The Science of Spiritual Healing

"The Science of Spiritual Healing"
Rev. Deb

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John 1:1-4
The Word Became Flesh
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4 in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. (NRSV)
 
Thus begins the very mystical Gospel of John.   Wow, in the beginning was only God, only the Power and energy of love seeking expression in the creative process.  The light and life of God is the light and life of all people, even if we don’t know it or understand what that really means for us.  We proclaim this Gospel as our very own first Unity Principle:  There is only One Presence and One Power in the Universe and in my life, God the Good, Omnipotence!  We have been exploring what is required of us for realizing this powerful Truth; how do we make it real in these times of great division in our world.  How is it that I make room in my heart for you, with whom I so passionately disagree?  There seems to be no space there for you if I am to maintain my spiritual center!  At least is sure seems that way!  What about the opposite, what about evil?
 
We have talked of the healing path of Love and last Sunday our exploration was about learning to hold space for the polarities, or opposites, so that the energy of polarity is realized as a doorway to a greater expression of  “God-Ness” or goodness rather than as a constant source of tension and conflict.  We are right up against the edge of our capacity to hold these tensions, which contribute to our emotional and spiritual growth.  It is a time of great possibility and promise even as it is challenging and difficult and it is not a time to give up or check out or back away, not even a little!
 
We are in need of spiritual healing because what truly ails us right now is not about “stuff” or wealth or political power, it is about that which is between us, that which we cannot see, it is about the energy of Spirit. It is in that space, the space of the cracks between us that we seek spiritual healing, that we affirm what is “real.”  What can possibly fill those cracks?  Right now, it can feel like only the worst of us, the worst of our humanness is leaking through all the cracks as we sink down even more in the belief in an either/or zero sum competition rather than a both/and synergy of cooperation.
 
Once again, during Black History month and beyond, we take heed and heart from our black brothers and sisters who have been finding a healing way forward through these opposing forces and contradictions for centuries.  Here again are the words of Rev. Howard Thurman: 

What, then, is the word of the religion of Jesus to those who stand with their backs against the wall? There must be the clearest possible understanding of the anatomy of the issues facing them. They must recognize fear, deception, hatred, each for what it is. Once having done this, they must learn how to destroy these or to render themselves immune to their domination. In so great an undertaking it will become increasingly clear that the contradictions of life are not ultimate.   ~Howard Thurman, Jesus and the Disinherited

It is a great, powerful undertaking to render one’s self immune to being dominated by fear, deception and hatred.  It is a great and powerful undertaking to realize that the contradictions of life are not ultimate, despite all appearances. We do have the tools for this journey, as it is the essence of what we are learning as Unity Truth students.  How so? We turn to Myrtle Fillmore in How to Let God Help You, p. 41:

…before we can enter into the kingdom of God (Spirit of Mind) which opens to us through this new way of thinking and living, we must drop old prejudices and old thoughts and sit meekly down to learn what is true.  We must let go of old beliefs in sin, sickness, and death.  We need not worry about what will become of them any more that we need give thought to the place where darkness flees when the light is brought in…..or to what becomes of ignorance when knowledge takes its place.  When you realize that Spirit is All, that Truth shall set you free from negative conditions, they all go where darkness and cold are when driven away by the energies of light and heat: nowhere.

What is so powerful in this is the BIG AH HA that the other person does not have to change, wake up or agree with you for spiritual healing to take place.  This healing, this science of spiritual healing takes place completely within you, but it has a significant impact on everyone and all the energy around you. 


This spiritual journey to realize the science of spiritual healing is our own individual and unique journey.  It does require that we let go of old prejudices, thoughts and beliefs to make room for what is True, really True.  It means that whenever my feelings, thoughts and energy turns to what is “wrong” or broken in myself or another, I give equal measure of attention and energy to what is good, true and beautiful and whole in the same.  This is a discipline, a spiritual discipline that calls upon a systematic application of love and light to every instance where it appears there is only darkness.  We do this through a conscious practice of prayer, of affirming that Love and light are always there, like the sun, even when we cannot see them.
 
In one of my readings I learned about a process called Kintsugi whereby the Japanese use gold to repair broken porcelain.  It was in an online article by a woman, Sue Cochrane who shared this image to reflect her journey with cancer.
 
 Kintsugi: The Golden Joinery of Love
--by Sue Cochrane, syndicated from themovementofhealing.com,
Feb 15, 2021
 
This method of restoring breakage with gold is called Kintsugi (also known as Kintsukuori) and translates as “golden joinery.” I did some quick research and discovered that Kintsugi is an outgrowth of the Japanese philosophy of Wabi-Sabi, which honors the beauty of imperfections.
 
The Kintsugi artisan uses gold or other precious metal mixed with epoxy to repair the broken piece. This method emphasizes, rather than hides, the breakage. The repaired piece is often considered even more beautiful than the original.
 
Kintsugi embraces the breakage as part of the object’s history, instead of something unacceptable to be hidden or thrown away. This is the opposite of what I was taught. I learned that I was supposed to be perfect, and that I must hide any imperfections. This belief is imbedded in our culture: if something is broken, toss it out; if something is flawed, hide it.
 
Friends, I believe that this Golden Joinery of Love is what fills in the cracks both within our own souls and the cracks in our connections with others.  I believe that what holds us together, like the gold of Kintsugi is the energy of Spirit which is akin to the power of gravity which holds us all on this earth.  When we fill in the cracks with hatred, deception, self-deception, and fear, the cracks only get bigger and the apparent breach just grows.  However, sometimes we can only realize Truth, Goodness and beauty in the harder times when it is most absent.  Sometimes it takes great suffering as well as great love to grab and hold our attention to what is Real, what is Truth.  When we do that, we are part of the science of spiritual healing….filling in the cracks with the Golden energy of God Love and Truth that is bigger that we are.  Every time we listen without judgment, lean in and learn, ask for clarification and just allow, we speak up when we need to do so, we create the space for healing, for the golden joinery of love to knit us together.
 
I want to close today with something from Richard Rohr’s 2-12-2021 Daily Meditation, “Awe and Joy”.  He quotes Barbara Holmes, an African American contemplative teacher and leader.  He share the following:

As she often does, Barbara Holmes expands and strengthens my thinking. She names this moment of awe “Joy Unspeakable.” But awe is not always inspired by beauty and goodness. Truth sometimes comes in hard packages. It takes both great love and great suffering to stun us and bring us to our knees. God is there in all of it, using every circumstance of our life, to draw us ever more deeply into the heart of God. Barbara writes:

We are not headed toward a single goal: we are on a pilgrimage
toward the center of our hearts. It is in this place of prayerful
repose that joy unspeakable erupts.
 
    Joy Unspeakable
    erupts when you least expect it,
    when the burden is greatest,
    when the hope is gone
    after bullets fly.
    It rises
    on the crest of impossibility,
    it sways to the rhythm
    of steadfast hearts,
    and celebrates
    what we cannot see.

What we cannot see, but what we can always feel is the invisible energy of love that is the Golden Joinery that knits all our brokenness together and holds us in a stronger, more beautiful union than we, as humans could possibly imagine.  Our spiritual path tells us it is possible, and even probable that we find our way to spiritual healing as the path of pain and suffering brings us to that place of letting go of what we can see plainly does not work at all.  May it be ever so!
 
Blessings on the Path

March 3, 2021