2nd carnival on Engaged Spirituality: Engaging Resistance
This postcard was copied from StarLightWalker's post: Obstacles. While StarLightWalker received permission from Steve Sorensen, the artist of the beautiful website Nana Gaia to use this photograph, I did not ask. I trust it is acceptable to use for this purpose.
I had all good intentions of writing a passable post about resistance on the Virtual Tea House for this carnival, but I didn't do it. I'm trying not to complain these days, but I've been really busy. Who isn't? No excuses...but there are some reasons, mediocre in quality. Call it resistance if you must. I resemble that!
I did a word search on the Virtual Tea House for the word 'resistance' and came up with about 10 posts made by me or other bloggers on the site, including 2 written specifically for this carnival by Rosemerry and Holly. I think that means that either I have a lot of resistance, or all the bloggers on the site do...or maybe we're just a good cross-section of the population!
So here, without further ado, are the posts sent to me or to the blog carnival site, on the topic of Engaging Resistance for our spiritual development.
Photo copied from StarLightWalker's post on Obstacles. Not sure where he got it, but it's a good one!
Helen Mildenhall on Resistance and Spiritual Engagement on Conversation at the Edge As one of the community members quipped on the comments to Helen's post... " a great description of the community here at Off the Map, religion resistors that we are!"
Patti Digh on 37 Days submitted 2 posts: Become You and Follow Your Desire Lines. Patti is a soul-full writer whose blog is about "what would you be doing today if you only had 37 days to live?"
Holly Holbrooks' blog on the Virtual Tea House is a sweet and deep one. She wrote this post for the carnival, "Resistance--Love It" about finally moving through a terrifying block to talk with an uncle. "We often think of resistance as a bad thing, a natural tendency that we try so hard through conscious living to let go of. We try to not try. And sometimes it saves us, when we learn we can just float instead of thrash around in the water." Holly's on her way to medical school in the fall--hope she's the one with the listening heart when it's my time to face the abyss.
Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer's blog on the Virtual Tea House is also a sweet and rich one. On Being an Organic Farmer and the Futility of Resistance explores what it takes to roll with the punches of nature. By the way, Rosemerry's poem, 'Cartography' was a finalist on Prairie Home Companion's "Bed of Roses Love Sonnet Contest" this past February!
The Story of Stuff with Annie Leonard, is not overtly about resistance, but is ALL about resistance. Her team gave permission to use anything on their site for this carnival. "From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns.
Many thanks to all of you sincere and prolific bloggers out there who submitted posts to the Blog Carnival site! I had to cut the list of submissions off at the deadline of April 25th because there were so many submissions for this carnival. I'm not complaining...it's a great problem to have!
For those of you who submitted after the deadline, there's another edition coming out in early August. From the close to 100 submissions received, here are the offerings that most clearly connect around the topic of the engagement of resistance on our spiritual path.
These posts use nature or exercise metaphors about how to work with resistance:
StarLightWalker presents Obstacles posted at StarLightWalker, saying, "A lesson in purpose of obstacles and why resisting them may not be the best strategy."
kitty presents Make Like a Plant and Move Toward the Light posted at Brave New Kitty.
SamSherpa presents Animal, mineral, or vegetable? posted at Road to PleRoma, saying, "Hey, this is an older post from my blog that sits in happy obscurity. Hope you guys may find it interesting."
Rich Vosler presents Pruning makes growth for new life posted at Sales Training Tips.
Donna Bringhurst presents Conscious Flex: Logic of a Miracle: by Nicholas Powiull posted at Conscious Flex, saying, "There are many wonderful "ah inspiring" articles on this website, but I add this one because it is spiritually related."
The following posts use political or historical models of resistance and weave the personal mirrors into the mix:
Joel Gruber presents Who Are Your Enemies? posted at Fearless Dreams Personal Development.
Phil B. presents Humanity's Responsibilities « Phil for Humanity posted at Phil for Humanity, saying, "It does not matter if God created man or if man created God."
David Gross presents The Picket Line — 24 April 2008 posted at The Picket Line, saying, "Isaac Sharpless tells the story of Quaker war tax resistance in the colony of Pennsylvania, and gives us the context of Benjamin Franklin’s quote: “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.”"
The following posts explore religious and spiritual resistance. There are several that talk about the laws of attraction. While I'm not a fan of 'The Secret', it is providing a catalyst for many to wrestle with the resistance of the mind to accept and change, even for the promise of what the heart desires.
Albert Decker presents Witness posted at Resonant Enigma, saying, "To me, a moment of releasing resistance, giving in to 'what is,' is what this little piece is about."
Lori Jewett presents Living More Fully - Death as a Motivator posted at Between Us Girls, saying, "Whatever our spiritual orientation may be, death leaves us with many questions but it also provides us with the opportunity to engage more fully with life."
Sanjay presents And They Lived Happily Ever After posted at Quest for Personal Nirvana, saying, "How does resistance within us to our own growth, materially and spiritually, get created in the first place? This article ponders on the villains that we harbor within our subconscious, nurture them and feed them, and which come in the way of our nirvana. It also points a way to tap into the divine intervention that can take us to nirvana."
