As we approach another Easter season, the impact of its message began to dawn on me.    This dawning led to several questions:  What is the resurrection that Christians celebrate each year?  Are they sharing  in it today or was it a one time deal?  Have we carried the cross during the rest of the year?  Why did Jesus have to go through this ordeal? What purpose has it served?  These questions give motivation to thought and impulse to action.  Each one leads to a higher elevation of thought which culminates in spiritual understanding.  This understanding however, cannot come unless one grasps the meaning of the term resurrection.

The Resurrection 

The word resurrection means the act of raising someone from the dead.  Its first known use was in the 14th century, and has its origin in the Middle English word resurreccion and the Late Latin word resurrection.  Webster defines it as ” the rising of Jesus from the dead after his death and burial.”  Wikipedia states: “The resurrection of Jesus is the Christian belief that Jesus Christ miraculously returned to life on the Sunday following the Friday on which he was executed by crucifixion. It is the central tenet of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: “On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resurrection_of_Jesus).    This article will focus on a meaning supported by the teachings of Mary Baker Eddy: “Resurrection.  Spiritualization of thought;  a new and higher idea of immortality, or spiritual existence; material belief yielding to spiritual understanding” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 593).

As I review readings about the resurrection, its meaning reaches a new level of thought–thought reaching far beyond a physical body being able to walk and talk after being dead for three days, but  thought that symbolizes the true meaning of life–Life as God.  The message that Jesus wanted the world to grasp is that life is not defined by breath in a body, but by a person’s ability to understand and demonstrate the laws of God.  It was a message not only to the chief priests of his time, but for mankind today–a message that emphasizes life as resting  in his teachings–teachings that show sin, sickness and death as beliefs of the human mind, and not a reflection of the divine Mind.  In many instances before he healed people, he urged them to “believe.”  He wanted them to believe that if the senses spoke blindness, believe perfect vision; if the senses revealed death, take hold of life; and if the physical ears heard deafness, grasp spiritual discernment.

Resurrection, then, becomes lifting thinking, not lifting a body.  The people who lived during the time of Jesus believed the same mortal suggestions that we believe today–that all reality is defined by bodily conditions and sensual expressions.  Neither is really true.  All truth comes from God, who is Truth.  The spiritual fan that Jesus used to sweep away the evils of the world, was and is a separator of fact from fable, good from evil and life from death.  He revealed that the pathway out of worldly lusts and beliefs is inconceivable through the senses, but dwells within the spiritual realm of thought.

What Some Church Leaders Say About the Resurrection

                                                                                                                                                     Joyce Meyer

                       Pope Benedict

” While Jesus’ death shows the depths of his love for humanity, it is his Resurrection that proves he is the Son of God,” Pope Benedict XVI said (http://www.americancatholic.org/News/Easter2008/resurrection.asp).

Joel Osteen gives thanks for Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and the abundant life that is available to anyone  

who believes in him ( http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1195221/joel_osteen_does_joel_believe_in_the_resurrection/).

What is the resurrection that Christians share today?

Many Christians share the belief that because Jesus died on the cross, they are saved from sin and will experience eternal life in the hereafter.  Some say, “He paid for our sins, so that we don’t have to.”  Such a view, unless coupled with a deeper understanding of God as Life and man as the expression of Life, can easily be misunderstood, and lead mankind into thinking that he has little or nothing to do but believe Jesus died for his sins, join the church, and he has a seat at the right hand of God.  The kingdom of harmony is within in each one of us, but it must also be demonstrated by each one of us.  Jesus has and never will do it for us.  We must travel the same pathway of redemption that he did.  That is what “working out your own salvation”  is all about.  Every knee must bow in humility to truth and love, and every tongue must confess and live the righteousness of divine law, either here or hereafter.  There is no other way.

The resurrection that we share today, is the same one that Jesus’ disciples discovered when they realized his physical life was restored after the crucifixion–a realization that life was never in the physical body, but because men would not believe that to be so, Jesus had to deal with them at a level they could understand–physicality.   Thus, he showed the same tortured body they had seen on the cross.  The only difference was, the body walked through closed doors, talked with them about life and truth as it had before death, and mentally lifted them above sensuality.  It was through these human experiences that they began to understand life as not in matter, but consists of the spiritual thoughts, words and actions one demonstrates.  That must also be our resurrection if we are to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Why did Jesus have to go through such an ordeal?

