ps for last sunday
Rev. Sandy Smith

CHRIST CONSCIOUSNESS

Growing up in a Methodist family, I practiced that faith from childhood until I graduated high school. As an adult, I visited a variety of churches, and I decided that traditional religion was not meant for me. It was enough to enjoy nature and be kind and caring to anyone who crossed my path. When I discovered Religious Science, I found many ways to experience God and that my way was just one of those ways. I discovered it was something I could choose for myself, just as other people could choose for themselves.

The season’s holidays come about, and we often forget that December’s holidays are remarkably diverse; Hanukah, Kwanza, and Christmas are just a few of those celebrated. Something these different traditions have in common is that they want to make a positive difference in the lives of those who practice their beliefs, and they believe in a higher Power. I look at the various beliefs as numerous wells that all tap the same source.

Now, what about this idea of Christ Consciousness. Dennis Merrett Jones, in How to Speak Religious Science, shares: It’s important to know that Christ was not Jesus’ last name; it is a title that acknowledges that he fully understood his divine nature and his oneness with God.

The word “Christ” comes from the Greek word Christos, which means “anointed” or “enlightened one”. In The Science of Mind Textbook, Ernest Holmes states, “Christ is a universal idea, and each one ‘puts on the Christ’ to the degree that he surrenders a limited sense of life to the Divine Realization of wholeness and the Unity with Good, Spirit, God.”

Dennis Merritt Jones says: We believe that the teacher Jesus came to show us each the way of the Christ

Therefore, it is up to all individuals to analyze their own lives to decide if they are “Christian” or not. The message of the Christ is unconditional love, non-judgement, forgiveness, brotherhood, peace and oneness with God. Perhaps true Christianity is more of a lifestyle than any particular religion.

Blessings,
Rev. Sandy Smith