For this Sunday's message, I am posting a portion of my Zoom talk on the "Wonder and Trouble of Things." The complete Zoom recording will be available later in the month at hillsidesource.com along with various audio recordings of my previous talks and older talks by Dr. Larry Morris. Here I am addressing one of the areas of "Things" that cause confusion and conflict between the material world's agenda and spiritual teachings.
Spiritually we have centuries of traditions that have made and revered sacred objects, ceremonial objects, that represent, embody, invoke or at least remind us of God, and divine intervention. At the same time, religious teachings warn of the corrupting power of things and the desire for 'things' that undermine spiritual values. The concern is that Spiritual values are undermined when we place the highest value on what we own and our greatest attachments are to those 'things'. With the current climate crisis, 'things' have suddenly take on a serious material tone--the harm that the material does to the natural, the ecosystem. The spiritual trouble, isn't so much an issue of the object itself, but rather our relationship to it. The value of a thing is subjective; it depends on your point of view and the meaning you give to it. Values are shaped by more that our subjective experience, values are set in the marketplace and in the collective, in institutions that include religion. This sets up dualistic value conflicts. God is "All that is", and yet, "all that is" is not considered of value. If society has an underlying belief that all things belong to the Source, then the idea of personal ownership itself is called into question. In Society, the idea of ownership is extremely important. Being clear on laws and rules of ownership actually does decrease conflict. It doesn't help so much with envy or resentment but it can make ownership clear and goods more manageable; the owner has final control. Spiritually, when you can freely give of what society or your yourself think belongs to you exclusively, the act of giving itself, is a breaking through the separation between you and other, yes, but more importantly between you and God, or you and the continual flow of all that is necessary for your life. Instead of the concept of ownership, we have the idea of Stewardship. You are the human channel through which your piece of the world is managed, responsibly, inline with your spiritual principles and the laws of your society.
Follow the link below to a poem on Things by Jane Hirschfield