I've always regarded prayer as a calling forth of that spark of the Divine that already dwells within every one of us, such that it saturates our being, driving out fear and negativity and helping us to be our best selves...peaceful, grateful, loving, connected, and centered. The fears and troubles of this world will always creep back in to pollute the spirit, so prayer must be a daily exercise, or perhaps even a constant ongoing conversation, or fellowship, with that Divine from which we came forth, and to which we shall return, and meld back into.
Many years ago in college I made friends with the school counselor, a psychologist who was training to be a fully licensed therapist. A framed poster on his office wall read: "Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man, that he didn't already have."
It's kind of like that. To paraphrase Rumi, each one of us is the entire ocean in a single drop. The Divine dwells within us. We just have to attune our souls to it. We have to call it forth.
Enjoyed the exploration. Recently, in Thailand and Vietnam, surrounded by colorful tiny altars lit with disco lights and offerings of sweets, I found myself able to pray for the first time since leaving a challenging Southern Baptist upbringing—where prayer was about avoiding damnation. Somehow, the whimsy and small rituals gave me permission to explore prayer as joy. These conversations help too, so thank you.🙏
Krista and On Being teams; with Gratitude to both you and transparent Roberta for combing through the conditioned filters of what god is and how prayer is bettered and useably effective, with everyday experiential intersections with myriad conditions, situations, unique complexities in personality, temperament, character, etc.
In real specific daily mindful awareness recall, Roberta reveals the embodied experience of those many day to day Inner-layers, often resulting in a build-up and build-on of overwhelming exhaustive 'thinkings' that can lead to spirally down into a dark sticky tunnel of despair as the most difficult layer of unworthiness and shame resulting in being stuck like adhesive to ones experience. Draining. Life-threatening, traumatic.
Beautiful Illuminating Wise speech and action in the effort to be mentally and physically dissolved into the light of liberating freedom, greater then our little self-fear with loving kindness or a gentleness spoken. I'll take the chance to trust my need to reach for a power greater than glue-stick, and vow to persistently repeat the wish for love's greatest power offered in the gentle-hand, the empathetic, harmony which understanding imbues with kindness, forgiving-ness, resulting sometimes in releasing old identifications, and clinging to rigid or fixed views for the benefit of choosing grace over results, timed goals, a performance or material orientating language one step out of sync with the human-kind-compassion we are so longing to belong with. Thank you. I love you. Forgiving my mistakes and forgetfulness and "yours", I can begin again. Love, V
She was one of the first, of MANY years’, experiences I had with your show - and it’s one I have listened to over and over again, especially this part with Roberta Bondi. As a young parent then, and now even with kids grown and out of the house, her words continue to be a source of peace and comfort for me. Thank you for bringing her to light again!
Reminded me of words from Mary Oliver:
It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway
into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.
💚
I've always regarded prayer as a calling forth of that spark of the Divine that already dwells within every one of us, such that it saturates our being, driving out fear and negativity and helping us to be our best selves...peaceful, grateful, loving, connected, and centered. The fears and troubles of this world will always creep back in to pollute the spirit, so prayer must be a daily exercise, or perhaps even a constant ongoing conversation, or fellowship, with that Divine from which we came forth, and to which we shall return, and meld back into.
Your regard of prayer is a perfect description of what I long to receive from conversations with God. ❤️🙏❤️
Many years ago in college I made friends with the school counselor, a psychologist who was training to be a fully licensed therapist. A framed poster on his office wall read: "Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man, that he didn't already have."
It's kind of like that. To paraphrase Rumi, each one of us is the entire ocean in a single drop. The Divine dwells within us. We just have to attune our souls to it. We have to call it forth.
You may have already received more than you know.
I look forward to continuing conversations with the Divine (and with you also, my new friend)
You're on.
Enjoyed the exploration. Recently, in Thailand and Vietnam, surrounded by colorful tiny altars lit with disco lights and offerings of sweets, I found myself able to pray for the first time since leaving a challenging Southern Baptist upbringing—where prayer was about avoiding damnation. Somehow, the whimsy and small rituals gave me permission to explore prayer as joy. These conversations help too, so thank you.🙏
Thank you for this beautiful and illuminating conversation.
Krista and On Being teams; with Gratitude to both you and transparent Roberta for combing through the conditioned filters of what god is and how prayer is bettered and useably effective, with everyday experiential intersections with myriad conditions, situations, unique complexities in personality, temperament, character, etc.
In real specific daily mindful awareness recall, Roberta reveals the embodied experience of those many day to day Inner-layers, often resulting in a build-up and build-on of overwhelming exhaustive 'thinkings' that can lead to spirally down into a dark sticky tunnel of despair as the most difficult layer of unworthiness and shame resulting in being stuck like adhesive to ones experience. Draining. Life-threatening, traumatic.
Beautiful Illuminating Wise speech and action in the effort to be mentally and physically dissolved into the light of liberating freedom, greater then our little self-fear with loving kindness or a gentleness spoken. I'll take the chance to trust my need to reach for a power greater than glue-stick, and vow to persistently repeat the wish for love's greatest power offered in the gentle-hand, the empathetic, harmony which understanding imbues with kindness, forgiving-ness, resulting sometimes in releasing old identifications, and clinging to rigid or fixed views for the benefit of choosing grace over results, timed goals, a performance or material orientating language one step out of sync with the human-kind-compassion we are so longing to belong with. Thank you. I love you. Forgiving my mistakes and forgetfulness and "yours", I can begin again. Love, V
This was wonderful! The early church is such an inspirational fountain of information. Thank you for this!
Wonderful! Thank you.
Just curious, Do you know if in her vision of what GOD is, does it have a gender? Does yours?
Somehow God for me is still, always, multigendering in the trinity.
Loved the vision of the two boats she shared. I pray we learn to make room for each other in the space that he/she makes in our transformed hearts.
I am so grateful to.
I like that the On Being logo evokes BOING - movement and fun.
She was one of the first, of MANY years’, experiences I had with your show - and it’s one I have listened to over and over again, especially this part with Roberta Bondi. As a young parent then, and now even with kids grown and out of the house, her words continue to be a source of peace and comfort for me. Thank you for bringing her to light again!
Thank you so much for this! So timely for me.