At The Very Heart of Jesus
Jan 28th, 2009 by Brian Robertson
I think we can all agree that Jesus now comes in a rather impressive variety of flavors.
I have said it before and will say it again — we have lost site of the fact that the spirituality OF Jesus has become the religion ABOUT Jesus. It has disintegrated to the point where the original teachings and intentions from Jesus have been lost in countless interpolations, in imaginative adaptations to fit specific political needs (both governmental and within the Church) and certainly in countless other influences, many of which have taken a 180 degree turn from what the original tenor and tone and teachings of Jesus must have been.
So, while Christianity waxes and wanes, have we buried Jesus? in some cases, yes, such is the case. I maintain that at the heart of it all, however, we can build from one very solid fact reflecting Jesus’ experiences and attitudes, his teachings and his challenge. If I had to put all of that into one particular starting point, it would be this — God consciousness.
It’s that simple, that revolutionary, and that challenging. It so much so that we fight about the construction and architecture of the house and fail to live in it. At the root of Jesus is the unmistakable notion of God Consciousness, of the awareness of God’s Presence. It is not as if God had a kingdom in which we might one day aspire to after our deaths, but, rather, that the kingdom of Heaven is here, now, within and without. We do not see it and in fact, many do all they can to fight against that central Presence rather than live it. That’s no surprise. Jesus lived it and was killed for it. There are countless other examples of people who attempted to have that God Consciousness and paid the price because, well, people like that can make people like us uneasy — not by what they do but by what they show that we do, just by being who they are.
Jesus called upon us to develop and to live from within that God Consciousness that is the living heart of Christianity in its truest form. The Bible is fine, as is any road map to help you start to get your directions, but, just as one lives in a real town and not the city map, simply living with the smug pride of knowing the Bible as a closed book and the last Word is just as delusional. Jesus’ challenge was not to believe this point or to live in such a way as to gain some sort of heaven but, rather, to be the very book, the book of Love. To be so aware of God — God Consciousness — that the very Source of Divine Love animates our entire being and radiates, not like a lamp hid under a basket but, rather, like the sun which shines on all, the wicked and the good.
We fall short, yes. In my own case, I know, shamefully short. Yet the promise given to me is simple — if I realize and celebrate the Presence of God in each moment, each face, each silence, each word I speak, I have no enemies, no hatred, no fear, no demand for control, no book, no church that can equal the treasure found amidst the great field of life.
A Christian mystic, then, in the sense to which I am speaking, is a person who believes that from the center, which is Jesus, spins a Voice and a Love that is so very close to us that we cannot see it or hear it with the same eyes and ears that behold the world. A Christian mystic knows that words on a page, no matter how lofty, are nothing compared to the wordless sideways glance from the Beloved in the chambers of our heart. A Christian mystic is not lofty and gratified to hold a high position of power in a church organization — because each one of us is Church and Book. There is, as Alan Watts once said, “The Wisdom of Insecurity.” Ego will not get us to God Consciousness. Certainty is not what will lead us to be, as another writer called his book, “Surprised by Joy.”
These are dangerous, frightening times we live in yet, thanks be to God, it is a time in which a tattered vestige of Hope appears beneath the headlines and is made to shine forth from the most unexpected, lowly places. Where that manger is for you is for you to decide and discover, not this writer or not that book or not some Church, as well meaning and community-driven as they might be.
We are Christian mystics because we find Jesus to be the clearest example of what it is to live in the Presence of God and, therefore, to shine forth with Love. We are not content with reading books about taking a journey to a foreign land, we believe we are led to travel to that far away land which, paradoxically, has been with us all the time, nurturing our every step.
Peace,
Rev. Brian Robertson
“When people say that the authority of Scripture or the centrality of Jesus is in question, actually it’s their social, economic and political system that has been built in the name of Jesus that’s being threatened.” Rob Bell
Technorati Tags: christian mystic, jesus, alan watts, presence of God, rob bell, brian robertson, god consciousness, christianity
Great to see you are back writing! I find your posts most encouraging and insightful.
