1992-06-28-Peace

Session

Opening

Opening Prayer: Prayer of St. Francis

Daniel: "Good afternoon. I am Daniel. I am your teacher. As always it gladdens my heart to be with you during our weekly gathering. I am pleased there are so many new people here. I am thankful for you all.

Lesson

Peace

My lesson this evening is on peace. Our brother, teacher Christ Michael came to this planet, to Urantia, that you may have peace and have it more abundantly. And what does it actually mean? How can you understand peace in a planet so torn, so full of sorrow, so full of pain, so full of those things which are not in the realm, the mind/thought of peace? And so know that when Christ Michael came, He came saying, 'that I may give you peace'. And know that I am not saying that peace will prevail. Until a planet can arrive at Light and Life, peace will be an ongoing struggle. We each today will look at this from several perspectives so that you can carry this concept with you in a broader perspective than you now have. Peace cannot prevail in an outer world until it is first made whole and is part of your inner world. And so I will again be speaking with you about building that inner life.

Through prayer, through your communication, through your ability to come to the First Source and Center you will begin to understand the meaning of peace, of serenity. Peace is that great welcomed virtue that you first feel within your being, and once it is a part of your being it is reflected outward. When you come to prayer (and the prayer I now speak about is your petitions to the Father), reflect your desire to be of like mind with Him, to understand Him and to follow His will. When your prayer focuses on this aspect, you are flooded, you are made whole, you are fulfilling your potential as a son or daughter in this Grand Universe. Your coming to the Father in this light is building your inner core, your inner spirit. And my dear friends it is this very aspect that you must begin to understand; that even though you have your humanity, your human life, you can still understand, know and feel peace through the Spirit, even though there is the outer turmoil. When there is serenity and wholeness within there is peace. There is the knowledge, the understanding that no matter what happens in your outer life, you will prevail; for there is this all encompassing, all knowing, all wise, all loving overcare in the First Source and Center. And so know that peace must begin to grow, to produce fruit within your inner core, and through this it will be reflected in the outer world. As more and more people begin to understand what true peace is, that which they know in their inner being will be manifested in, and will transform, the outer world. And at that point there cannot be any call for warring, for lack of understanding of another, for you will bring yourselves to those areas that need to be transformed so that you can spread peace in the outer.

Understanding

An example: How can you love your neighbor if you do not know him? How can you understand your neighbor if you do not try to know him? How can you allow or tolerate his goings on if you do not try to understand him? Knowledge about people, about their backround, about their cultures will give you the wisdom to go out and to spread peace. For in knowledge about people you grow in understanding, and in understanding there can there be workable plans, there can be a coming together in compromise, rather than in walls. For you know that on this beautiful planet the diversity of cultures, of religions, of thought must come to understanding for there to be peace. I admonish you all to take time during your lives to study other peoples, to study other cultures. The knowledge that you glean from this you can in your relationships with others plant seeds for them, give them insight into why a certain culture acts the way it does, why it perceives life along a certain path. Knowledge will bring about peace. Knowledge in the outer realm and also in that inner realm.

The knowledge you have of your own being gives you a sense of peace. For when you understand yourself you cannot be in conflict with yourself. When you understand others there can be a lessening of conflict. There can be understanding. And most importantly, when you can have a glimpse of the First Source and Center, can have even a rudimentary knowledge of this All Loving Personage, you will begin to feel peace. You will begin to be peace for others around you. 'Blessed are the peacemakers for they are the children of God'.[1] They are those who have come to the realization of who God is. They are the ones that can see that this broad life that you have with its many diversities, its ups and downs has a central purpose. Know that no life will be a smooth sea, but you can have this smooth sea in your inner being. You can feel serenity and peace within at all times.

Reach for that, my dear friends, and you will be totally transformed. Your lives will take on meaning beyond what you can even imagine! It is there for you. I wish for you to be of understanding so you can be at peace. Christ Michael said to His fellow brothers and sisters, 'My peace I leave you, my peace I give you.[2] Sadden not your hearts; do not be afraid.' Do not let this fear of those things around you keep you from feeling this peace. Grasp the meaning of Christ Michael's words. Let your hearts not be afraid. This week think on peace. Think on it in the higher realms, that it can be internalized for you so that it can be made a real thing in the outer world. You know that Christ Michael suffered many ups and downs in His life on this plane, and yet He was a man that was seen as understanding and knowing internal peace. And what He had in His life is possible for all. Peace! Let it reign in your being. Let it sit with the other attributes of love and hope and faith and trust. Blessed are the peacemakers for they are the children of God.[3] I will now welcome your questions."

