Should You Speak, Sing The Eternal Farewell?

Eastern-cougar Should you speak, sing the eternal farewell?Of the stories of endangered species, I consider this story to be unusually strange. Furthermore, I consider this story to not only be strange, but to have been strange for some time. It is the story of the Eastern Cougar (known scientifically as a subspecies of Puma concolor).

Should you speak, sing the eternal farewell?

The US Fish and Wildlife Service declared the eastern cougar extinct in March of 2011. That declaration was presented as something that probably should have been done a long time ago. The last confirmed eastern cougar was killed in 1938. The agency recommended that the eastern cougar be dropped from the endangered species list.

Should you speak, sing the eternal farewell? It was therefore considered something of a shock when a cougar was killed in Connecticut in July of 2011. It was a cougar, and it was in the east, therefore it must be an eastern cougar, yes? Not necessarily. It was later discovered that this cougar had come to Connecticut from the Black Hills of South Dakota, by way of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan.

Should you speak, sing the eternal farewell? A cougar was shot in Kentucky in 2014. This cougar was considered to be a western cougar, and that cougars seen in the eastern United States were relatives of the extinct eastern cougar.

Should you speak, sing the eternal farewell? Some scientists are of the opinion that the western cougar and the eastern cougar are but two names for the same animal. If that is the case, then the eastern cougar isn’t really extinct because there never really was an eastern cougar. The case is that the American cougar’s habitat has decreased to the American west, but the American cougar isn’t extinct. And if the eastern cougar doesn’t really exist, then it shouldn’t be called extinct by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Should you speak, sing the eternal farewell? The US Fish and Wildlife Service is making their proposal available for review and comment until August 17, 2015. The IUCN Red List reports that the cougar species as a whole, Puma concolor, is considered “least threatened” because there are varieties throughout North and South America. All I know is that unless the cougars have an advocate, it won’t stay that way.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Genuine Remorse? Oh Yes, It Matters

Tsarnaev Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters.The trial of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been steadily working its way through a federal courtroom over the past three months.

Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters

Unlike many trials, there was agreement between the jury and the defendant that the defendant actually committed the crime in question. In his remarks in court yesterday, Tsarnaev said “If there’s any lingering doubt about that, let there be no more.” He added, “I did along with my brother [the late Tamerlan Tsarnaev].”

Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters. I took interest in the sentencing phase of the trial. Great effort was made on the part of the defense to demonstrate that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was remorseful for his actions. The jury did not agree with the defense. I understand there is a wide spectrum of opinion on this subject. I understand that juries get things wrong from time to time. All I know is that points were argued, testimonies were heard, evidence was presented, and a decision was made.

Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters. Tsarnaev apologized in his remarks in court yesterday, saying “Now, I am sorry for the lives that I’ve taken, for the suffering that I’ve caused you, for the damage that I’ve done. Irreparable damage.”

Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters. Some of the victims were unmoved by Tsarnaev’s apology. The general public seemed to have a certain small degree of sympathy.

Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters. One of the many things I appreciate about the New Message from God is its unqualified condemnation of religious violence. I pray that I would never commit violence in the name of my religion. I pray that everyone on earth would pray that they would never commit violence in the name of their religion. I pray that the eyes of those who do violence in the name of their religion would be opened, that they would quit their ignorance and the teachings they were taught. I will pray these prayers until I die or until they are granted, whichever comes first.

Genuine remorse? Oh yes, it matters. Thinking about the Tsarnaev trial has inspired me to add one more prayer to my list. I pray that the hearts of those who do violence in the name of their religion would feel genuine remorse for their misrepresentation of God, and their injury to people. I pray they would express that remorse in a way people can understand.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Should You Be Alarmed? Or Just Alerted?

shrinking-well-small-295x300 Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted?The New Message from God includes a series of teachings called the Great Waves of Change.

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted?

What are the Great Waves of Change? Difficult times in the near future, wrenching adjustments that humanity faces as a result of its behavior.

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? What kind of wrenching adjustments? A set of wrenching adjustments including, but not limited to warmer global climate, environmental collapse, a loss of arable land, economic collapse, involuntary mass human migrations, wars of desperation and …(taking a breath) religious conflicts.

