Spiritual Liberation and Transformation

What is spiritual liberation and transformation? Liberation means to be set free from bondage. In spiritual terms it means to become aware of and make changes to limiting thought and belief patterns that separate you from health, wealth prosperity and abundance. Transformation means to change in form or appearance. In spiritual terms it means to echo the inner changes of thought and belief into creating a corresponding state of health, wealth prosperity and abundance in your outer world. As within, so without. As above, so below. Michael Beckwith’s new book, Spiritual Liberation: Fulfilling Your Soul's Potential, addresses the principles and techniques to achieve liberation and transformation.

Michael Beckwith has a talent to bring esoteric spiritual principles down to earth in common everyday language. In his book Michael Beckwith writes about ancient wisdom as applied to today’s world and unchanging spiritual principles. Our external world is a result of how we give and receive love. Michael gives us an awareness and respect for the principles while utilizing practical tools to bring about our desires. He will present his brand of teaching to seekers in our area on Friday, September 18, 2009.

Following is the press release for the event:

Bodhise Holistic Healing Group and Common Ground Fellowship invite you to an Evening with Michael Bernard Beckwith and Friends in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Friday, September 18th at Tindley Temple on the Avenue of the Arts.

Dr. Beckwith is founder and spiritual director of the Agape International Spiritual Center in Los Angeles, a featured teacher in the book and film The Secret, and author of the award winning book Spiritual Liberation: Fulfilling Your Soul's Potential. In this energizing and transformational speaking engagement, Dr. Beckwith will share ways in which we may consciously accelerate our soul’s evolution and skillfully work with both the individual and global challenges we face today.

Michael will deliver a personal message to Philadelphia — a city historically associated with the quest for liberty and freedom. His presentation is not religiosity or dogma, but a focus on inner liberation that opens us to a life filled with joy, harmony and creativity.

This evening's presentation will draw upon a range of ancient wisdom teachings and spiritual paths to form a coherent practice that is neither Eastern nor Western but truly universal. Musical inspiration will be provided by Rickie Byars Beckwith, Stephen Wise-Katriel, the Common Ground Choir and friends, and will also introduce singer Suzen Cho.

Tickets are $35 in advance and $45 at the door. The event starts at 7:30pm and runs until 10pm. Doors open at 6:30 pm.

Books and DVDs from Dr. Beckwith and Agape will be on sale after the event and Dr. Beckwith will be signing books from 10pm to 11pm.

A VIP reception starts at 6pm for $125 that allows attendees to meet Dr. Beckwith personally and includes reserved front section seats. VIP’s will also get an autographed copy of Michael’s newly released book Spiritual Liberation and DVD.

Handicapped access is available. For more information follow this link.

Performing at the event will be Stephen-Wise Katriel, a veteran spiritual music performer who at one time worked as a singer with Stevie Wonder. Stephen’s music is laced with spiritual wisdom overlaid on world rhythms that excite and motivate the soul. Minister Rhetta Morgan directs the Common Ground Choir for this evening of spiritual insight, liberation and transformation. I am honored to call Stephen and Rhetta my friends and I am looking forward to their performance as much as witnessing Mr. Beckwith live and in person.

If you are looking to be truly inspired come to this event and witness the teachings of a man who truly seeks peace on our planet. A man whose only mission is to uplift and inspire your soul to attain its maximum potential. Be a part of this life changing event. Hear his words and listen to the music that stirs the soul to be liberated and transformed!

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

Granny and the intercessor

After a relaxing weekend I decided to read some R&P articles. I needed a good laugh and Mr. Whiner sure knows how to give you one. My “esteamed” (misspelling intentional) raises the bar when it comes to non-sense and rhetoric. One of his readers, Frankly Speaking, left an interesting comment: “Keith Wimer is the best cut and paste man working on the internet today. He believes that Glenn Beck was sent here on a mission from God to push the Conservative agenda forward. He agrees with people on his site that condemned Ted Kennedy to hell the day after he died. He is one confused Christian indeed.” Hmmm. Interesting. Frankly speaking, I found Mr. Whiner’s behavior “inexcusable.” Oh, he tried to back pedal in his second article on Ted Kennedy, only to take the cowardly way out and quote a Catholic priest with his own agenda to reinforce his position. His take on Ted Kennedy is like Sarah Palin’s “kill granny” theory of “death panels.” He elevates himself to the position of intercessor between you and God. He then rants about comments against Glenn Beck as being libelous. As Kerry Martin from thefbm.com says, “Keith needs a dictionary! It's not libel if it's the truth.”