Dialogue

B1: "Daniel, we have some introductions first. I would like to introduce my mother, A4 who is with us today."

Daniel: "Yes, welcome A4. I am aware of you and I am pleased you came here this evening. You are special for all of us, to look upon someone who has spent many years on this earth plane, but who is still open and willing to learn, to grow. I say welcome. I am pleased you came!"

K7: "Hi, Daniel. This is K7. I would like to introduce Wes M9."

Daniel: "Thank you K7. And yes, Wes, I welcome you. I say to you, young man, open your heart and be willing to let change come into your life. Know that you are loved, that the First Source and Center is a God of love; that all you do needs to be filled, aware of this love. Welcome."

K3: "Daniel, I would like to introduce to the group, and again to you, Terry and Marlene who are with us this evening. We would, again, like to thank you through the auspices of Michael for your kind and generous private session yesterday. Thank you again."

Daniel: "And again welcome Marlene and J7. It was a pleasure to visit with you yesterday. And I would like to add a note that I enjoyed listening and being with you the rest of the evening in your conversations. It is this type of coming together with others that you will continue to plant seeds to further grow in your understanding. Welcome and my love goes with you and to the people in your group. Please let them know they are under our knowledge. Peace to you."

B3: "Hi teacher Daniel, this is B3."

Daniel: "Hello B3."

B3: "I can't stand silence.(laughter) Just kidding."

Daniel: "It is peace!"(more laughter)

Light and Life

B3: "That's what I want to talk to you about! You seem to have alluded in your lesson that before we will have peace on this planet we will have reached the level of Light and Life. Did I understand that correctly?"

Daniel: "In a sense. Part of the ability to end war is bringing a planet into Light and Life; being able to envision a broader perspective for all mankind. There will be many types of peace. But the peace I speak of is one where there are many upliftments in all areas of life; that people can work together despite their diversity; can be of the understanding of economic stability, planetary government and the knowledge of a one First Source and Center. All of these things will take place and in a planet that has evolved to Light and Life this is what you would see. You would see people of diverse cultures being able to work together; to be able to understand one another; to tolerate one another's differences; to work under one government organization that does not rule with an upper hand; where there will not be the haves and the have nots, but where there is more equity, more understanding, more ability of humans to be of service to one another, to reach out. There will be this lessening of need for personal gratification, personal power, personal wealth. And this can come about through individuals beginning with themselves with understanding peace. For when you understand true peace, the wants for material possessions, for power, fall to the wayside. And at that point you can come together as people, as sons and daughters of the First Source and Center to work and bring about peace on a planetary basis. Is this more helpful?"

B3: "Yes, thank you. Let me follow up on that with another question. Of the conditions the book says planets must obtain before we are reaching Light and Life, . .and it's been a while since I have read this so I may not have this exactly right..there are three which we haven't yet attained: we haven't the single language, although English seems to be coming along to that point; we don't have a single government, although there seems to be some progress made in that; it seems to me the final one, whether we have a single religion, that seems to be the one that we are making the slowest progress on...my interpretation of that seems to be to believe in God...is there something you can tell us about this latter one that might be helpful in our walk at this point?"

Daniel: "The formation of a single religion is very far distant. If there can be understanding, as you say, of a one God, First Source and Center, it becomes, you see, a matter of what is meant by religion. Religion can be understood as that institution, and you know the many that I speak of, or it can be that which is in the individual, the faith that the individual has; that religion is that which brings you to the understanding of what faith is, your belief that there is an overseer. And you see, as more and more people begin to question the dogmas, the institutions that they are in, they will search for other avenues that will bring them the spiritual nourishment they need. For you see, the religion that has grown up from Christ Michael was not the religion He wished. It became a religion of Him and not about the First Source and Center, not about the teachings that He brought to this planet. If this world could understand a one personage Deity; could understand that there is a brotherhood and sisterhood among all people; that you are indeed your brother's keeper as he is yours; that you are part of more than a single planet, that you have cosmic citizenship as well; when this can be understood then true service, loving service to one another and peace will prevail. Part of this teaching mission is to bring you into this realization; to fertilize your souls, your beings, that you can grow and produce fruits and your fruits can scatter seeds. And as seeds are planted through successive generations, they will take root. And as people begin to take it upon themselves to search for knowledge, for wisdom, no longer can the institutions of religions be dictators. For the seeds you plant will help others to question, to ask, will stir their souls to unrest, that they too may begin their journey, their quest for faith, their quest to know. Is this helpful?"

B3: "Yes, thank you."