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? And when are these wrenching adjustments taking place? No particular dates have been given. However, Marshall Vian Summers, messenger of the New Message from God, has remarked from time to time that humanity is in the foothills of the Great Waves of Change. While it was a mixing of metaphors, it gave a particular image, because these remarks were usually made in the city of Boulder, Colorado, to people living in Boulder. Boulder is a city in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

BoulderCVB3 Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted?

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? I realize that it might be easy at this point to construe Marshall Vian Summers as yet another voice in a great chorus of doommongers. But some things have happened this year about which I have wondered. I share those things with you now.

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted?

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? The city of Sao Paulo, Brazil, a metropolitan area of some 20 million inhabitants, faced rationing of drinking water. This got my attention because Sao Paulo is Portuguese for St. Paul, and I live in St. Paul, Minnesota. The story was mostly ignored by American media, gaining only mentions in passing. A student of the New Message who lives not too far from Sao Paolo writes:

Many areas inside Sao Paulo city, and many other cities in the Sao Paulo state, and many regions of near states are rationing. Mega public works being announced and started, but these things take time and most of them are not really thought through. Around November/December summer starts and it’s going to begin another cycle of peak usage. I see each year getting harder and harder, with possibility of upheaval here and there along the way, such as occurred last year in the city of Itu, Sao Paulo.”

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted?Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? An article in Water Resources Journal recently declared that water levels in 21 of 37 major aquifers (underground bodies of water) around the world are declining. Ground water is being used faster than it is being replenished.

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted?Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? One of those aquifers measured in the above article is the one for the Central Valley of California. Victor Davis Hanson is both a historian and a Central Valley farmer. He paints the following picture:

“Domestic and agricultural wells are going dry all over Central California, especially in the corridors south of Fresno to the Grapevine, along the Sierra Nevada foothills, and out west of the 99 Freeway — anywhere there is not a deep aquifer. I have never seen anything quite like this water madness in 60 years, as families scrimp and borrow to drill, or simply move to town to take advantage of municipal wells. I have developed a habit as I drive to work to Stanford of counting the abandoned homes I see west of Highway 41 (sort of like counting those who sit in Wal-Mart not to shop, but to enjoy the air conditioning they cannot afford). The number increases each week. Retired couples — or families in general — apparently do not have tens of thousands of dollars to drill a deeper well, especially given the uncertainty of how fast the dropping water table will soon make their investment superfluous. Without water, there is nothing.

Some dry farmland is turning into vacant parcels. Many rural homes must have potable water trucked in. Hispanics who recently immigrated to California and bought or rented older homes with shallow wells in these areas of the valley countryside have no money to drill deeper $30,000 domestic wells. Nor do many poor whites, who often live in isolated communities in the foothills. Who has the capital to gamble on finding scarce water in dicey granite seams? There is no water in the reservoirs left to recharge the water table or to fill canals that can be tapped for domestic use.”

Should you be alarmed? Or just alerted? Who knows, maybe the “hydric collapse” of Sao Paulo was only a momentary glitch. But what if it isn’t? Who knows, maybe the NASA scientists are mistaken about the state and trend of the world’s aquifers. But what if they aren’t? Who knows, maybe the rain and snow that hasn’t come to the Central Valley for the past four years will come this year. But what if it doesn’t?

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Покажи мне, что я должен сделать, чтобы найти свой путь.

Покажи мне, что я должен сделать, чтобы найти свой путь.

Покажи мне, что я должен сделать, чтобы найти свой путь.

Каждый год, люди Нового Послания от Бога отмечают те дни, когда «Шаги к Знанию» впервые раскрылись Маршалу Виану Саммерсу. Это случилось с 26 мая по 14 июня 1989. В этом году, Всемирное сообщество практикантов Шагов праздновало 26-ую годовщину этого сакрального события.

Я, каждый день этого 20-дневных периода, смотрела видео-трансляцию с Боулдера, a если не в реальное время (7 часов вечера в штате Колорадо попадает в 4 часа утра в деревне, где я живу в России), то скоро после окончания, и почувствовала ту сильную связь и взаимодействие с другими людьми этого сообщества. Это было насыщенное, благодатное время для меня, когда подтвердилась правильность пути, который я выбрала для себя, следуя по Шагам к Знанию. Увы, не всё можно передать словами, особенно русскими.

