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Prayer: Mystics and Physicists

WELCOME TO TODAY'S WORSHIP SERVICE

February 12, 2012



Prayer:  Mystics and Physicists

For an all-text version, click here.


THIS YEAR'S THEME:   The Year of the Lord

THIS MONTH'S TOPIC:  Talking to the Lord

TODAY'S MESSAGE:     Prayer:  Mystics and Physicists



                    Open your Bible

                                                                             Light a candle




 

                             

 


 

 





Opening Song

Psalm 100


Readings

from the Bible;
 
Psalm 100
A psalm. For giving grateful praise.

1 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his[a];
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Footnotes:

Psalm 100:3 Or and not we ourselves

from Swedenborg
 
The true divine essence is love and wisdom. If you gather together everything you know, focus your mind’s insight on it, and look through it carefully from some spiritual height to discover what is common to everything, the only conclusion you can draw is that it is love and wisdom. These two are essential to every aspect of our life. DLW #28
 

Message

Prayer:  Mystics and Physicists

 
Lawrence LeShan’s book caused a stir when it was published in 1974. It was called: The Medium, the Mystic, and the Physicist: Toward a General Theory of the Paranormal. LeShan’s central thesis was mind-blowing: the reality being described by Quantum physicists is the same reality that has been described by mystics of all traditions throughout history, and even of “mediums” exploring the paranormal.

Many people found this thesis hard to believe at first, but were convinced by the lists of quotations LeShan gave, asking the reader to indicate what was said by a scientist, and what said by a mystic. Here are two examples. Which of these is the scientist and which is the mystic?
 
Every attempt to solve the laws of causation, time and space would be futile because the very attempt would have to be made by taking for granted the existence of these three.

and  [2 options are given so that you have to guess you said it].

When I, on a certain occasion, asked (Professor Einstein) or (The Lord Buddha) how he found (his theory of relativity) or (Enlightenment) he answered that he found it because he was so strongly convinced of the harmony of the universe.

The first one is the mystic Vivikenanda, and the second one a scientist called Reichenbach, talking  about Einstein.

These two groups come from different places with different goals; but end up in the same place. We know that Swedenborg incorporated both perspectives of the universe within himself. He said:
 
So prayer is, quite simply, talking to God. True prayer comes from our attempt to bring a spiritual perspective to what we are praying for.

Perhaps, then, prayer happens when we bring a spiritual perspective to the physical reality of our lives.

There is a Buddhist story that says this differently.




 
 It is the belief that as one searches more and more deeply into oneself, tearing aside veil after veil of illusion, one comes finally to ATMAN, the true essence of the self. And that as one searches more and more deeply into outside reality, tearing aside veil after veil of illusion, one comes finally to BRAHMAN, the true essence of reality. And that Atman and Brahman are the same.
 



So, if both inner reality and outer reality are the same, then what is prayer? Can quantum physics help us understand prayer? Bell’s theorem tells us that once subatomic particles have been in contact, they always remain connected. A change in one creates a similar change in the other, no matter how far apart they are. Some physicists believe that these events are not just limited to sub-atomic particles but are part of every-day reality -- including prayer.

Swedenborg's understanding of prayer is similar to what quantum physics is discovering in the laboratory. Prayer involves a real force -- God's inflowing love.

So, it makes sense that prayer can bring about healing, even from a great distance. How do we explain this incident?

One time Lawrence LeShan was asked to give a healing prayer, from a distance, for a man who was extremely ill. The next day the man had miraculously recovered! The doctors were astounded! Perhaps at last there was concrete evidence of healing prayer. There was a problem, however. Leshan had completely forgotten to do the healing! So did he pray unconsciously? Was the man healed by his faith in LeShan’s healing? Did God hear and respond to a prayer that no one had prayed?

Another type of prayer, of course, is expressing our love of the Divine. Many of the mystics have written incredible poems/prayers of love to Divine. With Valentine's Day this week, we'll end with two poems of the Sufi poet Rumi: 
 
My God and My Love:
Eyes are at rest, the stars are setting.
Hushed are the movement of birds in their nests,
of monsters in the sea, and
You are the just who knows no change;
the Equity that does not swerve, the everlasting that never passes away.
The doors of kings are locked now and guarded by their henchmen, but your door is open to all who call upon You.
My Lord, each lover is now alone with his beloved.
And I am alone with Thee.

Another poem of Rumi’s
 
Since I have heard of the world of Love,
I’ve spent my life, my heart
And my eyes this way.
I used to think that love
And beloved are different.
I know they are the same.
 
Let us pray.
 
Inspiration & Prayer for 2/12/12:

Yuk!! the Blazzzzzzz!. When you are in the throes of the blues what do you do to put yourself on a higher level of thought? Winter is a time of decreased Sunlight, and sometimes like the bear, hibernation. Winter is also the time of introspection. Introspection is good because we look at what we have done; where and what we have not done; and where we would like to be. This is the time that the Lord's Influx shows us where we need let go of the old and work on new and higher things. We go through the process of regeneration.

How grateful I am to have this time of introspection and the Lord's guidance. With His help I see the truth of what has been happening in work , play and in my spiritual growth. God wants us to progress not stagnate. Our progress is measured in the Heart as well as the Brain. Balance being the key to all our growth. What are you doing with the gift of Winter? Where are you in your introspection? Are you in introspection? Where would you like to be? What inspires you the most? Is it music, a positive talk, a success story, a prayer?

Prayer:
God ,who guides our whole lives through our hearts and minds, we give thanks for your Influx and prompting each day. Sometimes it is hard to keep focused on the higher things of life. Help us Lord to focus on you when the blues come our way. When the world's troubles bring us down. Help us to focus on what we can do to empower others and assist in the lives of our family, friends, and community as a whole. Just as Mother Theresa has said, "Help us to do small things with great Love." AMEN.

Happy Love Week!
Blessings,




 


 

Closing song

On Eagle's Wings


Extinguish your candle.

                    

    

Close the Bible

   
 

Go in peace, allowing every moment to be a prayer.

 

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