I’ve received more than a few emails in the last couple of
days from people who saw Billy Graham’s latest column in our local paper with
the title: “Bible forbids attempts to
communicate with the dead.” They want to
know what I thought about it. My initial
reaction was, “Here we go … another
chance for people to either think with their hearts or to allow others to tell
them what to believe.”
The argument about communicating with the dead has been
around as long as people have been interpreting the Bible. As with most things, if one is looking for a
particular point of view, one can find it.
Those who disagree with mediumship will find verses to support their
view in the Bible. They will not discuss
the verses that speak of the “gifts of the Spirit” and others which support
personal communication with higher consciousness. I am
not a Bible scholar, but I do believe that there are contradictions within its
pages on a multitude of subjects. For
this reason, I simply don’t “go there.”
around as long as people have been interpreting the Bible. As with most things, if one is looking for a
particular point of view, one can find it.
Those who disagree with mediumship will find verses to support their
view in the Bible. They will not discuss
the verses that speak of the “gifts of the Spirit” and others which support
personal communication with higher consciousness. I am
not a Bible scholar, but I do believe that there are contradictions within its
pages on a multitude of subjects. For
this reason, I simply don’t “go there.”
In the article, the reader is told that if we turn our backs
on the living God and reject his son, we have no hope of heaven. Instead, “our destiny will be that place of
absolute loneliness and despair the Bible calls hell, separated from God
forever.” Words like these remind me of a billboard I
saw along the highway recently posted by a traditional church. In six-foot high letters surrounded by frightening
flames was a single word: “OBEY!”
on the living God and reject his son, we have no hope of heaven. Instead, “our destiny will be that place of
absolute loneliness and despair the Bible calls hell, separated from God
forever.” Words like these remind me of a billboard I
saw along the highway recently posted by a traditional church. In six-foot high letters surrounded by frightening
flames was a single word: “OBEY!”
This is where I sit back and from a place of non-judgment
say, “Isn’t that interesting!” From this
neutral perspective I can remain centered in love, feel at peace, and respect
and appreciate the vast diversity of opinions that comprise the human
experience. I am so grateful that I do
not live in fear. I am so grateful that
I regularly feel enveloped by divine love and can devote my life to sharing
that love freely with all others.
say, “Isn’t that interesting!” From this
neutral perspective I can remain centered in love, feel at peace, and respect
and appreciate the vast diversity of opinions that comprise the human
experience. I am so grateful that I do
not live in fear. I am so grateful that
I regularly feel enveloped by divine love and can devote my life to sharing
that love freely with all others.
I would ask those who have found healing from the evidence I
have brought forth from communicating with their deceased loved ones if they
experienced anything that was “not of God.”
If the work I do ever results in anything less than bringing more light
into our world, then I will stop doing it.
It’s that simple.
have brought forth from communicating with their deceased loved ones if they
experienced anything that was “not of God.”
If the work I do ever results in anything less than bringing more light
into our world, then I will stop doing it.
It’s that simple.
The article reflects fundamentalist Christian beliefs. My
beliefs are not religious, but spiritual.
Each represents different positions along a line of possible
perspectives. My beliefs come not from
what is written in a book or taught by another, but from contemplation, personal
experience, and tuning in to my heart.
Having spent much time in the expanded consciousness offered by
meditation, I have come to know that we are all one with our Source and
therefore cannot be separated from that Love, no matter what we believe or
do. Everything is “of God.” Yes, we personally reap what we sow by our
own actions, but we are always surrounded by divine love as we learn and
grow. I do not expect or request that anyone
reading these words agree with my beliefs.
We are all at different places along that spectrum of perspectives. I hope that you form your own beliefs that
feel just right for you.
beliefs are not religious, but spiritual.
Each represents different positions along a line of possible
perspectives. My beliefs come not from
what is written in a book or taught by another, but from contemplation, personal
experience, and tuning in to my heart.
Having spent much time in the expanded consciousness offered by
meditation, I have come to know that we are all one with our Source and
therefore cannot be separated from that Love, no matter what we believe or
do. Everything is “of God.” Yes, we personally reap what we sow by our
own actions, but we are always surrounded by divine love as we learn and
grow. I do not expect or request that anyone
reading these words agree with my beliefs.
We are all at different places along that spectrum of perspectives. I hope that you form your own beliefs that
feel just right for you.
I served our great country for twenty years so that we may
continue to live in a nation where we are free to publish our beliefs in a
newspaper and to practice whatever religion fits our beliefs. Being a woman in the U.S. military was a
non-traditional career choice in a traditionally male world. Today I adhere to modern spiritual beliefs
and the non-traditional practice of evidential mediumship in a world still
dominated by traditional religious beliefs and practices. Some may respect me for that. Others may not. I can’t remember who said it, but I would have
to agree that “What others think about me is none of my business!”
continue to live in a nation where we are free to publish our beliefs in a
newspaper and to practice whatever religion fits our beliefs. Being a woman in the U.S. military was a
non-traditional career choice in a traditionally male world. Today I adhere to modern spiritual beliefs
and the non-traditional practice of evidential mediumship in a world still
dominated by traditional religious beliefs and practices. Some may respect me for that. Others may not. I can’t remember who said it, but I would have
to agree that “What others think about me is none of my business!”
