So then I thought...

...that this was an appropriate post for a Sunday and I really should sit down and type it out.  But then I thought that I had absolutely NO food in the house, only enough half-and-half  for (maybe) one more cup of coffee, and the toilet paper supply was dangerously low.  Which, of course, precipitated a trip to the grocery store, followed by an excursion with Greg, then a project in my studio, then dinner, so I'm JUST NOW getting around to posting!  My train of thought went along these lines:

Every religion (at least the ones that I'm aware of) acknowledge the existence of a higher power or "god", although the definitions and labels may differ somewhat.  Even those who do not subscribe to a religion acknowledge that there are powers operating in the Universe that defy our comprehension - that are "higher" or more intelligent or whatever. 

In the past I've felt that maybe I should return to the concept of "God" that I was raised with, but I'm just not sure about it.  Is it a single being - a Master or a father figure, perhaps? - or a collective consciousness of all of the intelligences that have ever existed, or what?  Today as I was mulling the question over once again, I determined that it really didn't matter.  An analogy came to mind:

I lived most of my adult life across the continent from my parents.  I couldn't see them, so if their appearance differed from my memory of them, there was no way for me to KNOW that.  I could, however,  speak with them any time that I wanted to, and if I needed advice or assistance I could ask and they would do what they could.  Similarly, we can't see "God", so any description is (in my mind) subjective and open to debate.  BUT - we can still have a level of confidence in the existence of a higher power and access to it. 

Religious leaders and scientists alike acknowledge that we are all part of a larger "organism", if you will - that you and I and the oceans and the trees and the stars are all interconnected and made of the same materials and come from the same source.  Following on with that train of thought, it occurred to me that if we are all part of the same "organism", then wouldn't God be part of that organism?  Wouldn't that, in fact, validate the thought that we are all divine?

Then it occurred to me that if time is truly relative - that the past and the present and the future all exist concurrently -  then our little lifetimes here on this planet are not all that there is to our story - there are chapters that came "before" and that will come "after" those chapters that we are aware of living "now", that have more to tell - and that we're living those concurrently, as well.

Here's the deal:  our mortal, finite minds can only glimpse bits of the concepts known as "eternity" and "infinity".  It's too big to grasp fully, so we try to organize the information in a way that we can comprehend.  My belief is that this is the main contributing factor to all of the various definitions of God and to the religions of the world.

Bottom line for me:  it's absolutely, completely pointless to spend any time worrying about the nature of God or aligning myself with any particular religion or philosophy.  "Whatever is for the greatest and highest good of everyone involved" is the ONLY quide that I really need to choose among available options. 

I DO, however, recognize a need for re-introducing spiritual practices into my daily routine (one of my "tweaks" for the year).  When I made meditation and prayer a part of my daily routine, I found that I was living with more purpose, more intention, and more connection - with myself and with those around me.  Somewhere along the line I decided that I had too much to do to take the time, and gradually phased it out.  I need/want to get back to purposeful, mindful living, as well as aligning myself with "the powers that be", and so I am going to begin again...