Being Good and Faithful

January 31, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

While attending the conference in New Mexico on mysticism with James Finley and Richard Rohr I came up with a ten word prayer that captures, at least for now, what I think the essence of non-dual spirituality is all about. I use that prayer to get at what I think the meaning of Jesus' parable about "the talents" is all about.

In an uncertain and rapidly changing world it is easy to become reactive and protective. It is important that we take care of ourselves. The question is: what value system do we use to move into the future? What does it mean, in terms of our spiritual work and religious living, to be "good and faithful servants"? That's a summary of what the "life talk" I gave in Ordinary Life is about.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download intro to current theme of study: Why the Parables.pdf

Click here to Download text 20100131.pdf

Click here to Download Presentation Being Good and Faithful.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20100131.mp3

Afraid of the Light

January 17, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

I grew up being afraid of the dark. In this talk I explain why that came to be. That fear motivated me to seek for ways to live in the world as a braver person. Over the years, however, I've come to see that what is more fearful for most people than the dark is the light. Many times we don't want the light to shine on places where our ignorance allows us to be "in control." There are things, for example, that are true about the Bible that many people who say they believe in the Bible and what it says simply don't want to know. It is fear of the light that causes more problems than fear of the dark.

I explore this matter explicitly in the talk I gave in Ordinary Life this week.

A copy of the full text I used is below. You can go to the website to get a copy of the Keynote presentation as well as audio version.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download Presentation slides- Afraid of the Light.pdf

Click here to Download text 20100117.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20100117.mp3

An Appealing and Frightening Truth

January 10, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

I have a T-shirt that says: "God Bless Everybody - No Exceptions."

That is a very appealing concept to me. Everybody is inside the circle of God's love, including all of who we are.

It is also a very frightening concept. Everybody is in? I have to include everybody? Now, that's quite a challenge.

Jesus' second best-known parable, called The Parable of the Good Samaritan, offers us not only a redefinition of who our neighbor is, but also suggests the role the once-despised neighbor can play in bringing us inside the circle of God's love and justice.

That's a summary of what I talked about this week in Ordinary Life.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

Click here to Download intro to current study theme: Why the Parables.pdf

Click here to Download text 20100110.pdf

Click here to Download 1_10_10 - Appealing and Frightening Presentation.pdf

Click here to Download audio 20100110.mp3

Patience and Persistence

January 3, 2010 Bill Kerley

Dear Folks -

If we are to grow as centers of freedom and love, we must pay attention to two worlds at once - the outer world and the inner world.

I expand on this thesis in the talk I gave this week in Ordinary Life. The title is "Patience and Persistence: Realizing the Kingdom Within and Without."

The talk is based on a parable of Jesus that frequently goes by the title "The unjust judge."

In summary: We will not have peace in the world until we have justice and we will not be able to do justice until we have done our inner work.

In this talk I use a quote from Jungian analyst John Sanford. Two of his book you might want to follow up on after reading the text below are: Dreams: God's Forgotten Language and The Kingdom Within: The Inner Meaning of the Sayings of Jesus.

A copy of the full text I used is below with the the Keynote presentation and audio version.