I feel so thoroughly supported by God and so fully confident
that the greater reality is ruled by Love, that truthfully, the article did not
bother me. What did you think about it,
my friends? Did you feel fear? If so, this is an opportunity for
growth. May you find that place of peace
inside where Love rules. Go there, and
ask what you should believe.
that the greater reality is ruled by Love, that truthfully, the article did not
bother me. What did you think about it,
my friends? Did you feel fear? If so, this is an opportunity for
growth. May you find that place of peace
inside where Love rules. Go there, and
ask what you should believe.
Hi Suzanne: I believe that the quote you couldn't identify, "What others think of me is none of my business" is from Ashleigh Brilliant. (But now we can both look that up!!!) Love, Jan Smith
Beautifully stated, Suzanne! Having been raised as southern Baptist, I hear and understand these concerns. Billy Graham is a strong spiritual conduit to many, and his commitment to his ministry is unquestionable. That being said, I deeply agree with you that we each have to look within for the truth resonance of what we see, hear, and think. We are blessed to live in a time (and place) where diverse paths are possible, as we each live out the lessons we came here for. Thank you for your willingness to bring spiritual truths into the world that so many are ready for!
In the "Mastery" group yesterday the article came up. Someone you know very well brought up the fact that the articles that are appearing recently may have been written early in the evangelist's career. Let us hope that he has also "come a long way" in awakening. Did not the prophets speak of such things?
I've had this discussion with some regularity, given my geographical placement here in the buckle on the Bible Belt, Tulsa. In fact, I've recently lost a friend as a result of my experience of healing from loss through contact with mediums.
Isn't that ironic? My suffering, sadness, and misery was alleviated as a result of knowing my dead folks are alive and well, but somehow that's evil?
My former friend insists that the devil will, in an effort to seduce me to his side of things, pretend to be Mike or daddy or my long lost mother. The joyous feelings that result are just crumbs from the devil's evil table to keep me coming around. And then … then what? When I die I go to hell and discover that I was tricked and will thus burn in eternity?
If true, this would mean that GOOD THINGS come from the devil, and HORRIBLE THINGS (like endless grief, suffering, sadness) are of God. Excuse my language, but WTF? Does that even begin to make sense? God, the Universe, the Creator of Everything gave us brains to use, of that I'm certain.
And so I have, despite the clucking of tongues, the prayers for my soul, and the worried shaking of heads, determined that I will use that brain to educate myself. And also to review the Bible briefly, in which I find the following:
Matthew 7:16… "By their fruits ye shall know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"
The fruits of my contact with mediums include peace, a sense of living in and experiencing the most profound love, acceptance, freedom, happiness, and joy, plus a renewed sense of purpose and involvement with this life.
Hey, that's sounding suspiciously like this, doesn't it?
Galatians 5:22-23… "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."
I'm no Bible scholar and despite having been brought up in the very conservative Missouri Synod Lutheran church, I've not made a study of the Book. But I've studied enough to know that it is chock full of contradictions. And I've grown enough spiritually to know that the truth resonates within me like a ringing bell.
When I read that "God is love," my bell rings true and strong. When I read about various abominations, including the eating of shrimp (which I adore!!!), my bell is silent.
We each have to find our own truth and what resonates within us. Fear ~ of hell, satan, of an angry God ~ never pinged my internal truth bell, it just kept me terrified and mired in self loathing, because who could measure up? Even as a child at First Lutheran Elementary, told that hundreds of millions of innocent children were going to burn in hell for eternity if we didn't support our missionaries, my 8-year-old self couldn't reconcile that with the loving God I'd been hearing about my whole life. Hearing from my husband, dead for over a year, sets my little truth bell to ringing long and loud. And being able to now live in a manner consistent with those fruits of the spirit the Bible refers to sets up the most merry and happy clanging you can imagine.
Another truth from the Bible: God is love. And so if God is also everything, then everything is love. Which all of us on this spiritual path know. And that tells me that all is well. Everyone's got an opinion, even Billy Graham, but that doesn't mean it's an actual, incontrovertible truth. We each find our own truth and regardless of the path we choose, all will be well, for each of us. Those who are finding help and healing on the path of spirituality will continue to do so and those who find something in church can go there. I wish they wouldn't judge me, but I'm happier when I don't judge them back.
And if Billy Graham's recent article scares some folks, maybe your waiting list will be reduced, Suzanne, and that would be a very good thing indeed. :)
Lynette, please email me ASAP