January 5, 2011, John Neumann

Reflection (The readings are below, for your reference)

“If we love one another, God lives in us, and God’s love is perfected in us.”

Sri Nisargadatta said, “When the mind is momentarily free from its own pre-occupations it becomes quiet. If you do not disturb this quiet and stay in it you find that it is permeated with a light and love you’ve never known and yet you recognize it at once as your own true nature.”

John’s epistle and Sri Nisargadatta’s words seem connected in my mind in that if we pare down all the pre-occupations, what’s left is love. Love for self and love for others … perfect love. Is that our own true nature? I think so.

What do you think?

Namaste. Amen.

The Readings

1 John 4:11-18

Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and God’s love is perfected in us.

By this we know that we abide in God and God in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Saviour of the world. God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.

God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.

Psalm 72:1-2,10,12-13

O God, with your judgment and with your justice,
   endow the leaders.

They shall govern your people with justice
   and your afflicted ones with righteousness.

Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
   Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute.

For they shall rescue the poor when they cry out
   and the afflicted when they have no one to help them.

They shall have compassion for the needy and the poor;
   they shall save the lives of the poor.

Mark 6:45-52

Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.

When evening came, the boat was out on the lake, and he was alone on the land. When he saw that they were straining at the oars against an adverse wind, he came towards them early in the morning, walking on the lake. He intended to pass them by. But when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought it was a ghost and cried out; for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’ Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

With one exception, the readings are from the website below, with adjustments to make the text more inclusive. The Psalm is from Psalms Anew, St. Mary’s Press, 1986.

http://bible.oremus.org/