Ella Moss presents Have no fear - God is here and True Purpose of Life posted at ZODIAC TIMES.
Lorraine Cohen presents Allowing Your Heart and Spirit to Guide You and Oversimplifying The Law of Attraction posted at Powerfull Living, saying, "Expand your thinking about The Law of Attraction to manifest your desires."
Carole G. McKay presents Patience Through It All saying, "Where we find the greatest resistance to spiritual growth and how to handle it."
Chris Edgar presents A New Perspective On Procrastination posted at Purpose Power Coaching, saying, "This article discusses the connection between procrastination and resistance to the reality of the present moment, and some approaches to dissolving that resistance and regaining your focus."
Warren Wong presents How To Deal With Worrying posted at Personal Development for INTJs, saying, "Three steps to help you stop worrying in no time!"
Tarakananda presents The Spiritual Process of Making Peace posted at The Atma Jyoti Blog, saying, "This beatitude has nothing to do with people who plead for peace, demonstrate or peace, protest for peace, or in some other way bully for peace. It is about making peace, actually creating peace rather than making a cause out of it. This requires a level of spiritual development that must first be obtained by each individual. So the first step in peacemaking is personal spiritual development."
Robb presents The Weight of the World posted at A Yoga Journey with Robb.
Shanti presents Thoughts on Clutter (Part 1 of 3): Why Do We Have So Much Stuff? posted at Antishay Ventenne, saying, "Thoughts on why Americans tend to have so much STUFF, why this brings about unhappiness and dissatisfaction in our society, and on how to see if we can't find joy in life and living rather than in things (part 1 of 3)."
Mike Schwager presents ON THE ART OF COMMUNICATING, AND THE RISE OF DISCONNECTION, In Advocacy of Life - ALL Life and The Whole Truth And Nothing But The Truth (Part II) posted at PR Straight Talk.
hkalchemy presents The Science of Blue Feathers posted at Effortless Wealth and Abundance.
Shamelle presents It Doesn’t Cost Much To Consult With God posted at Enhance Life.
George L Smyth presents One Minute How-To - How To Become Socially Responsible posted at George L Smyth, saying, "Brant Christopher explains how one hour a month can make a huge difference."
Tim Newbill presents Taking Action Regardless of Mood posted at Conscious Growth.com, saying, "The article helps you learn to choose consciously in the face of resistance."
Alvaro Fernandez presents Peace Among Primates- by Robert Sapolsky posted at SharpBrains, saying, "Anyone who says peace is not part of human nature knows too little about primates, including ourselves- by neuroscientist Robert M. Sapolsky"
Astrid Lee presents We Are One World Healing » Claim Your Energy Back: Detach Others’ Aka Cords posted at World Healing, saying, "I first stumbled upon the term ‘aka cord’ when giving a Reiki treatment for a very experienced and knowledgeable healer. At one point during the treatment, I felt the urge to symbolically ‘cut-off’ an attachment to a specific person for her. Symbolically, I held the attachment in my hand as a cord. With my imaginary sword I cut it off, and freed her from the connection....."
Margaret Mary presents Voluntary Simplicity posted at Earthly Paradise.
spillay presents Looking at Life?. in 6.6 billion ways posted at A Pot of Gold.
ITAKEOFFTHEMASK presents The Law of Attraction and the Key of Transmutation posted at itakeoffthemask.com, saying, "Before one can be transmuted, one must be capable of being formed. Rigidity is the first problem of transmutation. Where one is not willing to be processed and moulded, transition cannot take place. This is the reason why pain sometimes serves a useful purpose to us."
Karen Lynch presents The Greatest Source of Joy posted at LivethePower.
Jessica Jones presents My Struggle With Living Purposefully posted at Practical Nourishment, saying, "Living with purpose."
Scott Goolsby presents Stepping Toward Compassion posted at Unapologetic Genius, saying, "Developing more compassion."
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of engaged spirituality using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Thanks again!
Technorati tags: engaged spirituality, blog carnival.
The Virtual Tea House website became 'word-ripe' when, over a cup of jasmine green, I realized that the web has an expanding part to play in the communal aspects of spiritual growth.
One of my favorite hats, among several is: initiated firekeeper in the Sacred Fire Community. Hosting a monthly community fire circle, I'm being taught that the simple act of sitting around a fire with the intent of holding open-hearted space makes for some soulful community!
With a master's degree in religion, my career spans 20 years in end of life care and I currently work in the field of child abuse intervention and advocacy.
Here in beautiful Central Oregon, my spiritual homes of the high desert and the mountains are both in proximity. And for good measure, four hours away is Grandmother Ocean and the stunning Oregon Coast.
I'm making decent progress on the goal set by my mother early on: she taught us that the goal of humanity should be to become ever-more eccentric, i.e. more fully human.
Entering the 'forest-dweller' phase of life, I am honored to host the Virtual Tea House for all who wish to explore how our lives are enriched and made new a thousand times each day by the spirituality we embody. Exploring this engagement together is the purpose of the Virtual Tea House.
Welcome! Let's have a cup of virtual tea together and share what brings us joy, what we are being taught by life, how we are leaning into the Big Questions posed to us each day in sometimes 'distressing disguises'.