5-28-00 SANANDA
Now, I have been very, very patient. I have waited several of your weeks to come in and teach this lesson. It is about one of your favorite subjects.
JANISEL: Ego?
SANANDA: Very good! This one's down pretty good, however, this time we are going to talk in more 'flamboyant' terms…. "group ego". I believe we are on my fourth book now, yes?
JANISEL: Yes
SANANDA: Lots of lessons. This evening's lessons is on one of the favorite subjects… the human ego.
GUEST 2: <grin> I thought you were going to say 'sex'.
SANANDA: That does get involved occasionally, however, not in this one. I do believe we shall discuss that sometime…. However, I do believe my brother Ashtar and Michael ought to be here for that one. <grin>
JANISEL: I do, too. Michael's quite the 'lady's man', isn't he? <grin>
SANANDA: Now… the title to this lesson concerning group ego shall be "Church or Faith?" This seems to be one of my all-time favorites, you realize. You make a comment just once…. Have you ever played that game, I believe it's called "Whispers" or "Gossip"?
JANISEL: Yes… handing things down to another and then another.
SANANDA: Just imagine just how many ears that one got whispered in between then and now. Humph! Temple has always been around… not 'always', but close. From back when we were talking about that 'old guy', you know? You know the 'old guy'…. Moses. The OLD, old guy. <grin>
Now, it is like this. God asked Moses to bring about the Tabernacle, for various reasons. We've discussed these before. One of those reasons being the fact that the Children of Israel had lost their teachings… they had been 'whispered' one or two times too many. Therefore, the Tabernacle gave them a place to go to learn, to be taught, and to pay a pittance every now and then. Well, then you take it a couple of thousand years after that, and you have this 'charming, debonair, good-looking, slightly humorous' young fellow who walks around and talks a bit. [Jesus] When he walked around and talked a bit, was he in 'church'? Do you know what 'church' is? Church is a place 'to share faith'. It does not have to have a permanent address, it does not have to have walls and a roof… however, that is nice occasionally. <grin> Church is a 'gathering place', a place where those that have same or similar faith can gather together and feed their souls. Those that have become weary, those that have become starved in spirit, can gather and get put back together again. Now, that 'young, debonair, quite handsome, humorous' young fellow that wandered around and shared faith with others, had a few that 'hung around'… quite often… all the time. <grin> Privacy was NOT in accord at that point in time in history. However, most of them thoroughly enjoyed sharing with each other, communing with each other. One of them did not like the rain, did not like the heat of the sun, did not like sitting on the dirt… getting the 'itchies', you know. He enjoyed being with the others, however, he constantly suggested that this take place within the confines of a building. So ONCE I make a statement… oh, excuse me… this 'daring, debonair, handsome, good-looking, humorous' young man makes ONE comment, that this one young man could one day 'build his church upon a rock'… a firm foundation, no dirt with insects, hiding from the sun, protected from the rain, not having to worry about the sound of the wind interfering with what is being said. And look what happens! <sigh> It got huge. It developed 'rules', it became 'ego' of a larger sort. Can I prove this to you? You bet!
There are many, many, many of these churches that say that their building stone is the name of Christ. That's good. However, they also teach a few things to those that gather together in faith with them. For one, they teach that if you do not belong to that building or the set of rules of the faith that is within that building, you shall die and go to hell and be there for all eternity, burning and… brimstone… and agony. Could you see me saying that? Could you even imagine Peter saying that? And HE complained A LOT! <sigh> There are many of them that teach that, in order to be 'responsible' for your fellow-man, you must go out and challenge their faith… make them feel that what they have believed in has been wrong, in order to convert them to their faith, to their belief. Is it for the salvation of those souls? Well… a 'little' bit. How do they entice you to do it? "You shall have a 'larger mansion' in Heaven if you do, you shall have more 'jewels in your crown' in Heaven if you do." They feel the need to bribe from the Hereafter to get you to go out and challenge someone else's faith, someone else's belief. Now… does this sound like something I would do or say? What is the question that I am notorious for asking?
JANISEL: What do you feel in your heart?
SANANDA: Now, does that sound like someone that is insisting that you become Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Catholic, Jewish… any of those things? Your 'church' is what I have always referred to as 'the Heart Center of your Soul'. That is your church. You [Janisel] and this one [Debbie] even have another 'church'. When you get together with those that wish to talk about these lessons, you have what you might refer to as an 'electronic' church… an 'online' church. You are gathering together to share your beliefs, your faith, and to help someone else more closely identify with their own personal faith and beliefs. Now… think back, almost to the very beginning of these lessons. The one that received the greatest amount of controversy was "If It Feels Good, Do It". There are no rules. The rules reside within you. They are the rules that you, yourself, put on yourself. When you take your own personal rules and you force them on others, if you insist that others use those rules of yours, that is ego, that is not faith.
