Acts of Liberation

"We must not discriminate." -- Cultivating the Mind of Love by Thich Nhat Hanh

Writing on the Ultimate Dimension, Buddhist monk and teacher Thich Nhat Hanh points out in this book, Cultivating the Mind of Love, that there is a moment when, for each of us, we wake up to the moment, just this moment. We feel alive and vibrant.
 He writes about French author, Albert Camus who wrote in his novel, L' Etranger, that Mersault, in prison, condemned to die in three days, for the very first time, notices the blue sky. It was a sudden opening, a moment of mindfulness; he realized that he had spent a lot of time, as people sometimes do, feeling frustrated, imprisoned by anger, lust, or by notions that peace and happiness are out there, somewhere, sometime.
At that moment he saw, really saw the blue sky for the first time, it was a revelation to him. Life did have meaning; there were things that mattered to him. He could live his short time remaining deliberately, with awareness of sun and sky. His seeing deeply made his life real; it became his true life.

Hanh notes that many persons walk about in their daily lives as though they were dead, not noticing much or allowing the world close enough to be touched. He insists that these persons must be helped to realize that they matter; this realization is an act of liberation.
The Christian faith teaches that the Christ wears many different clothing; he has many disguises. Often others fail to recognize him in the sick, the poor or the lame. For Mersault God comes to rescue him with a sudden, burning realization of the beauty of Creation in the form of a blue sky. Anything might bring us to awareness of the Avatamsaka realm, we may wake up to this moment, just this moment and see the beauty and peace of it all. "We must not discriminate," Hanh insists.

The Historical Saint Nicholas of Bari

There are many traditions to share with one another at this season, some old, some new enough to be rediscovered! Recollecting the date, December 6th is the feast of Saint Nicholas of Bari, the Simple Mind writes a bit about this personage. More often called Saint Nicholas of Myra or more often, Santa Claus was indeed a real person. As a saint of the Church and a most highly favored saint of Greek Orthodoxy, he is also revered in Russia, to mention a few places. Little is known of his earliest years, but he was said to have been born about 460 or 480 AD in Patara. He was highly influenced by the teachings of another saint, Saint Augustine of Hippo; he was so moved that he became one of their community. Later he was made bishop of the ancient diocese of Myra, Asia Minor, today part of Turkey. Tracing the life of this saint proves to be an interesting travel itinerary.

He is attributed with several characteristics: he taught the Christian gospel vigorously, like the good shepherd and was imprisoned during  persecutions of Diocletian. Specifically, Roman Emperor Diocletian rescinded the legal rights of Christians and demanded that they observe traditional Roman religious practice. Freed from prison by Emperor Constantine, Nicholas was said to have been present at the Council of Nicaea held in 325 AD in Alexandria, Egypt. Later as Bishop, he worked to save the lives of three men, is said to be the saint of children, sailors, to have encouraged the active practice of Charity as taught by the Christ, to love one another. This was remarkable in his world where an eye for an eye reigned supreme. He died at Myra and was buried within his Cathedral.

In December, learn about the Saint, share in his practice and make the holiday bright. Today we offer treats and chocolates to one another and observe many other customs inspired by Saint Nicholas. Exchanging gifts is one practice recalling the birth of the Christ child that is also attributed to Saint Nicholas.

Mindfulness and the Holy Spirit

"Because you are alive, everything is possible." --Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh


Buddhist author and teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh writes in his book, Living Buddha, Living Christ that the seeds of the Spirit are everywhere. He once asked a Catholic priest to explain to him the Holy Spirit. The priest replied that the Spirit is an energy sent by God. This, Hanh reports, made him happy. He sees the way to the Trinity is the approach through the door of the Holy Spirit.  
Buddhism practices mindfulness; when we are mindful, touching deeply the present moment, we see and listen deeply; the fruits are understanding, peace, acceptance, love, the desire to relieve suffering and bring joy. We are completely engaged in just this moment.

