n e w c h u r c h l i f e : j u ly / au g u s t 2 0 1 6
– goals not limited by time and space.
According to New Church
teaching, creation’s purpose is to
return all things to God. (Divine Love
and Wisdom 171) To me, “returning
all things to God” means making our
lives, and the impact our lives have on
others, an image and likeness of God.
In other words, returning all things to
God means acting the way God calls us
to act, and that is to love one another.
If we accept this as our purpose – to
love one another – then our purpose
can infill all that we do in our natural
and spiritual bodies.
If you look closely at the picture
of the person on the moon you’ll see
a large pocket on the astronaut’s left
thigh. This is the “contingency pocket.”
This pouch is for holding samples
scooped up from the lunar surface
in case the two astronauts had to make an emergency launch. The pockets
enabled them to bring back a sample even if they didn’t have much time.
The astronauts on the moon had a mission. Similarly, we have a mission –
exist for a time in the natural world, have a natural experience, and bring back
samples of what we most care about and most want to do. If you look closely at
your thigh (or maybe your heart) you might find there a “contingency pocket”
– a place to put what matters most to you. Tomorrow you’ll get your college
degree. Maybe that goes in your contingency pocket.
Maybe you will also have the opportunity to embrace the people near
you, sharing your joy and gratitude. Maybe that love goes in your contingency
pocket.
What I am suggesting is that we are here in this space-and-time world for
a purpose. I’ve also argued that this purpose has both shared and individual
aspects, and that intense focus and openness to new experiences or meanings,
shifting our focus, are important. According to New Church teaching, the
purpose of our being here is to have an opportunity to choose in freedom to
love one another as God has loved us.
Graduates, you have been at Bryn Athyn College pursuing a focused
purpose for several years and are now on the threshold of achieving your goal.
You, transformed, are about to enter a new world – your Earthrise.
What I am suggesting
is that we are here in
this space-and-time
world for a purpose.
. . . According to New
Church teaching,
the purpose of our
being here is to have
an opportunity to
choose in freedom to
love one another as
God has loved us.
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