Blessings and Peace to you.
Christian mystics will always be desert teachers, out in the fringes or driven underground for hundreds of years at a time - but the swans are not silent and the followers of the way can still be heard to this very day and for such a time as this, crying out in the wilderness, “the Kingdom is within you”.
This is thousand mile journey, and it does begin with a single step, but the steps are inward to the ‘peace that surpasses all understanding”. - Joseph.
Alas ________________________________________*
i dont know about the god consciousness thing
i think we need to forget about god and let
god be aware of god but to be aware of the
mystery of present moment after all thats all there is
the spirit is churned buy money and power into
religion and gives birth to all the world Ism’s
that oppress the poor, is this not the teaching of Jesus
but not many wont to think it and fewer to live it -
so this _____________________________________*
a wayfarrer page
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* ADDRESS *
What
Kind of
God
Would have
A
Address
It
Would be
A poor
God
If she lived
In this town
You can visit
A
God
With a address
Any time
But
A
God
With no address
Who could think such thing
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*** blessings***
By chance I just pulled up Christian Mystics, & I’m happy to see recent posts. Back in Jan. of 2008 I became interested in something I read on Christian Mysticism. I googled Christian Mystics and hit on this site. I delighted in the posts and found the archives very helpful, & then, like so many other sites, the posts seemed to stop. I am glad I checked back. Thank you for “At the Very Heart of Jesus.”
I am confused, however, by an essay I recently read by Paul Tillich: “The Struggle Between Time and Space.” In this essay he likens mysticism to “the spiritual timeless space of mysticism.” Tillich seems to be saying that the message of the God of time and history has been distorted by “timeless gnosticism and mysticism.” Mysticism, according to Tillich, joins with physical and psychological space against the God of time, thereby lifting up the polytheism gods of space. I would appreciate any writings you could direct me to that treat time, space and mysticism.
Blessings,
Bob Muth
wonderful blog, so peaceful….Is that possible that you are the “Brian” who was in Switzerland, in November 2008 ?
So glad to see you back. I worry when I don’t “hear” from you. Worried about your health and well-being. Thank you for your words. It is funny but my whole life I have been a fervent and disciplined student of the Bible. I could see the ongoing theme. The correlations and foreshadowing. But it all came down to trying to fit the Jesus I knew into the words on its pages. The more I knew of Him, the harder it was to do. The Sermon on the Mount a prime example. He was showing the disciples what He looked like in action. What do we do? Set it up as some impossible mark that we are trying to hit. The mark becomes our God instead of it author and creator. Christ within transforms us into Christ without. The outside cannot change the inside. It doesn’t work that way. Much too hard to do. The funny thing is that the changing within happens when you are not looking.Wow! Again, glad you are writing again/
Glad to have you back, Brother!
Thanx for such a timely article. Although I’m active in the local church, I too see more focus on the “religion of” rather than the Christ Himself.
Many of us miss out on God’s lavish grace through Christ because of this.
Peace.
Hello, I am new and have enjoyed reading. I downloaded Evelyn Underhill’s book from the e-books and I like what she is writing.
I also get a glimmer here and there but mostly I am still stuck in the egos world.
I would like to read about some experiences of those who are farther along than I am.
How beautifully written! I am going to post a link to your blog on the Divinity Rising blog on my site.
It is my contention that the primative Christian faith no longer exists. Why? Because Jesus did not have a cedll phone. Our culture is so s far removed from that timeand place it is impossible to attain what was that simple yet profound revolutionary faith. Until I stumbled across Mysticism, Christian in particular. Herein, I found that faith that was radical enough to get the adherents killed. Too long have we been happy to recite what by rote we have learned, experience is the only way to experience God. We need to get back to the basics, and that is a place where God is the center, and we stand in His Presence.
Charles.