Тут есть перечень со ссылкой на каждое видео в течение этих 20 дней. Разумеется, это всё на английском. А тем не менее, я попытаюсь перевести на русский пару выступления Маршала, которые выразили простым и сильнодействующим языком, суть этого явления и Шагов к Знанию как таковым.

В День 10, 4 июня, Маршал говорил:

“Я хочу поделиться некоторыми мыслями с вами сегодня вечером, которые могут вам помочь, ведь Знание – такая загадочная вещь. Хотя, с другой стороны, оно – самая простая вещь в мире.

Когда люди начинают практиковать Шаги к Знанию, их уверяют, что они действительно знают кое-что, и что Знание – то, что они действительно знают. А потом они отдают себе отчёт о том, что Знание знает, а они ничего, собственно, не знают. На самом деле, чем больше вы приближаетесь к Знанию, и испытываете его, тем больше вы понимаете, сколько вы действительно не знаете. И сколько веры понадобится, чтобы укрепить себя: предположения, замечания против других, чтобы заменить и избегать признания, что вы на самом деле ничего не знаете. Но, не зная и принимая тот факт, заставляет вас открыться к Знанию, к тому смирению. Так через некоторое время вам не надо задавать вопросы Знанию, зная, что оно знает точно, где вы, как далеко вы продвинулись, как далеко вам ещё придется идти. И вместо вопроса, есть молитва. А молитва такая, Покажи мне, что я должен сделать, чтобы найти свой путь. Призывай меня.  Покажи мне, что я должен сделать, чтобы найти свой путь.

Ведь такой вопрос как “Какова моя цель?” не имеет ответа, надо двигаться по пути, тем более, такому судьбоносному. Так вопрос состоит в том, сможете ли вы двигаться по этому пути. Чтобы двигаться по этому пути, вы должны позволить Знанию сделать свою работу и выполнить то, что оно дает вам выполнить, о чем, вы уже знаете.

И продолжайте просить о силе, честности и смирении, чтобы выполнить эти вещи. Знание знает, что Вы не готовы нести ответственность за этим великим предназначением. Поэтому суть в вашей подготовке.”

И на следующий день, День 11, 5 июня, он говорил в частности:

“Я хотел бы сказать несколько слов о Шагах к Знанию сегодня вечером — почему они здесь, что они означают, и что они створят в жизни каждого, кто может изучить их. В первую очередь, Шаги к Знанию – древнее обучение, которое использовалось во многих местах во вселенной. То, что мы сейчас имеем, является версией Шагов к Знанию, разработанной для человеческого рода, разработанной для нашего темперамента, нашего мира, нашего потенциала, наших кризисов, нашего общего состояния.

Это – дарение от Создателя всей жизни через Ангельскую Ассамблею. Оно представляется в той чистой форме, в которой оно было получено. Оно представляет собой серия шагов, которые работают, как практическом, так и загадочном образом, чтобы воссоединить вас с более глубоким умом, который Бог поместил внутри вас, который один несет истину о том, кто вы и почему вы находитесь здесь в мире в это время, и чего вы должны здесь достигнуть.

Эта более глубокая часть вас, которая существует вне сферы и досягаемости интеллекта, без искажения. Она не боится мира. Она не думает так, как ваш мирской ум думает, ваш мирской ум, который был обусловлен по большему счету вашей средой и опытом жизни здесь.

Это более глубокое Знание представляет ваш истинный характер, бессмертный аспект себя, который все еще связан с Богом. И эта связь вне всякого религиозного понимания и объяснения. Она настолько фундаментальна и элементарна тому, кто вы, и что вы должны здесь сделать.

