God is a Community Organizer

The Devine intervenes in the world in very much the same way that a community organizer intervenes in a neighborhood or on an issue
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I receive daily, a half-dozen email meditations to help spur my spiritual growth.  One of them recently posed a question that made me reflect more deeply on my life. A paraphrase of the question is this:  Is it possible to live on this planet with a spirit of generosity, abundance, fearlessness and beauty? (Inward/Outward Daily Meditation quoting Cynthia Bourgeault, from The Wisdom Jesus)

I will be the first to admit that there are no days when I live up to all four of these attributes. There may be a day – here and there – when I can claim to model one or two of them.   As I see it, the world doesn’t only exhibit these positive traits.  All too often we are confronted with a world that is mean spirited, greedy, power hungry, cowardly and bleak.

I don’t think we can innocently stick our heads in the sand and pretend that the negative aspects of the world don’t affect us.  They do, and in many ways it is inescapable.  There are days when I consciously stay away from social media, where I won’t read the newspapers or watch news shows.  These are days when my entire being feels wounded by the constant battering of negative news; when my soul feels like an exposed nerve, wincing at every assault on its tender sensibilities.

I’m pretty sure that the world won’t become a paradise in our lifetime: a place devoid of conflict, where peace and splendor abound.  And if that is so, then how do we go about our day fearlessly displaying a generosity of spirit and celebrating an abundance of beauty?  How do we experience joy when there is so much negativity, sorrow and pain?

I believe we must learn to live with the paradox of life.  We must accept the fact that the world is generous and stingy; that we can have both scarcity and abundance; that sometimes we will be brave and other times we will act cowardly and that often the beauty of the world becomes scarred, battered and destroyed. 

In short, we must learn to accept life as it is, in all its gore and glory.  I don’t mean this in a fatalistic sense.  By no means do I support the belief that what happens to us is part of a cosmic plan and that we must simply accept our fate. 

What I do believe is that the Devine intervenes in the world in very much the same way that a community organizer intervenes in a neighborhood or on an issue.  The organizer and the people are co-creators of making the world a better place.

A good organizer has a solid grasp of the environment in which s/he is working and can articulate a vision for a better day.  As such, a good organizer can inspire people to a higher calling.  Also, a good organizer understands that lasting change only happens when people own the work; when they participate in the strategy and the toil; when they have their legs knocked out from under them and can get back up and continue to organize and to try again.  Lasting change comes through collective struggle and a sense of community empowerment.  The organizer is the spark.  The people are the engine of change.

That is how I believe God approaches the world.  The Spirit breathes within each of us; calling us to something greater; coaxing us to step out fearlessly into the world and to bring forth the kingdom of God by the work of our own hands. 

And that brings me back to living life with a spirit of generosity, abundance, fearlessness and beauty.  We can be fearless because we know we are agents of God on earth.  We acknowledge the greed that causes scarcity, but we model generosity and organize people to bring about a world of abundance for all, as it is meant to be.  We help people to see the pain and suffering of the world, but we embody the love and beauty that is possible, even in the most dire of times.  God calls us and we, in turn, are expected to call upon the world to work together; to be the voice and body of God in the midst of all that is wrong around us.

We are called to stand as an open door, a threshold – helping others to gain a glimpse of the beauty, love and generosity that is possible. 

In the words of Hafiz, the Sufi Master:
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We have not come here to take prisoners,
But to surrender ever more deeply
To freedom and joy.

We have not come into this exquisite world
To hold ourselves hostage from love…
Or to confine our wonderous spirits,
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But to experience ever and ever more deeply
Our divine courage, freedom, and
Light!