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"I
now accept the creative action of the words I have spoken as the law and
the thing whereunto they are directed. They go forth into
immediate fulfillment. Right now are they fully manifest.
There is no delay, there is nothing that can prevent them from now being
fully and completely fulfilled in my experience. They are words of
power and of good. I accept them, I know they are the truth of
that which I am. In and through them God goes forth anew into
creation. It is now done, it is now complete. For this
knowledge, for this understanding, I am grateful. I give thanks
that all this is so. I know and accept that there is One Life,
that Life is God, that Life is perfect, and that Life is my life now.
Right now. And so it is.."
- Ernest
Holmes, A New Design For Living
The Bible is filled with symbolism, and as with all symbols, they
lend themselves to many interpretations. And here is where we find
the value in the "Palm Sunday" story, by understanding the
symbolism. The palm branch was a symbol of triumph and of victory,
in Jewish tradition ... and Jesus, being Jewish, was aware of this.
Jesus meant to enter Jerusalem in triumph and victory, meaning he had
complete faith in his demonstration of shifting the religious thought of
his time and the purpose of his ministry. The crowd greeted him by
waving palms and carpeting his path with them, which was evidence that
they too, thought he had triumphed over the religious fundamentalists.
The crowd, of course, thought he was the Jewish Messiah, or at least
held hope that he was.
Many Jews at that time believed that Jesus'
symbolic triumphant entry into Jerusalem meant that he was going to
drive the Romans out of the Holy Land. But, he was riding a
donkey, which he had specifically requested. And a donkey was a
symbol of peace, not war. In other words, he was the "Prince
of Peace" ... not the one to drive the Romans out of the Holy Land.
His teachings testified to his mission of peace, non-judgment and
unconditional love. But, it wasn't just the Jews on this day in
Jerusalem that did not understand this, the authors of the religious
dogma attached to the theologies that attempted to "follow
him" didn't understand this either. His last words to his
disciples prior to the crucifixion were: "Peace
I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I
give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be
afraid" (John 14:27).
And so we realize through the example of Jesus, that even though our
faith may direct us to believe in the Good, our experiences, as our
consciousness becomes prepared for the Good, aren't always wonderful.
There will be moments of triumph and victory, as well as moments when we
may be tempted to despair. Because, in order to embody the new ...
we must die to the old. And often, it is after our moments of
exhilaration and triumph, that we go through this experience. And
this is the lesson hidden in the Palm Sunday/Good Friday, story of
Jesus' triumph and crucifixion.
"These things I do, and greater
things still shall you do," the mystical Jesus said. But,
most of us have misunderstood these words. Being a true mystic, we
have to look beyond his words, to that which is back of them.
"These things I do" ... he faced a vicious betrayal by one of
his disciples ... he faced triumph and victory over and over again as he
healed the sick and performed "seeming miracles." His
trusted disciples said they didn't know him when the Roman soldiers came
to arrest him ... through it all, he never lost his faith in G-d, the
Father. And even though scripture tells us he was crucified, his
consciousness continues to impact the world even today.
In
the realization that Palm Sunday reveals to us that we, too, are on a
journey filled with triumphs, disappointments, exhilarations, betrayals,
and victories, we can know within ourselves, that Spirit is always with
us, working for us. "Your faith hath made thee whole,"
stated the mystical Jesus in two of the Gospels; Mark and Matthew ...
and as we keep faith with G-d ... with the Good, we can know this is
true for us too.
AND
SO IT IS!
Keep
the faith!
Rev.
Dr. Henry Lee Bates
Visit Rev. Bates BLOG: Living
the Science of Mind
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