Pentecost Wisdom

​Happy (Pentecost) Sunday, the day in the Christian Church (all varieties) celebrating the sending down of the Holy Spirit to Jesus's Apostles. From my perspective, that Spirit, which I prefer to call the Great Life Force, is available to everyone of any religion or none. Moreover, it's been around since the Beginning, not just as of a few thousand years ago to a small group of my Jewish ancestors. But like electricity, if you have no conception of what it is or that it exists, aren't wired for it in your house, or even if you are, don't know where the light switches are or how to use them, then that Force or Spirit may as well not be there. 

One of the 99 Beautiful Names of God (Allah) in the Islamic mystical tradition, otherwise known as Sufism, is AL FATAH, the Opener. Grace, often masquerading as good luck or fortune, can open us to the conscious experience or receiving of the Holy Spirit. Should that happy event take place, we can say with the words of the wonderful hymn "Amazing Grace," "I was blind but now I see." As someone who has experienced such a transformation, I believe that a personal encounter with Spirit, not the "fear of the Lord" as normally understood, is the beginning of wisdom. But just like ice-skating, you must somehow want to start. You will fall down a lot and may even hurt yourself, but eventually, if you persist, you will get better, especially with the help of a good teacher. 

My hope for all my practical-wisdom books but especially this new co-written one appearing shortly on July 26th - Wisdom for Living: Learning to Follow Your Inner Guidance - is that they may help you connect with your innate wisdom and give you additional skill in skating on the frozen lake of life. So in that sense I'll conclude as I began by wishing you, whatever your religion or belief system, a Happy, Blessed Pentecost.