So… what is FAITH? You may look it up in one of your books, if you wish. It's very simple. Faith can mean many, many things. In THIS context, it is a belief, a personal opinion that you have, each and every one of you, in something completely 'intangible'. Many of you have such strong faith in those beliefs, in the intangible, that the intangible has become tangible to you. That is when you become most passionate concerning your faith. Passion is good! However, when you begin PUSHING it on others, that's EGO. When you can get together with others to share your beliefs and your faith, and someone says, "Ach! That is wrong!", and you say, "No, no, no, no. That's not the way it is done!", it is your ego that argues the point. If they think it is right or if they think it is the way it is done, that is according to THEIR faith. And if you attempt to justify, or if you attempt to sway, their faith or their belief, it is nothing, again, more than your ego. Just your ego. Who says that YOUR faith and YOUR beliefs have to be identical for them to both be 'right'? What one basis their faith on may be entirely different on what you base your faith on. Essentially, you have the same faith in the same things, it's just different 'constructs' that you have used.
There are so many of our wondrous Lightworkers that have developed a stigma. They say, "I am not 'religious'… I am 'spiritual'." Perhaps it is now time to look in your books and determine what humanity and society deem to be your definition of the term 'religious' as opposed to the word 'spiritual'. The term 'religious', in your society, does not hold the stigma of being associated with a 'specific belief system'… unless you deem it to be. Now, being 'spiritual' can also, according to your dictionaries, hold within it the connotation of belonging to a 'specific belief system'. Technically, that would then fall under the category, I believe, of another past lesson… on semantics? <grin>
Do you attend church? You [those in the room] are in church right now. It is as so. When you begin to feel as if you are losing your faith, when you begin to feel as if you are losing your strength… you physical strength, your emotional strength, even your mental strength… gather together. Gather together to uplift your soul. When your soul is uplifted, the body becomes uplifted, your emotions become uplifted, even your logic can become uplifted. Commune with each other. You are all here for each other. You are NOT here to raise the population status of a specific belief system… a religion, as you call it… you are not here to 'convert' others away from their own personal faith. You are each here to live as an example, to show how light and bright the Light within you can shine. The more of you that get together, the brighter the Light gets. We are not asking you to go back into your Neanderthal Age that this planet went through, however, please come to the understanding that your so-called 'Neanderthal's' definitely had more of a sense of community than you do today. Neanderthals had the community spirit before the so-called Christ ever walked upon the earth, that they knew of. They 'shared', they 'communed', and they provided for each other. There was a point in time in this planet's history, not that very long ago, that many young people decided to go back to that style of life… of living within 'communities'. And what did your society say about them? Hmmm… I cannot repeat that here. <grin> I will leave it to YOUR memories. We're not asking you to move in together, we are not asking you to give up independence, all we're asking you to do is to joyfully come together occasionally… it doesn't even have to be physical… and share. Share what most people believe to be the most intimate, private part of their being… their belief, their trust and their faith in God, in mankind, in themselves.
QUESTION NO. 1
How do you feel about church? How were you raised to feel about church?
Have you been reading the lessons concerning the busting of your boundaries, limitations and restrictions? And can you possibly see how that might apply to your thoughts and your feelings concerning church? How about if we use a different word? How about if we refer to it as 'sanctuary'? Sanctuary from the mundane that you live so deeply into in your lives here. Sanctuary… a place within yourself that you can connect with others and you know that you will be taken to a higher place, even if just for a short period of time, and carry away with you the feeling that you have just been with 'family'.
QUESTION NO. 2
Can you classify, for yourself, your faith… what you have faith IN?
And while you're doing this, please include, "Do I have faith in myself?" "Do I have faith in myself, to the point where I can have faith in the faith that I have?"
QUESTION NO. 3
What do I believe, and where did these beliefs come from?
And while you're at this, go just a wee bit deeper and find out if any of these beliefs come from a life that you have lived that isn't 'this' one. Are your beliefs and your faith 'instinct', 'learned', or is it 'just there'… something that you have taken so for granted that you have never stopped and questioned yourself as to what it is that you DO believe.
Now, this is the hardest question of all….
QUESTION NO. 4
Do you believe that ego does have a place in your faith, in your beliefs, or
in your church?
I won't answer this one for you, however, I will tell you it is a 'trick' question, for as I have told you before, I have a marvelous ego, thank you! I do not believe I could give mine up… wouldn't even want to. It is a perfect reflection for me as to what I do. That is a hint. I am allowed to give hints. <grin>
Now… this is the last question. And if you re-read this lesson, the answer is contained within it. That question being….
QUESTION NO. 5
If all Lightworkers are to come together and commune with each other, HOW could
this POSSIBLY radiate out to others?
Hmmm… it's easy. It is not hard. Shutting the ego off while you do this may be hard for some of you, however, especially if you belong to one of those large 'ego-groups' that we referred to before.
That's it! <grin>