Church of One Love

Mantra: The Power of Repetition

A generation ago the word “mantra” brought about visuals of crossed-legged Indian Yogis on pillows or maybe of special (and expensive) classes that would give you your own “secret” one.  Today the word is used more often, and some of its mystique is gone, but do we really know what it means?  Let’s learn what mantra really is and how we can all use it to develop a life that is healthier, more mindful, closer to the truth of our being…immersed and saturated in Divine Love.  

Messengers of God

More than 70 % of Americans believe in Angels. What are they?  What do various scriptures say? How do they work in the world? Are You one? Could you be? 

May All Beings

We have prayed the Metta prayer with each other all of August.  Let’s check in and see how it may have changed us and our world, and talk about the meanings of the prayer and how to continue using it as a tool for transformation of ourselves and our relationships.

Religious or Spiritual...or Science?

The fastest growing segment of people in 21^stcentury society describes itself as “Spiritual not Religious.”  What does that mean?  Humankind has always sought to understand the world, and our place in it.  In trying to make sense of the world humans developed incomplete explanations, mythology, magic, and false spiritual hierarchy to help us navigate the mysteries of life and death, good and evil, so we could feel safe.  The old paradigms do not work in the modern world, so let’s explore what Einstein called the “Cosmic Religious Feeling” –a drive toward a universal world order--that still motivates us to explain our world—through scientific study, philosophy, contemplation, and yes… faith.

Sacrifice: Making All of Life Sacred

There are many negative connotations to the word “sacrifice.”  We think of it in terms of martyrdom and deprivation.  But what if we take it back to its roots?  How can we bring the sacred into everyday life?  We’ll explore perspectives and practices to help us remember our own wholeness—holiness--and that of this world we live in, and to feel closer to the Divine.

Turn The Other Cheek

This phrase  has been misinterpreted and misused to keep the underdog in his place.  Did Jesus mean we are supposed to be doormats?  Take abuse?  Or is there much more to it?  Let’s explore this and others from the “Sermon on the Mount” that may have a richer meaning than we at first suspect.

Comforting the Afflicted / Afflicting the Comfortable

The teachings of Jesus the Christ are all about being truly loving—not later, when we all get to “Glory”-- but now, in this difficult, confusing world.  Not to those who already love us, but to our enemies.  He welcomed the child-like and would rescue the smallest lamb. He also said he came “to bring a sword.”  The spiritual path is fraught with such paradoxes.  How do we reconcile these two seemingly disparate teachings? 

Your Karma Ran Over My Dogma (Or East/West, Which is Best?)

In many Eastern religious traditions, we are taught that our object on the spiritual path is to transcend and overcome this world...to become “enlightened,” whereas the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Islam, Christianity) teach us that we will never be “good” and must rely on the mercy of God (and follow certain rules). Modern psychology teaches us that in order to change anything we must first come to acceptance. Are these ideas in direct opposition or are they different sides of the same coin?

The Fundamental(ist) Problem

Most of us who rebel against religion are actually put off—not by the religion itself (which is arguably just a moral system illustrated by myth and story)--but by the fundamentalist way that religion (and those stories) have been presented.   Each religious system is seated in a specific time, place, and culture; its writings contain static & localized imagery, idiom, legends, and era-specific cultural mores, while we humans --and life itself --are never static, ever moving, progressing, and evolving. 

Many Paths, One Spirit

This is the tagline for our logo at COOL.  We speak a lot about Oneness and our awakening into the awareness of the One Spirit—the Spirit of Love.  But what are the “many paths?”  Does it mean the paths of the world’s major religions?  How can different religions or religious paths all lead to one place? How many paths are there?  How are they represented here, and how can we know when we’ve found the “right” one?