To Hanh, mindfulness is very much like the Holy Spirit; both are agents of healing. The Buddha is called the 'King of Healers.' The Christ is also a healer. In the biblical accounts, when someone touches the Christ, they are healed. When you touch deep understanding and love, there is healing.  The Spirit descended unto the Christ like a dove, it bore into him deeply and Jesus, the Christ healed whatever he touched.
We all have the seeds of the present moment within us. Touching deeply is an important practice. For many of us this learning starts with breathing; deeply breathing in and out we become conscious of our self, of our functioning.

Mindfulness is the substance of a buddha, entering deeply into this moment, you see the nature of reality, of inter-being and this liberates you from darkness, suffering and confusion. A heart in good condition is an element of peace and contentment.

Taking Refuge

Taking Refuge

"One bread, one body, one Lord of all
One cup of blessing which we bless
And we though many, throughout the earth
We are one body in this one Lord.
 Verses:

Gentile or Jew, servant or free
Woman or man no more.

Many the gifts, many the works
One in the Lord of all.

 Grain for the fields, scattered and grown
Gathered to one, for all. "

There are many ways of taking refuge; while some may associate this term as being strictly Buddhist, it is not. Many, if not most religious traditions have this notion. Its most simple and literal meaning is to be sheltered. To take refuge is often thought of as coming into a moment, any moment of stillness, of shelter, where a rising awareness of a divinity, of salvation may well.

For some, the words of the psalm are new; for others this refuge is a favorite. For all, it rends hope, expresses the idea of taking refuge in the Christ, the one begot by God for all of mankind to share in salvation, or holiness. The three jewels, if you will, for Christians are faith, hope and charity. The greatest of these however is charity, or caritas in Latin. It translates most simply to mean love. Whether you accept the message or the messenger is not the point here: refuge is the point in its various forms.

In this refuge, the food upon which the faithful feast is love, divine love. The water they drink ends their thirst for all time. Their growing awareness of reality as expressed in the Psalms is light and clarity. Kindness and compassion guide the believer to paths which are gentle and unperturbed by pride, angst or wickedness. The song the psalmist sings is many; it's one. One bread for all, one body existing in this one Lord.

In His Spirit

"I am the vine; you are the branches."   --John15:5

There are many aspects of the Holy Spirit, as it is known in the Christian world. Its activity while not limited to Christians, encompasses the whole of Creation; we learn of its presence and activities from the Gospels. More importantly we learn about its work from the experiences of our own lives.
 It's popular to think of luck, fortune or mere intuition as the active agents in one's world. And they are. But what if these activities are orchestrated, at least some times, by an over-arching energy, a spirit? What might that be like?

With the coming of the Spirit, there dawns a new thought in the world, a new way; while the Spirit, the angels and the sages were well known to Judaism, it is Christianity that carries it further, banking on the Spirit as part of a tri-une god. The way of the Christ for early Christians was their dawning of what today we think of as "Judeo-Christian" spirituality, even mystical experience.
Following the Christ in the Spirit does not mean conforming to a rigid code of behavior or thought; indeed the Spirit has come to set us and all captives free. Following in the Spirit does not mean that we are now without fault; indeed the Spirit brings forgiveness. Following in the Spirit does not mean denying our unique characteristics; indeed the Creator has already seen to that in forming us to be the good that we are.

Then what is this Spirit about? Jesuit theologian Richard Hauser writes in his classic introduction to the Holy Spirit, In His Spirit, that living under the influence of the Spirit, "[is] being forever concerned with 'building the Kingdom." From stories in the Bible one gets the impression that the Christ and those who follow, the disciples, are on the move.
They do not rest; such is their energy, their spirit and their joy at the realization of the existence of a heaven on earth. "Such is the Spirit's presence in the Christ and in the community that they are propelled forward in their work."