Then comes his take on judgment. Judgment means to form and opinion in an objective, authoritative and wise manner. Judgment depends on a person’s evaluation of the facts. Evaluation means to set the value or significance of something after you examine the facts. Mr. Whiner states my “continued efforts to shame, denigrate, and assail the character of this column and its author, through his own writings. The consensus by the majority has been, invectives such as these aren’t worth dignifying.” How convenient. My evaluation of the facts came to one conclusion. Mr. Whiner wasn’t there at Ted Kennedy’s accident, and therefore had no idea as to what had truly happened. He then claims I judged him for that with “Aren’t folks who reprimand others for passing judgment, not in fact themselves passing judgment on those they deem "judgmental"? The absolute apex of hypocrisy is for one to accuse another of something they are so blatantly guilty of themselves, whether one recognizes or willingly acknowledges one's own duplicity or not. This is the greater principle the preceding anecdote seeks to edify one and all with.” My evaluation of your actions is completely correct. My judgment is of no consequence, sir. That one you will have to deal with when you meet your maker. Mr. Whiner’s above statement doesn’t hold water when one examines the facts. The apex of ego and hypocrisy comes from anyone who assumes they KNOW what God’s judgment is and inflicts it on another human being. That is NOT our job!

Then, there are his readers. After leaving many insidious comments about me and my character, I decided to wipe my comments and start the slate clean. My choice, my decision, my right. Again, Mr. Whiner’s whiners complained to high heaven with one even threatening to hack into examiner.com’s servers to retrieve the comments. And these are stable minds? One of his commenters said, “Bringing your daughter into this out of the blue was about as low life as this piece of human garbage can get!!! What an A**hole.” The fact is I referenced his position on TK and asked him what his daughter would think if she knew that he was judging another human being without the facts. I said nothing derogatory about his daughter at all. This is the mindset of these right wing nuts. Attack the person, not the truth that they are saying. Distract the focus from the issues and the truth. Another commenter, Mike Litoris, is such a coward that he uses a play on words that identify a woman’s genitalia to identify himself. In reference to me he says, “He is obviously so envious of your ability to write and reason circles around him, that he has nothing left to offer but personal and highly inaccurate professional attacks on you and YOUR quality work.” There is nothing farther from the truth. I would rather have one reader that I reach with the truth than to have my readers act like such childish morons as Mr. Litoris. To be envious of someone you have to desire what they have. I can assure you, there is nothing that Mr. Whiner has that I want! I have read the Bible cover to cover like him many times and we both see different things. Our major difference is that I don’t buy his eschatological horsecrap. I guess Mr. Whiner was a fly on the wall in the cave on the Isle of Patmos in 90 C.E. when St. John wrote the Revelation.

Here is the bottom line. Anyone who listens to fear and acts on it has not developed his character to lead other individuals. Glenn Beck is one prime example. Anyone who follows him is unstable at best. As Penn of Penn & Teller said, “If God told you to kill your child and you said no, then you are an Atheist. If you said yes, then you are dangerous and stay away from me.” Those who teach and practice faith in God and NOT fear of God are the true leaders in Christ. Not those who preach doom and gloom and the end of the world. Those are the people who don’t have a clue of the mission of human life on this planet. May God bless them in their ignorance.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

God is NOT a hater, but Glenn Beck is!

I feel especially qualified to make this statement after I conducted my experiment for the past three weeks. After collating my results and reading the comments for the final time, I truly realized how delusional, moronic and infantile most of the negative commenters were. I want to thank Keith Wimer, Religion and Politics Examiner for directing his readers to view my articles and decide for themselves. They made the snake pit quite interesting with their intelligent comments like, “this guy is full of crap.” What an intelligent comment! Their participation allowed my experiment to be rich and full of non-diversity and hate talk. Talk about opinionated and closed minded! Kind of makes you wonder about those with such a weak position who call themselves Christians. I now fully understand the hatred that is taught by Glenn Beck.

