Tag: #unityeurope

2nd Principle

So, I am reading a novel. It is for fun. Because of my ministerial studies over the past 6 years, I have mostly read serious and study related books. So, now that I am approaching the end of my studies, I have given myself permission to read just for fun. I like crime stories particularly those that is mixed with a bit of romance. It is important for me that it is light hearted and fun. It is also important that it is engaging and the characters are interesting and relatable. I have chosen Amanda Quick’s (pseudo name) novels.

I like her books. They are witty and engaging; they are not too violent and they have wonderfully complex characters. I must admit that the rather explicit sex scenes got me by surprised but I realized that there are hardly any TV shows or major films without at least one explicit sex scene. So, I concluded that this is the fashion these day. Most of her books take place in the regency era in England. 

The book I am reading right now, Mischief, – a rather interesting title for a book that has not much mischief in it, in my opinion – has two main characters: an earl and a lady of little means. They are a married couple who need to untangle some mystery and series of crimes. The story is interesting but I am more fascinated with the two main characters who display wonderfully human characteristics.

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Pentecost

The promise of the Holy Spirit

Pentecost is celebrated 50 days after Easter and is when Christians remember the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the third part of the Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – which is how Christians understand God, and is the means by which God is active on Earth.

source

“…behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city (Jerusalem) until you are clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:29)

 

Metaphysically reading this quote, we are promised to be blessed with a deeper relationship with the Divine Presence as long as we stay in connection within through meditation and prayer. I often heard ‘Jerusalem’ described as an inner place, similar to an inner sanctuary, where we can always commune with God. So, we are asked to stay in meditation until we are ‘clothed from the high’, until we feel one with the Divine Presence. 

 
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. Acts 2:1-4

The promise of the Pentecost can be understood as a fulfillment of our hard work. We have spent the 40 days of Lent releasing our limitations, than we moved into different celebrations of Easter and Gudi Pavda,  then we moved into contemplation over Passover, then the people of the Orthodox faith celebrated Easter, a lifting of the Spirit higher after having released some of its burdens or karma, and finally we have arrived to the week of the Pentecost starting today: the moment when we receive the blessings of the Holy Spirit which is freedom in being a unique expression of God as we are. 

“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Messiah, as though Yahveh God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Messiah, be reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:20)

Continue reading Pentecost

EASTER and PENTECOST

In Unity we always look for a deeper or a metaphysical meaning of events, texts, and celebrations.

When we look at Easter we see the upliftment of our consciousness to a higher level as a result of fasting or withdrawing from the worldly to the spiritual.

On Easter Monday, we celebrate a kind of renewal and a clearer and deeper understanding of our spiritual journey through release and forgiveness. We are joyful and merry. We feel lighter because we released faulty ideas, misconceptions of who we truly are and who God is for us. (read about how I see God here CLICK)

During the  days between today (Easter Monday) and Pentecost there will many spiritual observances from different traditions that we can use for our spiritual upliftment and growth. We can observe these  50 days by making the time to meditate or pray daily, focusing into the Divine Presence, reading uplifting spiritual material, and acting kindly towards ourselves and other.

Lets’ see if as a result of our efforts what happens on the day of Pentecost!

What is Pentecost and what does it have to do with Easter?

The name comes from the Greek word pentekoste which means fiftieth. Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a major festival in the Christian church, celebrated on the Sunday that falls on the 50th day of Easter. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles – while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles – and other disciples following the Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ (Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2), and it marks the beginning of the Christian church’s mission to the world.

The events of Acts Chapter 2 are set against the backdrop of the celebration of Pentecost in Jerusalem. There are several major features to the Pentecost narrative presented in the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. The author begins by noting that the disciples of Jesus “were all together in one place” on the “day of Pentecost” (ἡμέρα τῆς Πεντηκοστῆς).[27] The verb used in Acts 2:1 to indicate the arrival of the day of Pentecost carries a connotation of fulfillment.

There is a “mighty rushing wind” (wind is a common symbol for the Holy Spirit) and “tongues as of fire” appear. The gathered disciples were “filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance”. Some scholars have interpreted the passage as a reference to the multitude of languages spoken by the gathered disciples, while others have taken the reference to “tongues” (γλῶσσαι) to signify ecstatic speech.

Source Wikipedia and Britannica

Spirituality vs Religion

One of the main reason, I fell in love with Unity was that their main focus is on ‘organised’ spirituality’ without boundaries. Before arriving to Unity I experimented with different types of religious and spiritual movements but I found them either rigid and restrictive or disorganized and confusing to my taste.

I grew up without proper religious education because of the socialistic regime in Hungary at the time. Religious education was discouraged. The elders in my family who belong do different religious groups – Roman Catholic Faith and Lutheran Faith – though both Cristian, had very different messages to convey. My great-aunt was a bigot Catholic who told me about a righteous and vengeful God who does not like badly behaving children; a God to fear. My dear grandma told me about a God who deserted her in her our of need but she never ceased to beg for His forgiveness. 

Everyone with strong religious beliefs told me about a God of Love and Compassion but both approaches to God seemed senseless to me. Why would an unconditionally loving God hate children who are naughty and why would a compassionate God punish someone in her our of need? 

In Unity Europe we celebrate any and all ‘religious’ and spiritually inclined holidays/celebrations because we believe that all path to God//the Divine Presence is valid. Spiritual teachers who offered various tools and practices enabling the seekers to gain a deeper experience of the Divine is worth celebrating.

Therefore, I do my best, to remember and celebrate in small ways, of the different traditions and tools to God. If you join our Facebook Group or Instagram Page you will see how we honour all paths to Oneness with the Divine. 

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Spiritual Communion

Unity Sunday Gathering at Unity UK

on 17th March Sunday,2024
“A Spiritual Communion”
From 3pm UK time

Led by Rev Ildiko Kudlik

 

In preparation for Easter, our licensed Unity minister, Rev Ildiko Kudlik, will share a spiritual communion, inviting us to go deeper into our relationship with the Divine within, so that the Easter experience of the risen “Christ” can be known as our awakening consciousness experience. It will be a time of prayer, reflection and meditation.

Pls find the ZOOM link HERE CLICK