A Call to Consciousness by Dr. Kathy Hearn

For the past few years, the Social Issues Committee has been meeting to explore the ways in which our principles and practices may be brought to bear on social and humanitarian issues in our world. While this focus may not be of interest to all in our movement, it is compelling to many of us who would like to walk the terrain of spiritually-motivated social action/advo- cacy. We are a relatively young spiritual movement and have not had the tradition of social justice/advocacy/activism work seen in other denominations. Some of us feel called to begin this work.

Our principles and our practice are founded upon the Absolute Reality of God, the Unity of all Life and the inherent divine wholeness, completeness and perfection of each person, creature and creation. Our Global Heart Vision embraces a world of peace, belonging, caring, sharing, enfranchisement, and justice. Needless to say, much within our world is not a clear reflection of the Truth we embrace and the world we wish to see, and many of us feel called to activity and involvement in conscious change.

The Social Issues Committee has announced their website and its features, and will keep the United Centers for Spiritual Living apprised of what is on the site. What we would also like to do is to periodically bring to your attention current situations as a call to awareness, consciousness, prayer and – where appropriate for you – action.

The Law of Responsibility says that we cannot change anything for which we don’t take responsibility. Many of the world’s situations are complex, certainly beyond my ability to know for certain the solution or determine what “should” be done. But I am acutely aware when something is incongruent with the principles I hold dear. The dissonance of that incongruity calls me to the work of consciousness first and then to action as that step becomes clear. It may do the same for you.

Dr. Jesse Jennings in The Essential Ernest Holmes (Chapter IX – “The World Has Suffered Enough”) writes:
“Emma Curtis Hopkins…wrote that ‘all evil is done in the name of good.’ By this she meant that people do hurtful things not because they choose to from a perceived field of limitless choice, but because they feel they have to, given apparently very little choice within which to maneuver.”

So what is ours to know? The Unity of all Life, the inherent divine wholeness of each person, and the abiding Love-Intelligence of God moving through everyone involved that is Limitless, Glorious and able to bring forth a change in this situation that restores good and establishes justice and peace. And as our beloved Ernest Holmes wrote, “[Let us] take the mental stand that evil and negative conditions are not things in themselves, and constantly and consistently affirm that good alone has constructive and lasting power…”