Such an ordeal was necessary for mankind to grasp the understanding that the man God created is not made of flesh, blood and bones, but spiritual ideas–ideas that soar above sensuality, physicality and materiality.   Mortality cannot define immortality, nor can the human reach the divine.  These can only be achieved by letting go of one and holding on to the other.

What does it mean to carry the same cross that was carried by Jesus?

The cross symbolizes the suffering every mortal must experience before he reaches immortality.  It comes from mortal man’s clinging to the lusts and desires for that which is evil.  Evil is described in the Bible as devil or Satan–that which entices one to hate his neighbor, lie in the face of truth and steal from the mouth of babes.  Key symbols that make evil seem worthwhile, are money, power and selfishness.   Revenge is another evil that causes mankind to labor.  It tells us that “getting back at someone” who has hurt us, is deserving, acceptable and a symbol of strength.  Ridding oneself of such suggestions is a mighty struggle!

Carrying the cross means “doing unto others as you would have them do unto you,”  forgiving when it seems impossible and loving unconditionally.   Most of us will never carry a wooden cross up the hill of Calvary, but we will be tempted to carry hate, fear, bitterness, resentment and pain in our hearts.   Jesus was crucified because he taught mankind how to overcome sin, sickness and death.  His method of teaching was in direct opposition to the laws of Pilate and the sermons of the chief priests.  He taught and lived far above the meager expressions of divine law advocated by the priests and they hated him for it.

Many of us are crucified when we teach and live goodness, mercy, justice, equality, lawfulness and brotherly love.  Are you able to carry the cross or will you put it down and walk away?

Mary Baker Eddy reminds us just how difficult carrying the same cross of Jesus really is when she says:

“If you launch your bark upon the ever-agitated but healthful waters of truth, you will encounter storms.  Your good will be evil spoken of.  This is the cross.  Take it up and bear it, for through it you win and wear the crown.  Pilgrim on earth, thy home is heaven; stranger, thou art the guest of God” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p, 254).  

This article is about discovering, recognizing and demonstrating a new resurrection–a resurrection not of the physical body but of thinking–thinking far above false beliefs and blind understanding.  It sets affections above hate, lust, greed, selfishness and any other belief or act that keeps thought mired in the dust of sin, sickness and death.  The kingdom of heaven that caused the heart of Jesus to beat with faith, hope and peace lives in each one of us.  Jesus’ message was just that!   He taught us with his words and actions how to clothe ourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  What kind of garment are you wearing?   Put on the “robe of righteousness” and share in his resurrection.

Other Information

“Life is the origin and ultimate of man, never attainable through death, but gained by walking in the pathway of Truth both before and after that which is called death” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 487).

As we approach the Easter season, let us re-affirm that life is eternal, and embrace the body of Christ.   How do we live up to such a statement?   What is eternal life?  What does it mean to embrace the body of Christ?  Do we re-live the crucifixion?   Carry the cross?  Drink the blood?  If so, how do we do that?   What is the significance of “breaking bread?”  These are questions every seriously-minded Christian asks himself with the expectation of finding answers.

Key ingredients to answering these questions have a foundation in one’s understanding of the meaning of body and Christ.  To define body as a material structure, and Christ exclusively as the human man Jesus, leave the seeker of truth at an extreme disadvantage.  Equally as disconcerting is to say, without realizing the true nature of body,  ”My body is my spirit.”   Such a statement leads to another question, “What is your spirit?”

Spirit is another name for God, Mind, Soul, Life, Truth and Love–the only real substance, never in, or of the  flesh, blood and bones.   Spirit in incorporeal–bodiless.  Man reflects the substance of Spirit.  Attributes that define Spirit are faith, hope, abundance, inspiration, purity, strength and infinity.  Man, expressing the substance of Spirit, is made up of these same qualities.  Therefore, in order to demonstrate them in his human experience, man must consciously connect with, or become “at one” with God.  This consciousness constitutes the body of man.   One writer puts it this way,  ”Body is the embodiment of right ideas.  It exists as the outcome of God’s knowing and gives evidence of His presence and power.  Man as God’s reflection includes this right idea of body” (The Christian Science Journal, Vol. 104/No. 9, p.556). What is the writer saying?  He’s stating that one’s body is made up of right ideas–ideas that exist because they represent God’s intelligence, and reveal evidence not only of that knowledge, but also its presence and its power.