In this activity, they discover and experience the peace, joy and love rained down upon them by the Spirit, the Paraclete. This peacefulness, loving, kind nature is brought forward by the community. "In our day [when] Christians are becoming more and more conscious of responsibility for transforming the unjust structures of our societies through active involvement with society..."
 The Holy Spirit is our sanctifier. We are blessed and strengthened by its action, energized in our activity, in our prayer.

"The Spirit too comes to help us in our weakness. For when we cannot choose words in order to pray, the Spirit himself expresses our plea …" Romans 8

"The Father knows what you need before you ask him." Matthew 6


As we grow into a life in the Spirit, a life in its love, over time we may find greater ease in the expression of our innate self; the Spirit operates at the deepest levels of our beings. Its activity flows from the center of our daily lives because we are both bodies and spirits.
Thomas Merton, Christian mystic, insists that prayer is an expression of our entire being; it is rooted in life, and flows from life. In fact, in his view, meditation has no point and no reality unless it 's firmly rooted in life.

There are two principal ways the Spirit moves, easily recognized: first in times of happiness and consolations; secondly when we feel a quiet, inner peace, aware that God is with us; that we are loved wholly. This movement by the Spirit is unaccompanied by much intellectual activity.There is a quiet, a resting; words are less necessary as we come to know a person.
Good friends can enjoy each other's company and say very little. They know something of the heart of the other. The Spirit is many in its works.

A Theology of Evil

"The Devil has a whole system of theology and philosophy...which explains that created things are evil...in fact the whole universe is full of misery..." Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation

According to the Evil One, the creator rejoices in the sufferings of men; the universe is filled with misery because the creator himself plans it and wills it. In myriad ways, the implication of a move toward what is good within a spiritual tradition, by definition, acknowledges its opposite, what is evil. This is an idea which has not been directly explored here before.

Evil is indeed the counterpoint to many if not most spiritual systems and modes of practice. Yet in a modern, pluralistic society such as the United States, its presence may be easily obscured by many factors, and it may be enveloped and packaged into a number of other ideas. Without clear, careful awareness of the implications of a thought or action, an individual or a mass movement, evil easily arises into our midst.

Thomas Merton writes-- indeed, says within this system, the Creator took real pleasure in the crucifixion of souls; the Christ came to earth so as to be punished. Punishment is in fact his chief goal for himself and for all others. The pair, the Christ and his creator, want nothing more than to punish and persecute; that mankind inevitably is in error, he is wrong, so much so that there is great opportunity to manifest the justice of the wicked.

In the cosmos of the Evil One, the first order of creation is Hell; it comes first, before all else. The proper devotions of the faithful are about evil so as to be cloaked with evil. It is so that man cannot escape his punishments, the justice that this One metes out.There is no escape for individuals, nor for society in this way; there is no mercy, for it has no place in these systems of justice by punishments. The suffering, the Christ and his cross have now been transformed into a new symbol, a symbol for the victory of Justice and Law.

The Evil One declares that it is Law and Justice, not Love that fulfills the teaching. "Law must devour everything,' writes Merton, 'such is this theology of punishment, hatred and revenge."
Those who live by this dogma, live for just punishments, and yet desire to successfully evade the very same for themselves. He or she will take care to see to it that others do not avoid suffering. This concern powers the believer. The chief mark of hell is that there is everything but mercy. God absents himself from hell.

His mercy is elsewhere. Those in agreement with the Evil One are perfect; they no longer have need of any mercy. It is perhaps because "they derive a deep, subconscious comfort from the thought that many other people will fall into hell which they themselves are going to escape."

By this feeling, this conviction they are saved. The Evil One makes many disciples; he furthers his conquest through announcements against sin, the evil of sin which is guilt. So don't feel guilty, lest you fall into sin! In syllogistic logic, the principle of pleasure is explored:
 pleasure is sin; all sin is pleasure.
Next comes the notion that since pleasure is practically unavoidable, indeed planted here by the creator, we have a natural tendency towards evil, our nature is evil; therefore practically no one can escape sins because pleasure is inescapable. And so in the philosophy of the Evil One, what is left except to live for pleasure, to live in the now--with no thought of anyone or anything else beyond the self?

