Happy Sunday!
“Grace is quite literally “for the taking.” It is God eternally giving away God—for nothing, except the giving itself. I believe grace is the life energy that makes flowers bloom, animals lovingly raise their young, babies smile, and planets remain in their orbits—for no good reason whatsoever except love alone.” ~ Fr. Richard Rohr, cac.org Daily Meditations, 11-5-2023
In seminary this month we are studying indigenous religions including paganism and those originating in Africa. In the class materials there has been several references to the practices of magic in these traditions. As I went through all the lesson materials, I kept an eye out for a definition of magic. This is because in the study of ACIM we are told to avoid magic so there was a concern within me that I might go too far with its acceptance.
(Here is my quick summary, as I understand, of ACIM’s position on magic: it is of this world which is a false representation of our confused minds. Living in fear, using magic to try to alter this false manifestation is just adding to the insanity. ACIM says that the real world is where we are joined again with God, All That Is, as our innocent limitless True Selves … the realm of miracles.)
What is magic?
It turned out that it was one of our homework questions to define magic. I asked the opinions of my study group and heard a range of thought from it is just a tool to a practitioner to it is a sacred practice.
For my homework response I provided the following:
‘Magic is of this physical world and can cause things to change. It is brought about by human plan and intention; therefore, it does not open the result to a higher purpose and most benevolent outcome for all involved. Magic can be related to prayer when pray is just petition for a specific thing or outcome and not allowing for God to resolve the desire in the most beneficial way.’
One of our lecturers in seminary yesterday was a Wicca practitioner and teacher. She described magic as using your power to manifest, to co-create with the Universe. This was understandable to me; its like other spiritual ideas like ‘Law of Attraction’. In Wicca, they have a ‘Law of Three’ that is the same as karma – what you put out comes back to you. I could see how this must keep modern witches from choosing negative acts with their magic and make for witches in growth and service.
I like miracles better.
So, through my studies, to settle my judgements against magic and thereby doubts about the religions of study, I repeated to myself ‘everything belongs’. For me this means that God, as Love, allows everything, that it all serves All in growth and expansion.
A miracle is God’s Will manifesting is this realm instead of our will. It will come as something unforeseen and be for the benefit of everyone.
Father Richard reminded me that no person needs to involve themselves into the growth and beauty of our physical world. Nature exists in a field of grace as it carries on as God, Gaia, the Universe sees fit.
This is the way I choose to be, within a field of grace, blessed as God’s plan plays out around me and for me.
It’s all good.
As I was acting to post this post, I had the memory of an experience I had when working with Dr. Joe Dispenza’s meditation practices. In a meditation, Dr. Joe guided us to choose something to manifest in the world to be a validation that we had opened ourselves to a greater mind, (benevolent consciousness). I did this and a couple days later it did manifest in a surprising, delightful way that made me cry with the realization of it. After what I wrote in this post, I would call this magic. Dr. Joe has his students seek out the physical manifestations to validate that their efforts are working for their growth and benefit.
I laugh now as the words ‘magic is a tool’ crossed my mind. Oh, I thought it was a human tool! It’s God’s tool. We are so Loved and Blessed. Any and all means our Father, Mother, God has at the ready to reach out a hand to guide us back home, to nudge us awake, to get us to return into the embrace of eternal Love.