Это через Знание, что желание Создателя может быть выражено <…> Поэтому, можно описать Шаги к Знанию как возвращение к истинным взаимоотношениям — истинное взаимоотношение с собой, истинное взаимоотношение между той частью себя, которая идет растеряно по миру и той частью себя, которая всё ещё представляет ваш фундамент, которая связана с вашим источником и с вашей целью здесь.
<…>
Как часть Нового Откровения Бога для мира, Шаги к Знанию представляют собой часть подготовки к восстановлению Знания в каждом человеке. Они настолько существенны, даны такими простыми словами, а с другой стороны, такими глубокими, что нельзя исчерпать их богатства и мудрости. Даны в форме, которая легко переводится на другие языка, для того, чтобы обратиться к людям всех верований и национальностей, богатым и бедным, во всех углах мира.
<…>
Шаги к Знанию и Новое Откровение от Бога должны подготовить человечество к тому, чтобы справиться с грядущими большими переменами, которые надвигаются на мир, даже сейчас. Если вы можете предпринять эти Шаги, даже если вы не можете делать их все сразу, то они создают глубокое и коренное изменение в вашей жизни на более глубоком уровне — не только изменение идей или верований, но и изменение направления, как вы расцениваете себя, других и мир в целом.

Только сила Небес может сделать это, и сила Небес находится в Шагах к Знанию. Пусть эта сила будет вашей, чтобы вы смогли получить и учиться ей и отправиться на путь, который так долго ждал вас.”

Покажи мне, что я должен сделать, чтобы найти свой путь

К слову, книга «Шаги к Знанию: Книга внутреннего познания» уже переведена на 17 языков мира, в чем вы сможете убедиться на этой картинке (хотя она не лучшего качества и не очень разборчива).

Доброго пути, друзья!

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Sleeping Brilliance At The Heart Of Humanity

sleeping brilliance at the heart of humanity

“This book [Steps to Knowledge] has the power to awaken the sleeping brilliance at the heart of humanity,” said Reed Summers during the final broadcast of the 2015 Steps Vigil.

The Worldwide Community of Steps Students has just finished commemorating the 20-day period in 1989 when Marshall Vian Summers, the Messenger of the New Message from God, received the sacred book Steps to Knowledge: The Book of Inner Knowing

I shared on the Opening Broadcast and two more broadcasts during this twenty-day vigil here and here.

On Day 20 of the 2015 Steps Vigil, Final Broadcast, hosted by Patricia and Reed Summers, Reed asked us to re-experience and return to the impact this Vigil had for us.

For me, it has been powerful and reaffirming. I needed to reconfirm the verity of this path for me, and I found this reconfirmation. I emerge from the Vigil renewed in my resolve and determination to continue following the Way of Knowledge and keeping on, for I must. And I have the opportunities this Vigil offered to take forward with me. And these were as follows:

1) The Vigil offered the opportunity to connect with other members of the Worldwide Community and feel the potency of this connection; 2) the Vigil offered the opportunity to enter into stillness with everyone during the joint meditation periods; 3) the Vigil offered the opportunity to re-experience the power of Steps as the titles were read on the days they were received; 4) the Vigil offered the opportunity to see and hear Marshall speak; 5) the Vigil offered the opportunity to see and hear other Steps students and listen to their testimonials.

I feel renewed and refreshed in the aftermath of the Vigil, and I do indeed have a greater sense of what really matters for me in this life.

Sleeping brilliance at the heart of humanity.

Around fifty-seven minutes into the broadcast, Reed spoke some words that deeply moved me. He was talking about how remarkable it is that those now responding have been called, found, struck by the New Message from God which speaks of Knowledge and brings with it the Steps to Knowledge. And when describing the book we have found that lights the way to revealing our purpose, he says, “This book has the power to awaken the sleeping brilliance at the heart of humanity.” How utterly superb! And can more be really said?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yrYMvtpeKA

At the 1.03 mark, a never-before-heard revelation was shared, received by the Messenger on March 8, 2015, called “How to Regard the Messenger.”

And at the 1.55.50 mark, Marshall closed the 2015 Steps Vigil with the following words:

“This makes me very happy. There is enough power and devotion in this room and among those watching to affect great change in the world, even now.

“So my prayer tonight is a prayer about freedom. For the journey is about freedom and about contribution – outer freedom, inner freedom. Outer freedom is so rare in this world and in the universe, and inner freedom is even more rare, and lacking.

“I pray that Heaven’s gift to you will be deeply received and recognized. For it is here for your freedom, not just for your happiness, not just to give you resolution, but to free you to live the life you are destined and meant to live, you who are fortunate enough to have enough outer freedom to consider such things and to take a greater journey in life. It is unavailable to so many people in the world. It is our duty then, those of us who have been given a degree of outer freedom, to claim that freedom in service to those who do not have it, and may never have it. To preserve freedom in this world, Knowledge in this world, the freedom to know, the freedom to express and the freedom to give. This is where happiness resides, and a deep satisfaction. Without this, happiness is an empty promise and a phantom that can betray you.

