
revealed to us that God has imparted a "finite" part of Its
"Infinite" Spirit in each of us. He demonstrated what He
taught and gave us evidence of the Truth of Absolute Principle.
And so we can say as did the early mystics, "in the Spirit, I live
and move and have my being" ... and "in me, Spirit lives and
seeks to express Itself through me, as me, and for me." Like
no other before Him or after Him, the Master Mind Jesus demonstrated
this as the Truth of our Being. His teaching through the use of
parables, made the Law of God, so simple that even children could
understand it. He taught the world that God's Infinite Love is for
everyone ... "no respecter of persons." We are all part
of God's Infinite Life ... expressing through all living
things.
The Mystical Jesus' question, "don't ye
know that ye are gods?" ... has yet to be fully answered, for our
quest to find God within has been hindered by religion's quest to keep
God separate and apart from us. And in so doing, have separated us
from each other. Religious intolerance continues to permeate the
race consciousness as religions use fear to gain faith for religion at
the expense of our faith in God and God alone. Jesus taught,
"you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you
free." By and large, religions don't want us to worship God
in freedom ... but according to their man-made doctrines and
opinions. "They know every letter of the law, but have no
love in their hearts," Jesus stated this to an ancient culture ...
but His words are just as true of many of our religious leaders today
throughout the world.
For most of us this is the darkest and coldest
time of the year and what a great time to celebrate the "Light of
the World" ... that "spark of the Divine" within each of
us as revealed by the Glorious Jesus. It is a time for gift giving
and exchanging, singing of songs, Holiday parties and bright lights and
Santa Claus. Many of the things that we do to celebrate Christmas
have little to do with the birth of Jesus, but have been added to the
celebration throughout history. Decorating a tree with ornaments
and bright lights, gift giving, Santa Claus, Elves and reindeer ... had
nothing to do with the birth of Jesus. But for most of us, these
activities and Holiday Characters, bring a greater sense of joy and love
into our lives. All of these ideas originated in Creative
Mind, and as they were accepted and created in the physical, each of
them serve a purpose aligned with Infinite Love ... the giving-ness of
Itself through Its Creation to Its Creation.
The Spirit of Christmas ... is the
"Christ" within us ... the In-Dwelling Presence of Infinite
Love, expressing through our hearts and minds as we give and be given
to. This spirit of joy and love is authentic within us .... for It
is the "likeness" of God within us. The Mystical Jesus
embodied this awareness and evidenced it when He declared, "The
Father and I are One" ... and this "I" within you and me
are One with the Father too ... and also One with each other. This
"infinite I" binds us to God and to each other. Although
this is the Truth, it was a very bold statement for Jesus to make ...
but He knew that the "Power of Love was greater than those who
worshiped the love of power" and filled with the Power of Love, He
was fearless.
Jesus'
ministry lasted only a short three years. The world was not ready
to accept His teachings then ... and as a world, we are still struggling
to live to His Consciousness of Love today. "Love one
another" ... He said, knowing that as we do we are expressing
Infinite Love, God ... more fully. Beginning with Christmas, let's
make a commitment to share more of the Love we have within us ... hug
someone who will be surprised by your hug ... express gratitude to the
grocery clerk for handling your groceries ... share the Love that the
Infinite gives us so freely to express every day ... and this will
perhaps make Christmas mean a little bit more.
AND
SO IT IS!
Keep
the faith!
Rev.
Dr. Henry Lee Bates
Visit Rev. Bates BLOG: Living
the Science of Mind
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