July/August 1998
Articles on the theme "Pride & Prejudice"
Prejudice Can Kill
by Patrick Plaskett
Why is some pride good and some not
so good. What is the connection between pride and prejudice.
Loving Authority
by Barbara Bedingfield
Teaching children to become selfless individuals, having a sense of gratitude,
and able to show care and consideration for others.
The Same Only Different
by Bob Gonzalez
Of astral travel, contact with the
departed and the interpretation of dream symbols.
Random Acts of Kindness
by Rev. Pat Cross
Discarding human attitudes and recovering
our oneness with God and each other.
The Magic of Differences
by Judith Sherven PhD and James Sniechowski PhD
Maybe it is not what we have in common
but the differences that really make a relationship.
A Threat To Survival
by Cydné Su Battreall
A battle with cancer. How pride and
prejudice can get in the way of making rational decisions.
Forgiveness and Compassion
by David Simon
A discussion of the origins of pride
and prejudice, and the nurturing of their opposite attitudes: forgiveness
and compassion.
No Room for Pride or Prejudice
by Dr. Audrey Craft Davis
On the importance of being able to
stand alone as an individual, so that one can enjoy a relationship free
of pride or prejudice.
Unlimited Vision
by JoAnne Gregory
Freeing ourselves from the limitations
of restricted points of view to create a reality of our choice.
Personal Pride and Legal Prejudice
by Constance Felos
Dreams of the good life, earthly dreams,
bad dreams, possible dreams and the ultimate dream.
Too Much!
by David Findlay
How going to extremes leads to the
negative aspects pride and prejudice. Underlying roles and identities.
Other Feature Articles
Natural Health Q&A
by Elizabeth Fenton and Renee Gillombardo
The psychological and physical benefits
of walking, plus other factors that affect our mental health.
What is . . . Hypnosis
by Alvin Bartz PhD
What hypnosis is and what it isn't.
The benefits of hypnosis. Some common misconceptions.
Random Acts of Kindness
Rev. Pat Cross
We are spiritual beings living human experiences in this earthly existence. We are all here to celebrate life . . . an opportunity to share and celebrate the full life experience with each other in a peacefelt and harmonious way.
This is a tall order and most of us have a challenge. We really have to work diligently to achieve this goal and maintain this consciousness.
What seems to block achieving this goal for most of us is the inability to be and remain open-minded in our relationships with others and with life itself. We all are inclined to get caught up in the addictive patterns of our humanhood. We allow an infiltration of worldly manufactured doctrines, man-conceived in origin and habitually practiced, to become the norm for us.
The very design of our being is divine in nature . . . free from all stress and strain, and free to flow easily and effortlessly.
Instead of bombarding our own divine substance and the divine substance of others with addictive human tactics, let us awaken to our own true spiritual identity of oneness with God and each other.
We can have a love affair with life leaving no room for conflict, disharmony or disfunction. Become like little children, Jesus said. Enter the kingdom of heaven. Seek and ye shall find the treasures . . . within, within. As within, so without . . . stop looking for it out there . . . in people, places, situations and things. As the prodigal son experienced, it's not out there.
Love and happiness is an inside affair which begins with self. A purging of one's thoughts, feelings, attitudes and beliefs of human conditioning. Each of us has a need to discard those human attitudes that are blocking the flow of love's presence and expression in, as and through us bringing greater good into our life. There is a great need for each of us to be honest with ourselves. To be aware of the motive behind our actions, responses, and behavior that express who we are to the rest of the world.
God so loved the world, he became what he created . . . you, me and all life. God in expression in many species and forms of life. Only God . . . Spirit of this source running through all creation.
Each of us is here to glorify this spiritual essence and beauty that permeates our entire beingness.
Pride and Prejudice. What are they? I believe they are just attitudes of human conditioning that we become aware of in our spiritual quest, unfoldment and growth process.
To thy own Self be true -- the SELF of the Divine Spirit within you --and acknowledge and extend to others the same courtesy. The spirit in me greeting, joining and enjoying the spirit within you. True oneness of being in love, joy, peace, and harmony living in a spiritual unity with one another.
As a friend of mine so adequately expressed it: "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift . . . that's why it's called the present." Let us enjoy the moment and seek out the good in each other.
Recently I have been recuperating at home after experiencing an unexpected heart attack. I had spent two glorious weeks in Maui, Hawaii, visiting friends whom I had known and had worked with while living there in the 80's.
A week after my return home I ended up in the hospital and had heart surgery. I am happy to relate that I am progressing nicely, though still have some minor human irritations. This experience and recuperative period at home has brought forth many awarenesses into my consciousness. The most important of which to me is that simple acts of kindness mean a lot A neighbor doing my laundry, a friend spending the night with me, friends driving me to doctor's appointments and doing errands for me. And two incidents that really touched my heart. One was a visit with a friend of mine and her 10 year old daughter who befriended me when she lived in the apartment complex where I live. In my guest book Tina, the 10 year old, wrote "Dear Pat. Get well soon and rest up! Thank you for everything you've done for me. I hope I get to see you again when you feel better. Love you Pat." And the second glorious demonstration of an act of kindness was when a young neighbor, just driving by, noticed that another friend and I had a new TV in the trunk of her car. He stopped and said "Can I help you ladies?" And then he also offered to assemble the TV cart and set up the new TV, which he did the following morning. This personal experience certainly demonstrated the divine fiber of these individuals. All random acts of kindness, concern and caring. All expressions of one spirit living life joyously, harmoniously, courageously, and with much care, concern and compassion for others.
These are the experiences in life that are most important and meaningfelt and indeed represent God's loving spirit expressing through creation.
Pride and Prejudice, to me, are born out of our humanhood whereas random acts of kindness are acts of a loving spirit flowing through us and divine in nature. Namasté.
Rev. Pat Cross is staff minister of the New Thought Science of Mind Center, Tampa, Florida, and founding minister and director of the Holiday Science of Mind Center. Holiday, Florida. (813) 934-6730