live with no boundaries between the sacred and the secular

One is The Histofy of God by Karen Armstrong. She looks through the history of the Abrahamic faiths (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) and finds a recurring theme in all three that was lost over the years of transliterations and mistranslations. It’s a pretty dense read.

The other book, I am almost ashamed to admit, is The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Yes, The Da Vinci Code guy. Let me state without equivocation, he knows how to craft a page turner, and he does his homework – even if from some less than reliable sources. This book is closer in tone to his first Robert Langdon book, Angels & Demons (which was the best book of the three) in that it attempts to bridge the gap between science and religion. That’s all I’ll say – no more spoilers.

What these two books have in common is that they both emphasize that there is no boundary between sacred and secular. The academic Armstrong asserts that God is a construct that created from and by human understanding, and shaped by human experience. When we all pray to God, we are in essence praying a particular understanding of God that is unique to this time and place.

To elaborate on The Lost Symbol would give too much of the book away, but suffice it to say, he would approve of the above statement, although he would say it doesn’t go far enough. That’s all I’ll say for now. Read the book, it came out yesterday.

In The Weight of Glory, CS Lewis said:

It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and
goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you
saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations. It is in the
light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics.

There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.

Every human bears the image of his maker.

I learned recently that in Hebrew there is no word for “spiritual”. To God, all of life is spiritual.

The BUSH years.
Oh, how I’m glad they’re coming to an end.
Hallelujah.

...but something I do, everyday.
I’m a Unitarian Universalist, a demonation that seems to have taken the back-seat amongst religious affiliations. After leaving the Church and wandering for a long time, I found a spiritual home with the UUs. At a time when a lot of young people are looking for themselves in bottles, tight clothes, and passing fancy, I found a deeply meaningful place with a community. I got older. I went and lived abroad. Church became a haven for me. But, as my time in that place grew shorter, I found myself in tune with it more often. I visited home, went on Outward Bound, and became aware of the divine in everything. It has been a journey that remains worth the work.

My best friend is Muslim and I love her like a sister. She came to her religion after a long period of introspection. Her heart was called, and that made me proud and happy for her. When one of her relationships ended in a hurtful and messy way, she turned to her faith. Each day as I saw her comming to grips with what had happened, she was living her beliefs. I went to Mosque with her one night, shortly after this happened. I don’t find God in that sort of space, that’s not how I worship or connect with the higher powers. But I was touched by how deeply I was connected to my friend. I could not pray with her, as a sister. But I could pray for her, as her friend.

I sit in my house sometimes and thank everything that is good for the bounty around me. I am blessed.

If you want a good remainder throughout the day carry a rosary in your pants pockets to serve as a remainder of the sacred throughout the day. I’ve started carrying my Anglican Rosary in my pocket and it has been making a difference as it is just large enough that I faintly feel its bulge in my front left jean pocket throughout the day. And when I need something stronger I put my hand in the pocket to finger the rosary beads.

I have been attending Mass every weekday morning for the past three weeks. In and of itself that is a very sacred thing. But it has been seeping into the rest of my day. The Word finds His way into my thoughts and conversations. And, you’d have to verify this with my wife, but apparently I’m easier to live with.

Hopefully things continue to leak across boundaries until they are no more.

A couple little fish happened to hear about water one day and they became very intrigued. They wanted to know what water was. So they darted here and there, busily exploring every corner of the ocean trying to figure it out. Finally, they found a very, very, old turtle, and asked her their important question.

She responded, “If you just slow down, be still, and look around, you will realize you are surrounded by the ocean.”

Life is of God, bought by God, brought about by God and daily given of God. Why would we want to be seperated from Him in our day to day lives, when He’s never seperated from us?
I have lived my life since my baptism of fire, March 4, 1991, as though my everyday life is an act of worship. In everything we do, we honor our Lord.
I read “Practicing the Presence of God” by Brother Lawrence each night before bed. A small volume of letters and conversations of a 15th century monk who, while he worked at very menial jobs in his day to day, transcended that with a continual attitude of worship to our Father God. It helps keep me focused upon the spiritual aspects of everything in our lives. I would recommend it for you to acheive your goal.
I would also recommend you pray. Make prayer your continual conversation with Him. It doesn’t have to be fancy or eloquent. Just from your heart and sincerely for yourself or others. Look for opportunities to find out from others what needs they have that you can pray about. Intercessory prayer is an excellent way of letting go of our own worries and concerns about ourselves and giving of our spirit to God.
I love this goal, by the way. If you would like to share your progress with me, feel free to mail me.