“I pray this freedom will be honored here, for those of you who are so fortunate to be amongst the first to receive God’s teaching of freedom, and all that it can bestow upon your life and upon others through you. You have been given the map, the plan, the vision, the purpose, the clarification, the coordination and the means to restore yourselves.

“Let us then hold this sacred amidst all of the chaos in the world, amidst the fear and uncertainty within yourselves, the sacred flame. For God has given you a light, a lamp, and with this lamp you can begin to see where you are, in the darkness, you can begin to see your own condition, in the darkness, you can take stock around you that you could not see before, you see your circumstances, which could not be seen before, because the lamp is being brought forth. You cannot extinguish this lamp, it can only be neglected, or denied, or hidden. But once you begin to find it you will know it is there, and you will want it and need it ever so much as you go forward into the difficult times to come.

“This is your freedom, claim it. Do not let any person, place or thing compete with it, do not sacrifice it for love or money, do not deny it for any rationality.

“For it is Heaven’s gift to you. May the presence of those who have sent us and who watch over us be with us now. Nasi Novare Coram.

“With that we conclude the 2015 Steps to Knowledge Vigil. May the blessing be with you.”

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

A Return To True Relationship

return to true relationship

A return to true relationship is, in a sense, what Steps to Knowledge represents, according to Marshall Vian Summers, the Messenger of the New Message from God, who received the sacred text “Steps to Knowledge: The Book of Inner Knowing” during a 20-day period in 1989. He shared these words with us on Day 11 of the 2015 Steps Vigil currently in session to commemorate this portentous time.

Here is a full transcript of his message on that day, in which he puts the gist of Steps to Knowledge in a nutshell, in words as simple and as potent as Steps themselves. Marshall begins speaking at the 42.55 mark.

“I’d like to say a few words about Steps to Knowledge tonight — why it is here, what it means and what it’s intended to do for all who can study it. First of all, Steps to Knowledge is an ancient teaching that has been used in the universe in many places. What we are receiving now is the version of Steps to Knowledge designed for the human family, designed for our temperament, our world, our potential, our crises, our general condition.

“It is a gift from the Creator of all life through the Angelic Assembly. It is being presented in a pure form as it was received. It has a series of steps that work both practically and mysteriously to re-engage you with the deeper intelligence that God has put within you which alone holds the truth about who you are and why you’re here in the world at this time, and what you’re here to achieve.

“This deeper part of you that exists beyond the realm and the reach of the intellect is without corruption. It is not afraid of the world. It does not think the way that your worldly mind thinks, your worldly mind that has been conditioned to such a great degree by your environment and experience of life here.

“This deeper knowledge represents your true nature, the immortal aspect of yourself that is still connected to God. And this connection defies all religious understanding and explanation. It is so fundamental and so elemental to who you are and what you’re here to do.

“It is through knowledge that the will of the Creator can be expressed, as Alison pointed out tonight. So in one sense Steps to Knowledge can be seen as a return to true relationship — a true relationship with yourself, a true relationship between the part of you that is wandering and lost in the world and the part of you that is still at your foundation, connected to your source and to your purpose here. It is your return to true relationship with others based upon purpose and destiny, for there are certain other people in life whom you are destined to find and to meet, and they, too, hold the key and part of the puzzle to your life, for they are destined to do something important in the world with you.

“Beyond all the attractions of beauty, wealth and charm, this connection at the level of Knowledge is so powerful in relationship. Steps to Knowledge is your return to true relationship with those who sent you into the world, who exist beyond the visible range, who watch over you to see if you can find within yourself that deeper need, that greater desire for meaning, true relationship and purpose that can initiate a return, another dimension of your life, the most important activity that you can engage in.

“For God saves all who are separated through Knowledge and unites them purposefully in meaningful relationships to bring service, grace and value to this world and to all worlds in the universe. So great is the plan of God that no theology could contain it or explain it.

“For God has spoken again now in a world of cataclysmic change, a world of religious violence and division, a world facing the realities of life in the universe for the very first time, for a humanity who is unprepared and unaware of what is coming over the horizon. [It is] a great gift of preparation.

