5 Grappling with duality
11m
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Holy Moly
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Everything about Jesus Christ is all about the fight for good. This includes the story of his life, the whole big reason for his incarnation—which we’ll get to—and his long-remembered teachings. But if we’re going to talk about the good, we need to be willing to look at the bad. And suddenly we’re immersed in one of the biggest and perhaps the most badass battles of them all: duality.
Duality is where the battle between opposites is waged. And this battle creates tremendous confusion in our lives. Let’s take a minute and track through how duality shows up in a person’s life.
Here in duality-land, white comes with black, good comes with bad, and yes, pleasure comes with pain. But of course any spiritual guru will tell you that’s not the whole game: it’s all about love. That would be true, on the level of unity. As we’ll discuss a little later, we have all come from the oneness, we are part of the oneness, and we are heading back to the oneness. But for now, we are stuck here in the twoness.
Conditions here on Earth are such that, no matter how spiritually evolved we may be, we are going to get to deal with death. And in fact, dealing with death is the way through the dogfight of duality.
We have a clue we are trapped in a dualistic illusion—and as we’ll see, all duality is just that, an illusion—when we find ourselves stuck in a struggle from which there is seemingly no way out. Right there, in that moment, we need to know just one thing: we are not in truth.
But at this point, the majority of our being seems to only know one thing: there are no good options. Here we are faced with some buried fixed idea about life. This is an image that until now we were not even aware existed. We are so convinced of our wrong conclusions about life—which were formed very early in our childhood—that we don’t think to question them. And they are undoubtedly hard to dig up on our own.
In this level of duality, which is the plane of the ego, we need to reach out for help. If we ask, help will be given. Working with someone, such as a therapist, spiritual healer or friend, we can begin to pry open our tightly held beliefs, searching for evidence of something that—just consider the possibility—may not be true.
Listen and learn more.
Read Holy Moly, Chapter 5: Grappling With Duality
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0 Introduction to Holy Moly
There’s been an exciting craze of spirituality sweeping the planet as we’ve turned the corner into the new millennium. During this same time period, people have been reacting more and more negatively to the fanatics and the many foibles of organized religion. So we’ve taken our business across town—to workshops and meditation retreats, coffee shops and the latest spiritual teacher’s bestseller. In doing so, we have thrown out the baby with the bath water.
The Guide tells us that what’s behind all this activity is Christ consciousness, so it seems then that Jesus would be on board. It turns out that, more than that, he’s had a big hand in what’s been happening all along. He helped make it happen. But we’ve lost our way in having appreciation for his part in this story.
It is my hope that with this retelling you’ll feel edified, inspired and even more grateful—both for Jesus and what he has done and continues to do for us, and for the Guide, who has offered a version of this whole story that makes so much sense.
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1 Free will: The good Lord willing
Free will is a topic of great confusion for many. So which is it? Door Number One: people have no free will whatsoever—it’s all fate or destiny. Door Number Two: we only have free will, and it’s all free will. Or Door Number Three: maybe some things are determined by free will while others are not. Wouldn’t it be nice to know which is actually true?
For someone who believes only in this present life and not in an existence before or after it, there would not seem to be any choice in determining where one is born, whether you’re a boy or a girl, or where, when and how you will die. There could also be no big plan for how certain phases of your life will unfold. That’s Door Number One.
But for someone who feels, knows and has experienced the truth of the Law of Cause and Effect and of reincarnation, that point of view couldn’t possibly be correct. For this person, there is an awareness that there’s a Big Plan. And although people have free will, we may temporarily have our wings clipped due to factors determined by us in our previous lives. Such factors are the effects of causes that we ourselves have set in motion. This is the winner: Door Number Two.
Here’s an example of what this might look like. Let’s say someone is a murderer. This person has committed a crime against God as well as against human law. So this person is apprehended and put in jail. But now let’s say the person has amnesia, and can’t remember what they did. Even if the murderer is told they did such-and-such, they have forgotten it. But that doesn’t altar the facts one iota that they committed the crime.
To the prisoner, all this will seem very unjust indeed. The past actions may be hidden from their view, but they happened nonetheless. This imprisonment is a creation of free will that’s had to work its way through the time lag of cause and effect.
Bottom line, wherever your free will seems to not be working in your best interest, it is due to causes you have brought about, even though you can’t remember them. The flip side of this is that wherever you can use your free will to your advantage, you have set those causes into motion too. Whether this all takes place in one lifetime doesn’t change this Law of Cause and Effect, which when it happens over lifetimes is also called karma. The upshot is, at one time, you have freely chosen to act and think in a way that brought about the results that are your current life situation.
Every single action, thought and feeling produces a result. Some show up quickly, so it’s easier to connect the dots. Others take the long way. Regardless, nothing happens in a person’s life for which that person is not responsible. Fate is the word we use to describe what happens to us when we have completely blanked on how we’ve sown those seeds ourselves.
And so that would be a No to Door Number Three and the question of whether free will, perhaps, only exists some of the time. And Door Number One then? Also a No. We so totally have free will. But that doesn’t mean we can do or think whatever we please without causing any effect. This world that God created runs on an infinite number of laws. We, God’s children, get to choose to keep or not keep these laws. And we’ve had this choice for a very, very long time. Like, since way before Earth came into existence.
So what happens when we choose to keep them? Well, this leads down the road of happiness, love, harmony, light and supreme wisdom. Because God, who is perfect, can’t create anything but perfection. Yet, if God were to force us to follow his laws, well, that just wouldn’t be very Godlike now, would it. This would totally fly in the face of the basic Law of Free Will.
