Gratitude 35 … Faith
Today I am grateful for Faith — not the “faith” that others cling to bring them “peace of mind” from a concrete assurance of salvation in the hereafter, but rather the Faith that knows nothing of such self-centered hopes and has no such desires or expectations. Indeed, I speak here of a Faith that knows nothing of certainty or guarantee — the Faith that has absolutely no reliance whatsoever on outcomes “beneficial” to oneself … the Faith that has no sense of certainty in the effectiveness of Love or the “rightness” of Kindness, and yet chooses to Love & be Kind anyway.
No, today I am NOT thankful for my personal, unique visions of “the Divine”, nor am I grateful for any sense of redemption in the soon to be, or for any possibly imminent adoration from on high for all of eternity. Rather, I choose to be thankful instead for a far greater Faith – a Faith that exists only in this particular time & place; a Faith that knows not what blessings might come — and yet a Faith that still indeed feels on a most deep & profound level of consciousness that everything that IS is leading the Universe back towards a state of Harmony; that even inaction (if purposeful) can motivate others to move; that even the apathy of those nearby can inspire us to Care; that even the “evils” that we see surrounding us can serve as a reawakening for thousands of conscient beings – guiding us all via their cruelty & ‘wrongness” back to new depths of service and kindness …
For this is true Faith: to not know anything at all with any certainty whatsoever, and yet to Do Good anyway; to not have any assurance of salvation at any time in the hereafter, and yet to give fully of oneself anyway today; to not like another in the slightest – even to rabidly despise a hated enemy, and yet to make the boldest of Leaps of Faith – as it were – by actively expressing Love unconditional for him/her anyway …
For this raw & pure Faith is the innate birthright of all sentient life-forms, and the ever-present inheritance of every conscious being in the Universe — a remarkable family of beings with which I cherish a familial bond that transcends species and race and gender and nationality and hope and fear …
It is for this Faith-granted birthright, that today I am most grateful.
And so it is that I climb to my proverbial mountaintop, take a deep breath filled with profound reverence, and let loose with a long & loud –
Thank Youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!
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