“And Steps to Knowledge represents, within God’s New Revelation for the world, part of that preparation. It is so essential, given in words so simple, yet so deep, that you cannot exhaust its wealth and its wisdom. Given in a form easily translatable into other languages, so that it may speak to people of all faith traditions and nationalities, rich and poor, in all corners of the world.

“Only the genius of the Creator could create such a thing, that could reach so many peoples who live in such different parts of the world, such different realities , speak to them, bring them together and set in motion a great force of unity and cooperation which will be necessary for humanity to survive the Great Waves of Change that are coming — great environmental waves of change, times of great upheaval and uncertainty.

“This is not the end times. This is the time of great transition where humanity faces a challenge of creating a greater unity in preparation for its engagement with a universe full of intelligent life, a non-human universe where freedom is rare.

“Steps to Knowledge and The New Revelation from God is to prepare humanity for this as well. If you can take these Steps, even if you cannot take all of them at once, it will bring about a profound and fundamental change in your life, at a deeper level — not just a change of ideas or beliefs — but a change of orientation, how you regard yourself, others and the whole world.

“Only the power of Heaven can do this, and the power of Heaven is in Steps to Knowledge. May this power be yours to receive and to study and to take a greater journey that has been waiting for you for so long.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxqPPT9tDnQ

A return to true relationship

Describing taking the Steps to Knowledge as a return to true relationship struck a deep chord with me, because I struggle with the concept of relationship as it is presented in the New Message. I often feel overwhelmed and lost in the relationship department, not sure which way to turn, where to engage, where to move on. So I felt very comforted to learn that a return to true relationship primarily refers to my relationship with myself, true relationship between the part of me that is wandering and lost in the world and the part of me that is still at my foundation, connected to my source and to my purpose here. These words help me to understand this return to true relationship.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Show Me What I Must Do To Find My Way

show me what i must do to find my wayShow me what I must do to find my way are words from the prayer Marshall Vian Summers shares with us as the Worldwide Community of Steps Students continues to commemorate the 20-day period in 1989 when the Messenger of the New Message from God received the sacred text “The Steps to Knowledge: The Book of Inner Knowing.”

I introduced this annual event in the life of the New Message from God community here. The 2015 Steps Vigil will conclude this evening with its final broadcast at 6 pm Mountain Daylight Time in Boulder, Colorado. However, I would like to take this opportunity, prompted by Knowledge, the deeper intelligence within me, to share some more of the highlights for me of this year’s Steps Vigil.

You can find a list of the daily broadcasts of the 2015 Vigil with a link to the YouTube video here.

Show me what I must do to find my way

On Day 10 of the 2015 Steps Vigil hosted by Brian, Marshall spoke some words that sounded a bell of recognition within me and were indeed very helpful. At the 47.35 mark, he says:

“I want to share something with you tonight that could be very helpful, because Knowledge is a mysterious thing. And, on the other hand, it is the simplest thing in the world.

“When people begin the practice of Steps, they are told that they really know things and that Knowledge is what they really know. But you find out that Knowledge knows and you don’t. In fact, the more you come into the proximity of Knowledge and experience it, the more you see how much you really don’t know. And how much belief is used to fortify oneself: assumptions, admonitions against others to take the place and to escape the sense that you don’t know. But not knowing and accepting that is what makes you open to Knowledge, that humility. So after a while you don’t have to keep asking questions of Knowledge, knowing that it knows exactly where you are, how far you’ve come, how far you have to go. And instead of a question, there is a prayer. And the prayer is, ‘Show me what I must do to find my way. Challenge me. Show me what I must do to find my way.’

“Because to ask ‘What is my purpose?’ cannot be answered with an answer, it really is a journey to take, and a great one at that. So it is whether you can take that journey that is the question. To take that journey you must let Knowledge do its work, and carry out what it gives you to do that you already know to do.

“And keep praying for the strength, the honesty and the humility to do those things. Knowledge knows that you are not ready to carry the responsibility of a greater purpose. So it is really about getting you ready.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2AAMLJ16Ao

Show me what I must do to find my way. This has been my experience, the experience of seeing how much I really don’t know as I come into the proximity of Knowledge, as well as the humility of realizing I do not know and accepting this. This truly does open the door to Knowledge.