Jesus was human, but Christ is divine–that which manifests God.  ”This Christ or divinity of the man Jesus, was his divine nature, the godliness which animated him” (Science and Health, p. 26).   He demonstrated this godliness in infinite ways: healing the sick, destroying sin, opening the eyes of the blind, increasing supply and raising the dead.  His ultimate test was conquering the grave.  Why was this necessary?  It was necessary in order to show mankind “the way”– the way out of sin, sickness and death.

Recognizing Christ as a gift from God, a godliness that all of His creation possesses, and body as the spiritual consciousness of man,  give a very different explanation of “embracing the body of Christ” than one would receive if he viewed the body as material.  How then, does one embrace the body of Christ?  To paraphrase:  How do you fill your consciousness with everything good, perfect and eternal?  How does one hold in thought everything pure, holy, loving and righteous, and cast out everything sinful, impure, unrighteous and hateful? Answer:  With deep concentration, discipline, persistence and divine intelligence, which incidentally, come with each human moment of unfoldment, revelation and perseverance.  Add to these moments, severe bodily pain, hurtful destructive words, loss of a much needed job, death of a child, or any other of the myriad forms of sin, and recognize that this spiritual level of conscious must be maintained at the same time these human struggles are going on.   Can you still continue embracing the Christ? Yes!  Is it easy?  No, but  people all over the world are doing it daily, hourly and with each passing minute.  It takes strong faith, superb inner strength and a deep desire to please God.

Turning to God to correct every mortal action and reaction is carrying the cross, drinking the blood and living the crucifixion.  Why would one want to make such a sacrifice? To wear the crown.  To glorify and honor the One God, and demonstrate the man that He created.

Jesus was the way because he did not expect us to do something he was unwilling or incapable of doing himself.  Not only did he preach and teach, he demonstrated his message.   Had he not, would we still believe in him over 2000 years later?  He taught us to believe not in what one says, but in what one does.  Another way of saying that is, “Talk is cheap.  Show me what you can do!”  Every person who enters “the kingdom of heaven” will walk through the human “gates of hell”– the hell of sin, sickness and death. As you mentally walk through the crucifixion of Jesus this Easter season, embrace the body of Christ.  Let the mind that he expressed be present in yourself, and you will find that you too, will rise above fear, hate, resentment, envy, prejudice, self-love, self-righteousness and self-justification.

Glory be to God!  The Christ has risen, and washed away mortal and earthly thinking!

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Who is Oprah Winfrey?  An icon?  A living legend ?  A household name  known throughout the world? A billionaire?  A talk-show host?

I discovered she is all of the above, and much more!

Let me tell you about it. Open your thought!

It is Monday, December 20, 2010, and I have just arrived at my little hideaway in the south–after eleven hours of highway driving.

Many people read the title and think, “What does she mean ‘Soul sense or human sense?  There is only one kind of sense–the human senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste.”  Ah-h-h, but there is another kind of sense, “Soul sense.”

It also gives you the capacity to see,  hear,  smell,  taste and touch. You just do it mentally!

Soul sense and human sense are opposites!  The human being has the capacity to express one, and give in to the other.   One lies within the true self, and the other is a belief in the false sense of self.

What authority do I have to make such statements? One word, demonstration–demonstration of divine Law.  This law holds that man is created by Mind, soars above human frailties with Soul, and  expresses the substance of Spirit.

As I, or anyone else, practice this law, one’s true identity is discovered.  This allows that person to exist in the flesh, but yield to divine direction and guidance.  Contemplation is always seeking comprehension beyond sensualism–beyond what the five physical senses are entertaining.  Many people identify this as “conscience,  intuition,” or “the Holy Spirit.”   I call it demonstrating my true identity–my true being.

All ideas of harmony emanate in Soul, and all beliefs of discord spring from sense.  The human experience, when governed by Spirit, Soul, consists of daily moving from sense to Soul in thought and action.  We are constantly walking through the mists of error into the sunlight of truth.

A verse from one of my favorite hymns expresses the idea with supreme clarity:

From sense to Soul my pathway lies before me,

From mist and shadow into Truth’s clear day;

The dawn of all things real is breaking o’er me,

My heart is singing; I have found the way.

(The Christian Science Hymnal, No. 64).

My latest video supports this level of thought:  See the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JrthL2FvDs

“Complaint is poverty!”  What would you say if someone spoke these words to you?  One reaction might be, “Yea, so what?”  The first time I read the words, they were attached to but, “Gratitude is riches!”  Why would I choose to write an article on just these three words without the attachment?

News Reports!  Social Media Networks!  Social Gatherings!  Family Gatherings!  Husband and Wife Relationships!  The American Populace!  World Communication!  The list is endless!  Complaint . .   Complaint . . . Complaint!