Ironic how those lives are often miserably unhappy ones, isn't it? Yet it's all in the plan of Justice and Punishments devised by this creator who works without mercy or grace, explains Thomas Merton in his essay, "The Moral Theology of the Devil."

Melchizedek, a Jew and other Torah Figures

Melchizedek-- Heb. meaning, "the god Zedek is king."


The Hebrew name Melchizedek appears in many current documents as if something new to humankind is being uncovered. In fact the name means in English, the god Zedek is King. It is also the name of the ‘mysterious’  (Greek word meaning ‘the initiate(d)’) personage mentioned in Genesis 14:18-20.

He is also mysterious because little is actually known of this person whom the Bible records as being a priest and king. In the book of Hebrews 7, he is presented as one who presages the appearance of the Christ come into the world. Here the name Melchizedek, owing back to its original Hebrew, takes the additional connotation of ‘the king of justice.’

There are three main points of resemblance between Melchizedek and the Christ who it may be said later fulfills his oracle. Both men were both priest and king; both offer bread and wine as sacrifice to G-d; both derive their priestly state directly from the ancient Hebrew tribe of Aaron, because neither man is from the tribe of Levi, another branch which served a different priestly function.

Who and why are the tribes of Israel important to the story of Melchizedek? First of all, the bible records for history that the ancient tribes of Israel performed several distinct functions in their society and that this ordering reflected well upon their religion which in time comes to us as Judaism. While the Torah records many tribes from far and wide, the tribes most important to the story of Melchizedek are the Levites, those men who were the hereditary priests, or sacred ministers with duty to offer sacrifices at the altar of the holocausts (Leviticus 1:3-4); they also entered the place of worship morning and evening to offer incense at the golden altar. See Psalms 99 and 110:4, also Hebrews 7:1-17.  The significance of the “order of Melchizedek” is that his authority arose by means different than the traditional hereditary one of other priests. They were made priests on the mandate of G-d, the Creator. Nothing more is made of their priestly state.

Aaron was a member of the tribe of Levi (Exodus 4:14-16 and 7:28-30) and the brother of Moses; he was the designated tribal spokesman before the Egyptian Pharaoh. The Levite priests were also charged with several other duties, including the care and cure of Lepers in their communities. Luke 1 and 5. They officiated at the temple, and all the Tribe of Levi along with those of Aaron ministered together during the great festivals. Their dress was a long, light linen tunic worn with a decorated sash and turban. Compare this with the modern, Orthodox Christian practice owing its tradition back to the Hebrews, in all ways of the priests. So it is the priest of modern day who presides as Melechizedek's descendant, anointed with Holy Chrism.

The Secret of God's Heart

"You are the secret of God's heart."

The most valuable thing you can offer is your possible or potential spirit. This is what you have always available to offer, what you need to live your own love story. Like the seed watered, your love is without beginning and without end. Watering the seeds of your love, is a practice that makes you grow-- but it is only a practice, not an end. For, if your focus becomes the notion of "growing," then the end becomes just that--a pursuit and the way is obscured by what you pursue.

As Deepak Chopra relates in his book, The Path to Love,"... [it] is something that you consciously choose to follow, and everyone who has fallen in love has taken that first step." Pope John Paul II in his first public gathering, exhorted the crowd with the Bible verse, "Do not be afraid, for I am with you always."
Deepak continues, "In India, the spiritual path is called Sadhana, and as I've mentioned though a tiny majority of people give up normal life to wander the world as seekers of enlightenment, these monks, Sadhus, everyone, from those in the most ancient civilization of Vedic India until today, considers their life to be a Sadhana, a path to the Self. Although the Self seems separate from us, it is actually intertwined in everything a person thinks, feels, or does... 

