Or does it?
I came from a very very apolitical family. We never spoke much about it, there were no heated discussions over the dinner table and for the most part, I grew up thinking “Who cares?” I sure didn’t.
Looking back now, I can see that my dad would have been labeled a “bleeding-heart liberal” because he was very much one for serving and helping wherever he was called. (In fact, he was a Brother in a monastery for quite a while until he got so sick from caring for others that he couldn’t function any longer in that way.)
But politics were not in the top ten things discussed in my family. (Or at all, really.)
Somewhere around 2003, as I got more into the spiritual world and saw how things worked together, I found a burgeoning interest in politics. And so it came to pass that my growing spirituality and my interest in political matters became inextricably linked. I read and read and read some more on different sides of issues that pinged my radar and formed my opinions based on facts, yes. But I also formed opinions based on what I intuitively know is true for me.
I mentioned in my last post about that CLANNNNNG! sound I get when I hear things that are not true *for me*. I hear that a lot when I tune into the political world. Clanging every damn place. It feels so noisy and discordant. (Hurts my ears some days and I know that’s my signal to step away and go ride my bike or something.)
It’s my feeling (born of the knowledge that the Universe operates in a Divine Order) that shit doesn’t just randomly happen. I don’t think it does. Each event has a purpose, even if we cannot see (from our limited human perspective) what that might be at the moment.
Viewing the world through spiritual eyes has helped me better understand things that are going on around me politically. And further solidified my resolve to be a participant in our democratic system where I never would have done that before.
My spirituality calls me to bring change in the way I can do it best and to bring a higher vibration to the mix. It’s the calling all Lightworkers hear. Raise the vibration. Stay out of fear. Keep humanity moving.
Who I am at soul level and what I believe and work toward for the future of our world is one and the same. They cannot be separated. One birthed the other and for that I am thankful.
What does your inner spirituality call on you to do? Have your political views changed as you’ve evolved or have they stayed the same? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
From the booklet “Living the Sacred Yes – Affirmations for Action” by the wonderfully amazing Reverend Deborah L. Johnson
I have a vested interest in my community, in my nation, and in the world. I am a full-fledged citizen of them all. My every thought, word and deed has an impact on those around me and leaves a legacy for those who will follow.
I never underestimate the importance of my existence. I am fully aware of the power to either create change or support the status quo. I accept my personal and collective responsibility to make choices about how society is ordered and governed.
I use my time, my resources and my voice to make this world a better place in which to live. This day I support the individuals and organizations that empower all people to be their higher spiritual selves.
Interesting perspective. I do think I make my voice heard more now that I did before i became involved with reiki and energy work. hadn[t stopped to thiink about that before.
Marianne
I grew up in Democratic NJ where there was no such thing as a Republican (practically). After I grew up and went on to study economics and finance and work in the business world, I learned I was extremely conservative and I had to bury my Mario Cuomo speeches as impossibly unrealistic as seen through adult eyes. Learning about spirituality did nothing to change my mind. I still believe you have to balance a budget. You have to take care of the poor and have safety nets. You have to set realistic and responsible expectations and grow economically. Government should be small, providing for basics like infrastructure and police/fire departments. Individuals know best how to spend their money. The facts of economics and basic human rights don’t change. I see very little difference between political parties in the US when compared to the rest of the world.
Thanks for your comment, Julie! I imagine that there are plenty of people for whom spiritual development and politics never intersect. And it seems you and I have had very different experiences growing up. I’ve spent 30 years in the world of finance and investments and it’s only solidified my feeling about how I see the world and my place in it. Glad you shared your thoughts.
My politics were a driving force in changing my religion. I was raised Lutheran in a very WASPy neighborhood outside Chicago and it was as though we existed in a terrarium. Our congregational conscience ended with fellow Lutherans and our neighborhood. I don’t think it’s an accident that the prestigious shows devoted to political conversation are on Sunday morning. I *need* faith to help me put the world around me in perspective. As a young girl I read that JFK said, “If a free society cannot help the many that are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” He also said that things don’t happen, things are MADE to happen. These quotes have informed my faith, just as faith informs my politics. And that is why now I worship as a Unitarian Universalist. It fuels me as a Christian, a Democrat and an American. The words of Rev. Johnson that you quote above, “I have a vested interest in my community, in my nation, and in the world. I am a full-fledged citizen of them all,” are echoed within the building where I now worship.