Relationship

V1: "Hi, Daniel. This is V1. I really appreciate once again your message. At home I was debating whether it was going to be on service because of something I read this morning. Service followed trustworthiness and yet I copied this week something that P1 had given me, 'Symptoms of Inner Peace' and maybe I should have know that is what it was going to be on. But what I really would like to ask about is..thank you once again for your contrast between religion and spirituality, and how important that was in my own life, that it is not necessarily the 'religious' person that is spiritual..and I really appreciate you really just talking on that and the fact that in understanding other people, then we can also make our world a safer place. My question is...it seems so much bigger and broader out there and it seems much more difficult to live in peace with the people we work with, with the people we live with, with the people.. it seems like the people we are constantly rubbing our shoulders with. To me that it is more difficult to find peaceful ways of living than it is to think in terms of understanding another culture or another religion. That's removed somehow, and it's much harder for me close here at home. And I am wondering if you would talk about that as far as peace is concerned?"

Daniel: "Yes. And V1, thank you for your insight. Let us look at this avenue that V1 speaks of. Of course it is far more removed to study a culture a thousand miles across the ocean where you do not have to be in relationship with them. And so I say, do that as much as you can, but make it a daily thing to study your fellow brothers and sisters whom you interact with. Observe them. Note who they are. Note things about them. And know that they, too, just as you, have the daily struggle, the daily grind. And in your observation of these people, in your conversations with them, you will glean insight about them which you can hold in your being to help you to understand why they do the things they do. You may not agree with them. And this is understandable! You cannot agree with everyone at all times. But if you can understand where they are coming from, what their perspective is at any given moment, then this gives you the knowledge and the understanding so that you can interact with them; that if you know that particular person is having a difficult day, that this is not the time to go in and say, 'look, we have another major problem'.(laughter) For you will be met by this person with anger, with frustration which many take personally. V1, especially know that. You would internalize this and in this internalization there becomes a twisted knot and this twisted knot is your understanding of that person. You tend to look, then, with more negativeness about this person.

And while my example is very simple, look to it on more important issues; that the more you can understand about your brothers and sisters in any given relationship, the better your relationship will be. If you can put aside your pride in dealing with them, in your feeling that you are the one that needs to be in charge, that you are superior and far knowing more, or whatever the case may be, and look on your brothers and sisters as an equal with you, striving, struggling, going through joy and sorrow, ups and downs, then it is for sure much easier to deal with problems or to see things that do not touch you real personally, do not touch your emotions. Yes. These are the ones that are most difficult, for they touch your inner being. They can touch that nerve that will cause you to react. And part of the messages for the many weeks we have been together is to build that foundation so that you do not react, but you act out of knowledge and wisdom and love; to validate all people for who they are, knowing that you will not always agree, but because they are your brother and sister, that they have the Indwelling Spirit within them, that you will take the time to know them, to allow them to be a part of your life in an area that is not based on judgment. It will not be easy. As you are able to bring those parts of your inner being and manifest them in the outer life, you will have a more total perspective and picture thereof. Has this helped in any way?"

V1: "Yes, Daniel. Thank you."

C2: "Daniel, this is C2."

Daniel: "Greetings, C2."

C2: "You know that one of my missions is not necessarily to convert people, but to convert the church."

Daniel: "Understood, yes. And I wish you much luck! And know that there will be many like you, for this is a necessary step, yes."

C2: "It gives me great comfort that the call is to be faithful and not successful, so..but I also just..as I agree totally with your explanation on the difference between religion and spirituality and then also that the notion that we had..not every church and at least hopefully I know one or two for which are the exception where we have focused more on a single worship of Christ, rather than Christ as the model and certainly in thanksgiving for that focus of our energies toward understanding our God and what our God calls us to do. So I appreciate your words, and they especially mean a great deal this week because there is not also peace in my household of faith, either with me or with each other..nothing really serious yet, so I am thankful for your words which call me and encourage me in faithfulness."

Tradition

Daniel: "Thank you C2. May you always continue on your journey, for you are, yes, seeking that alignment, you are knowing of a much broader perspectives than many. And let me explain and speak to something you said. You see, religions often times are those institutions where people go for an hour's worship, and I say, 'worship' in quotes for worship in the respect that many of them have is not the true grand worship of which I speak. Many people who feel they are 'religious', and are following the Father's will, are, in effect, erroneous; for religion cannot be a claim to an hour's devotion on any particular day. Your religion, your faith/bond with the First Source and Center must be built on experience, on living those things which were taught to us by Christ Michael; that it must not be as were the Pharisees and the like of Christ's day, where there was so much ceremony and pretentiousness yet there was the turning of the cheek when a fellow human being cried out. Religions must shed their man made morals of right and wrong. They must grow to be a religion that people can live, that people may understand what it means to follow the Will of the Father, to be of loving service to one another. Experience is what religion should be in your life, to experience the working out of the First Source and Center."

