Day of the Dead Celebration

Bring photos of deceased loved ones, family, friends and pets. This Sunday the Gathering will celebrate the Day of the Dead. It's Mexican roots are anything but morbid:

The celebration of the Day of the Dead, which occurs on All Saints’ Eve at the beginning of November each year is a major commemorative ceremony throughout Mexico. Its purpose is to celebrate, remember and, as much as anything, to entertain the dead. Sometimes roads of flowers are put in place to guide the dead from the graveyard to the house where their relatives will have constructed an altar dedicated to the most recently deceased and made ready an array of sugary foods and drink.

The Mexican Day of the Dead is anything but sober and cheerless. It is an effervescent event, full of zest and colour, an annual opportunity to remember and re-engage with relatives and friends who have passed on.

Join us November 1st at 5:30 pm for worship.

The Path or Way

Theresa enlightened us on key aspects of Taoism. She read from the Tao Te Ching translated by William Martin. The path involves:

Universality
Embracing Opposites
Non-Resistance
Direct Experience
The Present Moment
Non-Coercion

The path is within you. During our discussion Karen Schmeltekopf noted The Psalms were written by Eastern peoples. They reflect many of the principles of Taoism.

Oneness Blessing this Sunday

On October 18th at 5:30 pm The Gathering will host the Oneness Blessing. Karen McGinnis and Alicia Lown will offer the blessing to those in attendance.

The Oneness Experience is shared by the Oneness Facilitator through gently placing their hands onto the head of the participant for about one minute.

Commonly, those receiving the Experience feel a sense of deep calm and inner peace, and throughout the following days or weeks report a greater stillness and clarity in their daily activities. Others report a simple sense of peace and a deeper level of connection with both themselves and others.

The sessions are very peaceful and meditative. All are welcome here. Those who appreciate silence, emptying, meditation, peace and healing are in for a treat.

Movie Time!

The Gathering will explore the shadow side of religion and state by watching the movie Constantine's Sword. Amazon has this to say about the movie:

Constantine's Sword is an astonishing exploration of the dark side of Christianity, following acclaimed author and former priest James Carrol on a journey of remembrance and reckoning. Warning of what happens when military power and religious fervor are joined, this new film from Oscar-nominated director Oren Jacoby asks: Is the fanaticism that threatens the world today fueled by our own deeply held beliefs?

A spirited discussion will follow the projection, led by Harold and Beth Peterson (who have the best shadow books on our society/culture). The movie starts at 5:30 pm, or shortly thereafter. Snacks and munchies are available free of charge.

Living Spirit

Obsessed with the quick fix
The once and for all cure
The one fell swoop solution
The ANSWER

Excess and extreme
all or nothing
black or white

But LIFE has other ideas

LIFE--ever changing, unending process
black and white swirling into
infinite shades of gray

LIFE--ebb and flow
birth-growth-death-rebirth
constant transformation
no final destination

LIFE--pendulum swinging in wide arc
enfolding all extremes
good and bad
joy and sorrow
pleasure and pain
excluding none

Forget the obsession
intermingle with the myriad grays
ride the ebb and flow
embrace all in the pendulum's arc

Chase the obsession and forfeit LIFE
ever changing
unending
process
proceeding.

T. Rylander 1988