WE ARE
EXPLORING THE PRACTICE OF HEAVENLINESS
+ This is a post on the style of The Way of Relationships
as we continue to explore Heavenliness
through the lens of the 12 styles of the Mandala process created by Edward Bastian. There is 1 more Mandala style to explore
after this one: Wisdom. After that, we move on to the 9 Attributes of Heaven.
+ Love One another.
-- John 13:34 and elsewhere in the Bible
+ In everything do
to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the
prophets.
-- Matthew 7:12 NRSV
This is the Golden Rule which is taught by Jesus and is
found in other places in the Bible and in many other wisdom traditions.
+ Just then a
lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit
eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read
there?” He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and
with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and
your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right
answer; do this, and you will live.”
-- Luke 10:25-28 NRSV
This is the Great Commandment which is based on 2 verses
from the Torah: Deuteronomy 6:5 &
Leviticus 19:18.
+ From now on,
therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once
knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So
if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed
away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us
to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation;
that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their
trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So
we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we
entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him
to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of
God.
-- 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 NRSV
+ "But I say
to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless
those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the
cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not
withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone
takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would
have them do to you.
"If you love
those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who
love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to
you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you hope to
receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive
as much again. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in
return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High;
for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your
Father is merciful.
"Do not judge,
and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good
measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your
lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back."
-- Luke 6:27-38
+ The Bible is certainly a major source of guidance on
creating and sustaining compassionate relationships.
+ The 12 styles of Mandala: Creating An Authentic Spiritual
Path: An InterSpiritual Process by Edward
Bastian are listed in SE206.
+ To get inspired and illuminated by Ed Bastian, I invite you to set aside some time for these videos: Seven Steps of InterSpiritual Meditation (11 minutes) | 15 minute introduction to InterSpiritual Meditation and the Mandala Process | 2 hour lecture & conversation
+ Spirituality & Practice offers abundant resources on the practices of Love & Compassion: The Practice of Love | The 12s Gallery on Love | The Practice of Compassion | The 12s Gallery on Compassion
+ I would love it if you offered a guest post on this practice or any practice. And, I have work to do on my Heavenliness page. Maybe you can help. Send an email with the subject “Heavenliness” or “Love” or “Guest Post” to John@abundancetrek.com.
+ You can always find a link to any of the Spiritual Explorations posts by going to http://abundancetrek.com/sepostsaccess.html
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