C2: "In one of my ways I have of distinguishing between religion and spirituality is that religion is really the 'map' or ought to be, the map that really does tell us who our First Source and Center is, and puts us in touch with being at one with that First Source and Center, and that our Spirituality really does need that touchstone or it doesn't bring us into wholeness, and we err on the other side. Can you comment about that?"

Daniel: "For sure. If all religions could be of this mindset as you speak, then there would be the shedding of those dogmas which bind people into a set of mind where there is not this freedom of choice for them; that they see violating some man made dogma as that which will take them to their hell. Religion does serve a purpose, does need to be, as you say, the roadmap. It needs to be the roadmap that allows all peoples to take which ever road they wish to seek the First Source and Center; that they are able to make choices about their lives; that because of the roadmap, the signs along the way that say, 'To understand trust, take this road', 'To know love, take this road', and that the ascending mortal can choose the roads that bring him wholeness, that bring him back to his source. When religions can understand the Indwelling Spirit within all, there will be nurturing of this Indwelling Spirit, rather than the clutches that now many religions have, where there must be the understanding that they are the only religion; that there must be the understanding that because they are not the priests, they are not the bishops, they are not the head in these churches, that the people, the laity, are not able to choose for themselves. If there needs to be a priest, his function should be to enlighten his congregation, to encourage his congregation to understand their source, their being, to know that the First Source and Center is a loving God; that each individual is loved; that each individual is worthy; that the First Source and Center has already forgiven all. It is us who need to forgive and know we are forgiven. You see, if all people were raised and nourished on these fruits, on these accounts, then you would see people choosing those roads which lead them to the Father. They would not take these side detours, looking for a greater path, for they would already be on it. Those things which distract mankind in the outer, that calls him to seek material possessions in lieu of following the First Source and Center are only there because these individuals have never been nourished or fed these truths. So yes, religion needs to be the roadmap so that all can be embodied in the spirituality of their own soul growth. Has this helped?"

C2: "Daniel, that is very beautiful. Thank you."

Daniel: "You are most welcome."

B1: "Hello Daniel."

Daniel: "Hello, B1."

Body

B1: "As you were talking about inner peace you said something about..as you build your foundation you reduce the conflict within yourself as you understand yourself further. I have the feeling in my own life that there are physiological factors that affect my mood, perhaps for want of a better term, blood sugar levels, nutritional factors, things like that can interfere or that can help a sense of peace. And I am wondering if this is accurate in my thinking, or if it is an excuse for..am I finding excuses in my own mind for a lack of peace that is due to something else? Is nutrition something that could foster mood...I just finished a week of classes on mood disorders so that concern about mood and inner peace go together in my mind."

Daniel: "For sure. Know you all of your dual nature, your divineness and your humanness. Your humanness embodies your emotions as well as your physical being. You know that your being's emotions will cause you to be out of sorts, to not be in harmony. And know too that physical abnormalities, also, can often cause individuals to be out of sorts, to not be in that harmony. And know that this is why it is important for you to know yourself. (And let me just make a little side remark here that total knowledge and understanding of your being is never possible, but knowing yourself as much as you can will help you to understand when and why from where you do certain things.) If you are in understanding that you do have a blood sugar level problem, it behooves you greatly to follow those things which will keep this at a constant level, for it will not only make you feel better, but it will also keep the mind clear. And clarity of mind helps bring you to clarity in your spirituality. So all of you, please be appraised that you will have many times in your lives those times when you will not feel in harmony. If your desire all along has been one to seek the Father, to know His will, this will carry you through these bad times, so that when there is again harmony within the bodily functions, within the emotions, you can again be on your path. And know that you must be the one who is responsible and the one who must do what is ever possible to keep you on a spiritual path. If you are having emotional problems or health problems you need to search out those avenues that will bring you back into wholeness, that you cannot expect someone else to be in charge of your being, to do for you; that you cannot become a victim of whatever it is you are feeling; that if you are abusing your body, not staying on a diet that will keep your blood sugar level at an even thing, you are accountable for that. You are responsible for what happens. So, take hold of those things that will keep you healthy in both body, mind, and spirit. You are all of these. All must be in working order.