As long as the Self has yet to be found, sadhana exists. The "goal" is to change your awareness from separation to unity." And while the inner work takes place, it must have something exterior to sustain it.
"In India, a person's nature leads him to the style of path appropriate to reaching fulfillment. Some people are naturally intellectual, and therefore are suited to the path of knowledge or Gyana. Some are more devotional and are suited to the path of worship, Bhakti. Some are more outwardly motivated and are suited to the path of action, or Karma. The three are not mutually exclusive; rather they may form a wholly integrated path.

"Ideally there are periods of study, worship and reflection, and service in a person's day." It is possible to be so taken by a particular practice that ones' whole existence centers upon that practice. Perhaps it is reading the Scriptures, contemplation or scholarly debate, living the life of Gyana; perhaps spending time meditating, chanting and participating in Temple rituals as the life of a Bhakti. Or you may focus yourself doing social work, teaching, serving, applying yourself to mental and physical purification doing God's bidding in daily life, the work of Karma.


"A path is just a way to open yourself to spirit, to God, to love. These are aims we may cherish, but our culture has given us no established way to reach them. Indeed, never in history has a seeker been confronted with such a disorganized and chaotic spiritual scene." Today what we are left with is the desire to love and be loved, a force and a power in the world too great to be extinguished; thus the path to love is not simply a pretty metaphor, it is a reality. And you are the greatest secret of god's heart. In India, the most ancient version of this is bhakti or devotion, from Vedic India in which all love is in the search for God. The Sufis of Islam, and the great teacher and poet, Rumi, testify to this.

Christ initiated another version of the Way in his teaching "Love your neighbor as yourself." He did not simply say like, rather he passionately intoned the word love as his great commandment. The Christian idea of the Way is about the relationship between a parent, a creator,  for his beloved child. God is seen as the great mother/father. In the Hebrew scriptures, there is the great love of God for his creation in the Song of Solomon.
However "since the advent of Freud, psychologists have assured us that falling in love is illusory; the sense of ecstasy that is part of falling in love isn't realistic. We must learn to accept the temporary nature of romance and disregard the "projected fantasy" that we might be as immortal and invulnerable as lovers often feel."
On the other hand, Chopra among others insists, the sense of uniqueness, blessing and delight felt by lovers has its own reality, but it must be found within; the world wishes no such part. The mystery that is love, joins us to a reality that we yearn for, and despite the "differences of a Sufi master, a yogi, a Christian saint, and a Chinese martial artist, all perceive spirit as clearly as seeing the earth and sky."

The Sign of the Cross

"The sign of the cross is a Christian practice and is associated with the catholic side of the church --Roman, Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran and some United Methodists and Presbyterians. There is nothing in United Methodism that either forbids or encourages the practice.

Since The United Methodist Church is, generally speaking, a product of the Protestant Reformation, it has a piety that tends to be iconoclastic--that is rejecting statues, icons, and many of the catholic practices. Again, this is a church cultural thing and not something that is in print.

All of that being said, I strongly favor making the sign of the cross and do so regularly in my private prayers and when receiving communion (just before taking the elements and just after) and, as a pastor, I made the sign of the cross toward the congregation when blessing them at the end of the service. In order to do that, I had to do some teaching about what it meant and why I chose to do it.

The sign of the cross will, I predict, come to be more accepted in places where we recover a sense of our having been united with Christ in his death and resurrection in baptism. It is a sign often made on the forehead at baptism, when praying for healing and when a person is dying. I encourage you to use the sign as a remembrance and claiming of your baptism and as a sign of encouragement to follow Christ as one of his own. If people are uncomfortable with it and you notice their attention and puzzlement, be a teacher and share with them why you do it. Invite them to feel free to make the sign too.

I believe we need to be free to raise our hands in praise in worship and to not do so. Why not be equally free to make the sign of the cross, kneel, touch water in the font to our foreheads. Worship is about bodies and movement, not just words and thinking!"

