“Most of the time, people will not come out and say that they are good people in contrast to those who are not, but that is often what they mean. And this strikes me as a dangerous proposition. History demonstrates, repeatedly, that if enough people begin to define themselves as “good” in contrast to others who are “bad,” those others come to be seen as less than human. Genocide is justified in the eyes of those who perpetrate it on the grounds that it is not real people who are being killed; rather, something evil is being eliminated from the world by those who are good” (Kathleen Norris, Amazing Grace).
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“Darkness is a natural part of life but I have fought this reality for years. Darkness always seemed like a powerful intruder into my light-filled life. I had this notion that if I thought or did the right things, then my life would always be full of light. I wouldn’t have anguishing, dark times. Consequently, when the dark moments did come, I felt that something had gone terribly wrong with me. I presumed that I had failed in some significant way because I had not figured out how to keep the darkness out of my life. It has taken me a long time to recognize that darkness is an essential element” (Joyce Rupp Little Pieces of Light).
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“For many people, the most prominent motivating force in life is fear. Many of us feel it daily. It may manifest in small increments in our everyday lives: we feel afraid of failing at our job or being abandoned in a relationship. Or overwhelming anxiety may immobilize us as we realize our mortality or fear the potential harm that might come to us through violence; we may feel a free-floating terror that emanates from an unknown source. Just as shame engenders our mistrust of ourselves, fear feeds our mistrust of other people, the life process, even God” (Christina Grof, The Thirst for Wholeness).
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“Oneness was Jesus’ thing. The world will never believe that anything divine has broken into our life until they are aware of this divine oneness in us. The oneness Jesus was pointing us to is not uniformity; it is not submissiveness. Conformity is not oneness. Oneness happens when each person is living from his or her own uniqueness and individuality” (Gordon Cosby, Seized by the Power of a Great Affection)
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“In a world of competition,in a world of predatory animals,in a world of cruelty and heartlessness,the only hope one can have is an act of mercy,an act of compassion,a completely unexpected actwhich is rooted neither in duty nor in natural relationships,which will suspend the action of the cruel, violent,heartless world in which we live.”(Anthony Bloom, Beginning to Pray from the Weavings Newsletter for June, 2016)
All of the quotes except the last in this post originally appeared on the website Inward Outward.
Living as Apprentices 