So now I say with ever deeper sincerity and humility: “Show me what I must do to find my way.”

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Am I Rendering, Or Surrendering?

Little-Free-Library Am I rendering, or surrendering?I consider the growth of Little Free Libraries to be a wholesome development in a troubled world. They give people a chance to start an exchanging flow by sowing the seed of a book without demanding recompense. They give people a chance to get their hands on a book that they might not be able to find or afford otherwise. It is my sincere hope that this idea will continue to prosper.

Am I rendering, or surrendering?

Mentioning the Little Free Libraries is my way of offering gratitude for a book I found in a Little Free Library this past weekend. It was the book “I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy” This is a book of poetry by the 14th-Century Persian poet Hafiz, translated by Daniel Ladinsky. I have shared poems and quotes by Rumi and poems by Kabir. On further review, I consider not sharing any poems by Hafiz to be an omission on my part. It is my sincere hope that Hafiz will become better known in the western world.

Hafiz of Shiraz. Am I rendering, or surrendering?Am I rendering, or surrendering? I have mentioned how Coleman Barks became the go-to Rumi translator for late-20th-early-21st-century America. I have mentioned how Anita Barrows and Joanne Macy are emerging as go-to Rilke translators. I believe that Daniel Ladinsky is emerging as a go-to translator for Hafiz.

Daniel Ladinsky. Am I rendering, or surrendering?

Am I rendering, or surrendering? Daniel Ladinsky has freely admitted that his translations of Hafiz are not exact translations, but attempts to capture the spirit of the author. He wrote something in this book that got my attention. I’m not quoting it exactly, because I gave the book to one of my children to read. But he said something to the effect that rendering an English translation of one of Hafiz’s poems involves a certain surrendering to the material, a certain surrendering to the greater context of Hafiz’s life and work.

Am I rendering, or surrendering? Why did this get my attention? Because Steps to Knowledge, the book of spiritual practice of the New Message from God, uses the phrase “render your gifts” to describe some of the acts and processes of fulfilling one’s purpose in the world. Apparently the rendering of one’s gifts has a certain disruptive influence, especially without a certain preparation:

“Accept the restraint and development that are called for now, for they will protect you and enable you to render your gifts with a minimum of discord and personal risk. They will guarantee the wholeness and worthiness of your contribution, for it will be untainted by selfish motives.” (Step 269, “The power of Knowledge will extend itself from me.”)

Am I rendering, or surrendering? Am I translating the poem that is my gift into a language some people in my world can understand? If so, it would seem I need to surrender to it. It would seem I need to surrender to its greater context, just as Daniel Ladinsky is doing in his surrenderings of Hafiz. What will my surrenderings look like?

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.

Who Will Sing The Amur Tiger’s Song?

Amur-tiger Who will sing the Amur Tiger's song?In February of 2014, I shared a beautiful dream I have. My beautiful dream is for every plant and animal species on earth to have at least one human spokesperson, at least one human advocate, at least one human singer. When I first had this beautiful dream, I had no idea whether such a thing was possible.

Who will sing the Amur Tiger’s song?

In December of 2014, I discovered that there may be a vast number of undiscovered species in the world. But even if there is, the number of people in the world is 700 times larger than the number of species in the world. I also read a report that 6,000 vertebrate species were threatened to some extent. I write today of one of those species.

Who will sing the Amur Tiger’s song? The Amur tiger is classified as a subspecies of the tiger, Panthera tigris. It lives mostly in far eastern Russia and to a much smaller extent in northeastern China. There might be some Amur tigers living in North Korea. They are currently mentioned on the IUCN Red List as endangered.

Who will sing the Amur Tiger’s song? I have three distinct items of good news. First, the Amur tiger was considered to be critically endangered in 1996, and upgraded to merely endangered in 2010. Second, the number of Amur tigers in Russia has increased since the last census of 2005. How much, you ask? The result of the 2005 census was between 423 and 502 individuals. The result of the latest census is between 480 and 540 individuals.

Who will sing the Amur Tiger’s song? The third piece of good news is that there is an advocacy/conservation organization for the Amur tiger, the Amur Leopard and Tiger Alliance, or ALTA. Will their efforts succeed? I hope so. They seem to be moving in the right direction.

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.