Look to a car. It runs down the road lickity split, and you are very pleased. And you do those things to keep it going lickity split. You nourish it with gas. You clean the carburetor. You put in spark plugs and air filters. You keep this machine running so that it will service you. If it breaks down, if it runs out of gas, the whole vehicle stops until those things are rectified so that it can go again. Your body, your physical being is like this car. Keep it going so that you can be on that path to the First Source and Center. Does this further clarify?"

B1: "Yes, Daniel. Sometimes I think I ought to win the prize for asking the most obvious and stupid questions!"

Daniel: "No question is ever stupid and know that questions asked will help others in some other way, will make another point for other individuals; that we are all here together learning and helping one another; that the questions that you risk to ask will further help the others around you as well as yourself. Never fear that your questions are not askable."

B1: "Thank you. I guess the part of that question I really was wanting to know was . ..and I think you have made it really clear that our physical functioning really does affect our inner peace and so it's our responsibility to take care of our bodies, etc."

Daniel: "Yes."

B1: "Well I appreciate that very much. Thank you."

Daniel: "I will allow one more question."

Morality

V1: "Daniel, this is V1 again. And, uh, I'm not sure just how you brought it up but you brought up the difference between morality and spirituality and if I understand it correctly...and maybe I should just wait and ask you to go ahead and explain the difference and what we can do in our culture to possibly raise our morals to a more spiritual level."

Daniel: "A very wise question. A very thought provoking question. This question is one that embodies many aspects. As you are aware, morality, morals, are those things that are imposed by society, that are generated and made knowledgeable through the civilizations, through cultural growth, through religious growth. And what is considered moral in one is considered immoral in another. So be of understanding that these are man made types of things that you are speaking of, as opposed to spirituality which is more of a divine nature.

You see, morals can be those things which speak to the very heart and core and center of what is right and wrong, all the way to the utterly ridiculous. When civilizations and sects devise those things which truly trap the individuals where you must dress a certain way..or if you were a lady in bygone days who would show an ankle or knee was considered immoral..you see . .ridiculous. But to address the thing that really is important, the understanding of what is right and wrong, the understanding of those things such as being truthful, having integrity, being honest; those things such as respect for other beings in all areas; the respect for life; the respect for the planet; these are the questions which call upon you to decipher, which calls upon you to bring your spirituality into play in making decisions on what is right or wrong. If your foundation is built on the fruits of the source of the Spirit of Truth, if these fruits of honesty, service, love, forgiveness, are your foundation, then you have made those things which you cannot do your moral code. Any foundation built on the truths of the Father cannot be in error, cannot transgress into sin. When it does, if that foundation that you have is set, is molded, you will have such disharmony within your being that you will quickly rectify it and be on that path. Are you seeing?"

V1: "Yes, Daniel. I think you are saying rather than to teach morals we have to teach the Spirit of Truth virtues which are honesty, forgiveness, love, trust, these things. So that is what we have to instill in children."

Closing

Daniel: "Exactly! Yes! In that realm you will know peace. You will feel it in your inner being. It will be manifested in the outer. My friends, time for me to take my leave. I am happy to meet with all of you. Welcome newcomers and I send you all this week my peace to you and my love. Fear not nor be afraid. Understand the peace which Jesus taught. Good evening."

Daniel, leading in guided prayer while standing:

"Open your hearts. Open your minds. Allow the love of the First Source and Center, the Universal Father, to come into your being. Allow Him to fill you in all the recesses of your being, in the darkest, the most personal areas. Welcome Him. Feel Him. Allow this Love to pulsate through your whole being.(long pause) This wondrous feeling is but a touch of what His real Love is all about. And love needs to be shared, to be given away. And so, from this sacred place in your being, where love has its center, channel your love to the center of our circle. And as the love from everyone's being meets it grows, it glows, and it fills this room. It fills the outer world from North to South and East to West. It travels across plains and mountains and rivers, across valleys and oceans, so that all continents are embraced in this Love. And now, my dear friends, let this love that we have rain down on the parched lands, rain down on the parched individuals. Look, look at those who are starving and give them love. Look at those who are victims and look too at the victimizer and give him love as well. Love all. Let the love you feel travel around. Know that this prayer is able to effect some change when you can daily project love to others. It is though, by your actions, that you truly are loving. And so let this prayer be an example for you in your life, that whoever you meet, friend or foe, you can be a channel of love for them. And so know that the earth does need much love, and you can generate it, you the individual in your own life can effect change with this wondrous virtue/gift from the First Source and Center, part of your being, the Indwelling Spirit. And now, we will bring this love back to our room, from all the far corners, from East and West and North and South. And now back into your being. And now feel it in you, this gift from the Father, who cares genuinely about each and every person. You are loved and can be love. Take this with you always. Amen."