This Sunday was one of two Practitioner Sundays where your practitioners give the talks while Rev. Carolyn is at Asilomar.  James Stone and I shared this opportunity this week, while Vicky and ky will have the honor of sharing their wisdom with you next Sunday.  I'm sure James will agree, it's a blessing and an honor to perform these duties. 

  

  

Choice.  I talked about the challenges I have experienced studying our philosophy and preparing to become a practitioner.  The challenge I shared this week was reading, comprehending and interpreting the writings of Thomas Troward.  I could have chosen to read and reread Troward's work until I knew it verbatim.  But I was lead to, and chose to, sit with Troward's words until they morphed into a writing style more conducive to my simplified style.

  

  

I call my style Appalachian Metaphysics and I shared a story that I wrote while assisting Rev. Carolyn with "The Edinburgh Lectures," by Troward.  The story was about two separate vessels experiencing the life of their choosing.  One life led to many bumps, and and scrapes and cracks, on one vessel, while the other life resulted in a vessel ending her life of service in pristine physical condition.

  

  

I purposely omitted our human tendencies toward self- judgement, or comparison from my analogy.

  

  

James Stone delivered the second portion of the talk.  James focused on judgement.  The self-judgement he felt as he grew anxious about giving his portion of the talk and the way we learn our judgement habits at an early age.

  

  

He shared a story from his youth when he was taught by his parents to fear African Americans.  He lived with this fear until one day he found himself in the midst of a fight.  Before he came directly into harms way, six young African American men encircled and protected James from what he referred to "as the potential for the beating of my life."  This selfless act of compassion was a pivotal point in James' life where he chose to walk away from the fearful and prejudicial teachings of his childhood. 

  

  

Rather than living from a place of self-judgement and judgement of others, James lives from a place of evaluating and selecting actions that speak from the divine truth of his being.

  

  

May you feel the love and blessings that you give so freely to us,

Dinah Smiley and James Stone