It simply can’t be beauty, harmony, wisdom, bliss and love if it’s forced on us, against our will—and also against our own recognition of the wisdom and perfection of God’s laws. Because that would be a God of slavery, not a God of freedom, even if we would be very happy slaves.
So every created creature—human or spirit—gets to choose: do we want to live according to God’s laws or not? Now here is an important key to understanding how evil, darkness and cruelty have come into being. But God is not the one who created evil. No, God created us with the capacity to freely choose. We can follow his happy laws and live happily ever after. Or not. And when that happened, it created what is known as the Fall of the Angels.
Listen and learn more.
Read Holy Moly, Chapter 1: The Good Lord Willing
2 Ushering In Christ
What is the time of year that is most associated with Christ? For most of us, that would be Christmas. It is at that time of year when the light of Christ returns with renewed force in remembrance of the greatest deed accomplished on this planet, ever.
This light is so strong—so penetrating and so glorious—it creates rejoicing. There is such wisdom coming from this light. For wisdom and light are one. In human words, we call this “enlightenment.”
So during this time of Christmas, the light of Christ penetrates into the lowest spheres of doom and gloom—and to some degree, into the world of darkness. Maybe it’s just a glimmer, but it’s not nothing. And when beings in the world of darkness encounter it, they don’t like it—unless they are ready to advance spiritually, in which case they will welcome it. And follow it.
Those who are not that far along will find it very painful. As we grow and develop as spiritual beings and move into this human realm, and as we succeed in bringing out this light from within—and make no mistake, it is one and the same light—we will be protected against creatures who still reside in the world of darkness.
So say again—who is this Christ? Some Christians claim that he is God. Not so. Jesus said so himself and you can read all about it in the Bible. He’s also not the Father, nor the Creator. Some say Jesus was just a wise man, a sage, a great teacher. Sure, he had great wisdom, but not so different from other great ones who have lived at other times, in other countries. Also not so.
Here’s the truth of the matter. Jesus, the man, was the incarnation of the Christ. And this spirit is the greatest of all created beings. He is God’s first creation and his substance is the same substance as God’s. Each one of us, in fact, possess some of this same substance. It is what is referred to as the Higher Self, or divine spark. This is what we are liberating when we do the gradual work of spiritual development. But none of us—no other being who has walked the Earth, in fact—has this Christ to the same degree that Jesus did. And that’s the big difference.
Listen and learn more.
Read Holy Moly, Chapter 2: Ushering in Christ
3 Jesus Christ: Must we?
Through the work of self-purification, we will raise our level of consciousness to such a degree that we will be open for truth, about anything. This includes the truth about who Jesus Christ was and the role he played in the history of Creation. Naturally, the question arises, “So can we only get back to God and re-attain perfection by way of Jesus Christ?” The answer is this: Yes and No. It’s a paradox, but indeed, both answers are correct.
Believe it or not, you can get to Heaven through any of the world’s great religions—including the non-Christian ones in which you can find absolute truth. You don’t need to leave your church or temple or faith. If you are being spiritually fed in the faith you are accustomed, stay there. There is enough basic truth in any of them. You just need to find out what the truths are that you need for your own personal development. And then actually put them into practice.
If we do the work of self-finding through our religion, it will satisfy our spirit. But being comfortable is not enough. We need to purify our Lower Self and crucify the ego. Those are the all-important things. Wherever and however we find the necessary help to accomplish this doesn’t much matter, even if Jesus Christ is not a part of the equation.
Through the work of self-purification, we will raise our level of consciousness to such a degree that we will be open for truth, about anything—including the truth about who Christ was and the role he played in the history of Creation. So no, we don’t need to recognize Jesus Christ right now to reach God. Realize too, the perception of absolute truth in any respect isn’t going to come overnight. It takes many, many lifetimes. Unfortunately, few people are in this business of cleaning house.
Listen and learn more.
Read Holy Moly, Chapter 3: Must We?
4 Submitting & rebelling Christians
Having parents who are strong and right gives children a sense of security in the world. So part of the reason Submitting Christians accept their parents’ religion is because it’s too frightening to think the parents were weak, or worse, wrong. Rebelling Christians, by contrast, find security in their rejection of their parents’ values. This makes them feel more superior, like their denial of Christ is more evolved. Well, in fact it is more evolved to deny the untruthful life-denying parts, but it is not more evolved to also deny the truths.
There is also a fear that develops that says, What if, by chance, my parents were actually right? In a kid’s mind, everything is always black and white. This way of thinking creates some big problems for us down the road. Being right is good. Being wrong is bad. There is indeed cause for concern here.
If this unconscious thinking remains buried, and a Rebelling Christian begins down the road of spiritual development where their total being—including sexual feelings and the urge for autonomy and self-expression—is waking up, and then this piece about Jesus Christ being in fact a good guy comes up, well Houston, we have a problem.
In a black-and-white world, if my parents were right about the Jesus thing, they were right about this other sex-is-sinful thing too. But I can’t be all-nice like their Jesus demands. And yet I was wrong for turning against them. And if I’m wrong, I’m bad. But I just can’t bear the guilt of being wrong on so many levels. So I must continue to turn away from Jesus.
And so negative reactions continue. Worse yet, both Submitting and Rebelling Christians fear that if they give in the towel, they’ll have to become like the other. Ew. The way out of this maze is, as always, to unearth mistaken beliefs that got buried on the way to being grown up. That is what it means to do the work.
Listen and learn more.
Read Holy Moly, Chapter 4: Submitting & Rebelling Christians