NOT A PRETTY PICTURE, IS IT?  Yet, we live with it in some form, everyday.  How do you stop the noise?  How do you stop the destruction?  How do you stop the pain?

That is what this article is about–getting rid of complaint!  What can you expect to mentally walk away with by reading it?  Three things:

A deeper meaning of complaint and poverty.

The impact it has on the complainant and the recipient of the complaint.

The ability to determine  if my theory that ” Every statement of complaint matched with the same element of praise, will lessen your desire to complain” is accurate of false.

In order to get to the core of why complaint is poverty, it is necessary to gain a workable knowledge of both.

What does complaint mean? It means finding fault; expressing rage or resentment.  Poverty is a powerlessness and lack of representation and freedom. To paraphrase, when one complains about something or someone, he is expressing his own powerlessness, his own sense of the inability to represent, control or remedy the situation or condition.   Since he feels helpless that his freedom and control are compromised, he resorts to criticism or complaint of the person(s) he feels responsible.  The problem with this mental environment, is that it destroys the spirit of man, corrupts the capacity to reason, and lessens the ability to discriminate between good and evil, and right and wrong.

What are some of the pitfalls of complaint?

Unpleasant demeanor or disposition.

Deters friendship or companionship.

Promotes negative responses.

Robs one of good or progressive ideas.

What are some of the pitfalls of poverty?

Breeds inferiority and inadequacy.

Robs one of self-respect.

Causes deficiency of thought.

Eliminates one’s mental state of excellence.

An example of this can be seen in what motivated me during many years of my adult life.  I had a deep sense of what I perceived to be right and wrong, fair and unfair, equality and inequality, and when one crossed the line relative to this sense, I would spring into action!  Granted, in most cases, human logic would agree that a wrong had been committed against me, but reaction to it was always combative.

Long detailed letters, accentuating each complaint would be sent to CEO’s or presidents of corporations, congressmen, lawyers, school superintendents, or whomever I felt would correct the situation, I wallowed and rolled in anger, resentment, and revenge until a solution was reached, and sometimes, even after it was reached.  However, as my understanding of divine law increased, and I was able to see that there is an underlying principle that governs all human activity and experience, those complaints or lawsuits have diminished to practically non-existent.  Today, I take my case to a higher power, a greater sense of justice, and know that the solution will bless all participants.

What I found is that even though the resolution does not always meet my initial expectation, I learn lessons that I need to learn, have less stress in my life, and actually learn to express unconditional love to those who have hurt me the most.

Unconditional love does not mean that one always gets human fairness and equality, it means that in spite of whatever happens in human situations, love must prevail–not necessarily love for that person(s), but love for the true nature of man–the perfection of man.

WHAT IS THE OPPOSITE OF COMPLAINT AND POVERTY?  The opposite of complaint is praise, adoration, and approval.  It is heartfelt humility, trustworthiness, joy and servility.  Poverty’s opposite is obedience to divine law, purity of thought, gratitude and infinite unfoldment of spiritual ideas.

We have talked about what it means to have an attitude of complaint and poverty, let’s talk about what it means to be free of them.  Since poverty and complaint are sensual–that which is only perceived by the senses, freedom comes when man dwells in the sanctity of Soul, God.  Soul releases you from the hardships of life, a focus on worldliness, and a haven of sense.  This is not a state of mental, human escapism, but a divine correction of thought, a removal of a false sense of reality.

“Bless my soul” means shower me with goodness, keep me in a state of excellence, and grant me the ability to discriminate between right and wrong, good and evil.   Let the fragrance of Soul embrace me, the perfume of joy surround me, and the voice of praise sustain me.  The presence of Soul keeps one from seeking false tastes, poor vision and selective hearing.  In so doing, the world receives the warmth, mercy, grace and security that it brings.

How can you benefit by choosing praise over complaint, or abundance over poverty? Every time you complain about something or someone, make a conscious effort to follow it with a word of praise, or a statement of approval.  It will be difficult the first few times.  You may even feel silly.  Keep doing it as often as you can remember each day, each hour, for one month, and  I guarantee that you will have a more restful hour, brighter day and the promise of a peaceful tomorrow.  How do I know?  I have demonstated it in my life!  Praise is power!  It gives comfort, joy and a sense of peace.  Approval brings harmony to the heart, freedom to growth and understanding, and an expression of love that embraces and expands day-by-day.

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