The above text is in keeping with the Protestant churchman, John Wesleyan, founder  of the United Methodist Church.Taken from the Book of Discipline

A Power in the World Too Great to Be Extinguished

The Simple Mind is away from the computer. This article appeared here previously on Feb. 2, 2009

"You are the secret of God's heart." by Unknown

The most valuable thing you can offer is your possible, or potential spirit. This is what you have always available to offer, what you need to live your own love story. Like the seed watered, your love is without beginning and without end. Watering the seeds of your love, is a practice that makes you grow-- but it is only a practice, not an end. For, if your focus becomes the notion of "growing," then the end becomes just that--a pursuit and the way is obscured by what you pursue.

As Deepak Chopra relates in his book, The Path to Love,
"...[it] is something that you consciously choose to follow, and everyone who has fallen in love has taken that first step." Pope John Paul II in his first public gathering, exhorted the crowd with the Bible verse, "Do not be afraid, for I am with you always."

Deepak continues, "In India, the spiritual path is called Sadhana, and as I've mentioned though a tiny majority of people give up normal life to wander the world as seekers of enlightenment, these monks, Sadhus, everyone, from those in the most ancient civilization of  Vedic India until today, considers their life to be a Sadhana, a path to the Self. Although the Self seems separate from us, it is actually intertwined in everything a person thinks, feels, or does... As long as the Self has yet to be found, sadhana exists. The "goal" is to change your awareness from separation to unity."

And while the inner work takes place, it must have something exterior to sustain it.
"In India, a person's nature leads him to the style of path appropriate to reaching fulfillment. Some people are naturally intellectual, and therefore are suited to the path of knowledge or Gyana. Some are more devotional and are suited to the path of worship, Bhakti. Some are more outwardly motivated and are suited to the path of action, or Karma. The three are not mutually exclusive; rather they may form a wholly integrated path.

"Ideally there are periods of study, worship and reflection, and service in a person's day." It is possible to be so taken by a particular practice that ones' whole existence centers upon that practice. Perhaps it is reading the Scriptures, contemplation or scholarly debate, living the life of Gyana; perhaps spending time meditating, chanting and participating in Temple rituals as the life of a Bhakti. Or you may focus yourself doing social work, teaching, serving, applying yourself to mental and physical purification doing God's bidding in daily life, the work of Karma.

"A path is just a way to open yourself to spirit, to God, to love. These are aims we may cherish, but our culture has given us no established way to reach them. Indeed, never in history has a seeker been confronted with such a disorganized and chaotic spiritual scene."

Today what we are left with is the desire to love and be loved, a force and a power in the world too great to be extinguished; thus the path to love is not simply a pretty metaphor, it is a reality. In India, the most ancient version of this is bhakti or devotion, from Vedic India in which all love is in the search for God. The Sufis of Islam, and the great teacher and poet, Rumi, testify to this.

Christ initiated another version of the Way in his teaching "Love you neighbor as yourself." He did not simply say like. Rather, he passionately intoned the word love as his great commandment. The Christian idea of the Way is akin to the relationship between a parent for his beloved child. God is seen as the great mother/father. In the Hebrew scriptures, there is the great love of God for his creation in the Song of Solomon.

However "since the advent of Freud, psychologists have assured us that falling in love is illusory; the sense of ecstacy that is part of falling in love isn't realistic. We must learn to accept the temporary nature of romance and disregard the "projected fantasy" that we might be as immortal and invulnerable as lovers often feel." Chopra among others insists, the sense of uniqueness, blessing and delight felt by lovers has its own reality, but it must be found within, the world wishes no such part. The mystery that is love, joins us to a reality that we yearn for, and despite the "differences of a Sufi master, a yogi, a Christian saint, and a Chinese martial artist, all perceive spirit as clearly as seeing the earth and sky."

