A lawyer said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbour?"
Then Jesus answered and said: "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. (Cont'd)

Earlier, I mentioned having read somewhere in Rudolf Steiner's book,Knowledge of Higher Worlds, something to the effect that once you begin to open to your own truth, it's best not to change anything in your external life.

And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.   Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring in oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.' So which of these three do you think was neighbour to him who fell among the thieves?"

And he [the lawyer] said, "He who showed mercy on him."

Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise." —Luke 10: 29-37

When I begin to work with people who are opening to their own truth, I ask them for a minimum three-month commitment. I ask them not to leave their relationships unless they are being physically threatened, and not to change anything until they begin to see from a place of love, not fear.

I am always thrilled when they report back how much their lives have changed, how much their partners have changed, or, if their partners have not changed, how they are now able to make decisions for themselves from a place of love, not fear.

As you change the way you feel about yourself, your whole world changes. There are no mistakes in the universe, just a lot of free choices—and if you surrender what you cannot control and hand it over to your god of choice, you will allow the Creator to manifest miracles around you. Whether you are willing to accept those miracles or not is another thing. When you begin to live your truth, and when you stop and listen with your heart, your perception changes. It's like a moment of Quaker silence.

The Meaning of Silence

Silence doesn't necessarily mean going into solitude. In the midst of activity, just stop inside. Some of my most profound spiritual awakenings have touched me in the middle of my chaotic surroundings. Just step out of the drama, observe and recognize the movie, the busy-ness, recognize all of it, but don't buy into it. Just observe it. Breathe. Let go. Clear the space. And then come back to the moment and proceed with whatever you are doing or saying, and include that in that space in your heart where you hold only love. It may also help to use the Serenity Prayer that is so integral to the AA movement.

God, grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and the Wisdom to know the difference.

So what is this all about—the things I can and cannot change? What wisdom do I need to know the difference? We are born, we take on this human form we call our body, and circumstances, and to truly forget that he too is an angel of God? That "his path" was to teach us about forgiveness at such a deep level that it affected our world, our relationships, our possessions, our children, and our consciousness? And what about the millions of victims who gave their lives under terrible inhuman conditions as an act of love for the good of the whole. If we are one, we are all part of Hitler and his actions, and we are all part of Jesus the Nazarene, and of the Buddha (the wise one) and of all those that gave their lives to assist us in our awakening. We are all terrorists, victims, saints, sinners, and angels alike.

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