Mystic Musings: Lent 2/22

“I and the Father are one.”

Jesus in John 10: 30 of the Christian scriptures

What if this statement by Jesus 2,000 years ago is not what made him special, but is what he revealed about all of us? Frederick Buechner, who was both an author and a minister, was famous for saying, “Mysticism is where religions start.” He makes the point that Christianity really started with the mystical experience of Jesus. That is, that he felt in his heart of hearts that “I and the Father are one,” or that he was just as much a part of God as God was a part of him.

Photo by Gary Butterfield @garybpt

We tend to look at God through a vertical lens rather than a horizontal lens. If we do, making such statements like the one Jesus made would be blasphemy and heresy. But, what if Jesus wasn’t trying to say that he was up there in heaven with God, but that God was down here with us on earth? What if Jesus was looking at God and the Sacred through a horizontal lens? What if Jesus wasn’t trying to claim special status for himself, but was paving the way for all people to see the human/divine dance playing out in all of us?

Sit quietly. Put your feet squarely on the floor. Take at least five very deep and cleansing breaths. Then ponder these questions:

• How would your experience in a church community (worship, fellowship, service) be different if you also could say with all confidence, “I and the Father are one.”?

• How would your experience in the forest, at the ocean, or on top of a mountain be different if you knew the Sacred was not outside of you?

• How would your relationships change if you also shared Jesus self-understanding?

• What feelings emerge if you think of God as a lover rather than a parent or judge? Relief? Fear? Gratitude?