The One, Adonai

"In his unfathomable love, God became what we are, that he might make us what he is." --Saint Irenaeus, (125-202 C.E.)

As more and more the Way of the Christ is considered, it becomes clear that a central figure, the Christian notion of a monism, is relatively new in history. What, however, some may wish to argue is that Christianity is set apart, and unto itself, through the extensive belief in a creative, and personally loving life force, a god, who makes, yet is in itself already fully fashioned. A creator who exists, one, whole and complete.

This One makes himself known as a lover, as one speaking to his beloved. The intimate, personal nature of the Spirit, this god of love has moved around the world, encircling humanity from all the ends of the earth. As Judaism prepares to enter into the year 5,770 C.E. (Sept.2009-Sept.2010), the faithful remain as a testament to this one God, this one book, Torah:

Deep Within

Deep within I will plant my Way,
not on stone, but in your heart.

Follow me, I will bring you back.
you will be my own,
and I will be your God.

I will give you a new heart,
a new spirit within you
For I will be your strength.

Seek my face
and see your God,
for I will be your hope.

Return to me
with all your heart,
and I will bring you back.

Words inspired from:
Nev'im: Jeremiah 31:33; Ezekiel 36-26; Joel 2:12
written in this version as lyrics by David Haas

simplemindzen.blogspot.com

The Anguttara Nikaya, Possibility Alive

"There is a person whose appearance on earth is for the well being and happiness of all." --Living Buddha, Living Christ by T. N. Hanh


Writing, "The Joy of Being Alive," Buddhist teacher and monk Thich Nhat Hanh says that by simply breathing, you know that you are alive. The breath, after all, like the beating of a heart is the most elemental to all human existence. "Because you are alive, the community of practice (Sangha) can continue. Because you are alive, everything is possible."

Every moment is a moment that can possibly be taken for the Buddha heart, for the Dharma way, for an opportunity to enter into the Spirit. The Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya, known in Chinese as Zēngyī Ahánjīng. These texts, a collection of Sutras, proclaim for one that humans are not merely reducible to living heaps of sense-matter. Rather that they exist as real entities, or centers of living experience encountering the world in a real and heartfelt way. The readings share a timeless, simple wisdom valuable throughout the ages.
Hanh writes, "there is a person whose appearance on earth is for the well being and happiness of all. Who is that person?" It may be the teaching of the Buddha or the Christ, or it may be a sangha or a person who at times appears to you as a Bodhisattva. Through your daily life, with those you come into contact with, in a way of simple presence, of caring and friendship, you can help that person continue. In your mindfulness you see clearly what is necessary, what needs to be done. Breathe deeply; know that you are alive.

An Outrageous Agenda: Be Merciful as Your Lord is Merciful.

"To err is human, to forgive is divine."--Alexander Pope

The Christian in the Bible book of Saint Matthew is exhorted to follow the way of the Lord, the way of his mercies. The Beatitudes sums up the genuine idea of the Messiah, the Christ, and the kingdom very well to the ancient and the modern Judeo-Christian mind.

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven

Blessed are the meek: for they shall possess the land.

Blessed are they who mourn: for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure of heart: for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God.

Mercy in Judaism is considered a fundamental act, an act from which all other acts are formed. The Jewish mind sees alms-giving in all its forms as a beautiful thing.

William Shakespeare wrote of mercy:

"The quality of mercy is not strained, it drops as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath; it is twice blessed; It blesses him who gives, and him who takes; it is the mightiest in the mighty; it becomes the enthroned monarch better than his crown; his sceptre shows the force of temporal power, the attribute to awe and majesty, Wherein does sit the dread and fear of Kings; but mercy is above this sceptred sway, it is enthroned in the hearts of kings."

The simple mind contemplates carefully the acts and understandings which lead to mercy, to compassion. To those oddities of self, of soul, defects in understanding; false notions lead away from the heart of the One. All is in the realm of simple understanding, of deep looking and clearer thinking.