Rupture, Repair, and Atonement

Getting into Right relationship with Spirit

When we hurt someone we love, we do our best to repair that rupture. We acknowledge the pain we caused, even if it wasn’t our intention. We share our understanding of how our actions impacted them negatively and our plan around how we hope to avoid making the same error or mistake again. We then invite feedback and make room for the person we hurt to further inform us.

Recently seen near Jamestown… ever seen a moose laying down?!

When we’re at our best, there are no contingencies or conditions.

“I’m sorry I didn’t hear you, I wasn’t listening. I was so clouded in my own eagerness and excitement that I couldn’t hear you clearly. I’m sorry it felt like I was pressuring you to do something at a time you didn’t want to be doing it. I’m going to work harder to notice when my own excitement is loud to slow down and make sure I’m also listening.”

It is not followed, by “But…..”

Not by “but I wouldn’t have pressured the situation if you were just more clear.”

It’s a statement of what you plan to do and how you intend to change.

And yet relationships are reciprocal. And we do get to set boundaries around behaviors and how we’re in relationship. I’ve found that those conversations are best when separated from an apology.

There’s one relationship that has an odd type of reciprocity - our relationship with Spirit. On the one hand, as far as I know, there’s an abundance of Unconditional Love being beamed at us at all times from Spirit. And on the other hand, without practices and rituals, we don’t really experience that directly. It’s more of a conceptual idea we hear about.

And, it can at times be unclear what, if anything, Spirit wants or needs from us embodied beings. And often our requests of Spirit are left unanswered.

So what would it look like to get into right relationship with Spirit?

I think it would include many of the same steps. Acknowledging the ways we’ve fallen short around our relationship to the Divine - like not taking time to express our gratitude, not making spaces dedicated to honoring spirit (or not tending to these spaces and keeping them fresh and uplifted), not engaging in practices that help us fortify our connection to spirit. We then share what we intend to change and how.

We can also listen to see if there’s any response. Often we have to learn or relearn how to hear responses from spirit, but there are ways. Mostly, I’d say listen from your heart, rather than with your ears. The are ears in your hEARt too.

Now, I’d argue that the Source of the Emanation of all of Love, really would love to see Love embodied and expressed through acts of kindness and charity, through generosity and curiosity and care. So it’s possible we may want to make amends around the ways we don’t show up in the material realm with generosity and love.

It’s possible that practicing the repair process with the Divine is an excellent way to work on it with our fellow humans.

If you’re curious to learn more about building, or rebuilding, or enhancing your personal relationship with spirit. Please let me know by responding to this. It’s something we could do one-on-one, and there’s also a possibility for a small intimate group as well.

In any case, the Jewish calendar beckons me into contemplating these matters every Fall. I thought I’d share my most recent reflections.

Hope you’re finding glimpses and glimmers in the fluttering of golden leaves, that amidst all that is wrong in the world right now, remind you that there is still so much that is right and beautiful.

With Love,

Noah

P.S. I’d like to invite you to not take on all of the suffering of the entire world when reflecting on places where there’s room for growth.

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