In Keith’s article, Glenn Beck facing leftist limbo, Keith states the following; “Limbo, as in the popular song and dance; question is, "how low can they go?" Hypocrisy, callousness, malice, and outright LIBEL from leftist propagandists have, can it be said, finally answered that question. Of course one daren’t set the low mark just yet. One thing seemingly inevitable, when it appears these loony radicals couldn’t possibly get any baser, they jerk an all new falsehood from their collective sphincter. Perhaps it’s appropriate the aforementioned 50’s party fad was based on a Trinidad funeral dance. Allegorically speaking, today’s "leftist limbo" does appear to signal the imminent death of civil discourse amongst those who disagree with each other. Incidentally, it had been decided that Glenn Beck was going to take a hiatus from this column for a spell to examine some other issues, but extremist scoundrels have thrown the gauntlet and to not denounce their madness would be ethically wrong.”

Well Mr. Whiner, excuse me, Wimer, I had such a good laugh over this one! I guess that I am one of the “extremist scoundrels” you mentioned. It would be ethically wrong for me not to say something about your apparent lack of intelligence in regards to this issue, in my opinion. The readers you sent me commented at such a low it was amazing. Civil discourse for them is verbal pollution. As for libel, when you are public figure and make statements there is no libel when someone calls you a moron; especially when you suffer from ADHD, display a dry drunk attitude and simply find conspiracies in everything. As for you and your readers‘ collective sphincter, as you call it, it’s the same old song. I won’t attempt to denounce you and your readers’ madness, I will just LOL! And you and your readers call yourselves Christians and Godlike? What a joke. You wouldn’t know compassion and understanding if it hit you over the head. Are you finding sickles and plow shares in any Wilmington government or banking buildings much like your hero GB is finding at Rockefeller Center (incidentally where the Fox News is located)?

I carried on a dialogue recently with Father Jacob, a Catholic priest. He insisted to me that God hates. God hates? What a moronic conclusion. God has created everything in this universe. We are His most prized creation. Who are the haters? People are, not God! Glenn Beck is so full of himself and the fact that he preaches to morons every night that his ego is out of control. This man, in my opinion, is a hater and needs serious mental help! What’s next? As Chris Matthews says, “Fox News is constant verbal incitement.” Incitement that affects people like the lily white Jim Bob at a town hall that kept interrupting a woman in a wheel chair who was only trying to tell her story. People who believe communistic and socialistic threats from morons who don’t even know the meanings of the words. If it didn’t push people to bringing guns to town halls it might be just simply funny. But it isn’t. It’s simply hate and fear mongering.

Want to be a hater? Want to deny what Christ tried to teach you? Then keep listening to the Beck’s, Hannity’s, Limbaugh’s and O’Reilly’s of the world. Nothing but sore losers! If you want to truly make a difference, then follow the principles in the Beatitudes that were stated in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Don’t be deceived by the rhetoric of haters, liars and manipulators! They are on a path to destruction, no constructive dialogue and a life of fear and lack. God has created an abundant and loving universe. When you seek that, it will come to you. When you live hatred, it will come to you as well. Which will you choose?

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

Venom and the snake pit

Several weeks ago I wrote an article on the town hall meeting disruptors. The onslaught of commenters favoring Glenn Beck was like a tsunami; quick to judge and laying out mass destruction. I decided to walk a mile in Mr. Beck’s shoes and respond to his supporters as negatively as I possibly could. Since it takes about three weeks to form a habit and about three weeks to break one, I decided to conduct an experiment over the next three week period. I decided to level the commenters with insults, question their validity and be as acerbic and nasty as GB is. Mr. Beck cloaks his insults in niceties, but the result is the same. He gets you to doubt something to further his weak position. Why? To sell advertising. It’s not working, Glenn! At this point he has lost 57 advertisers. That speaks volumes!

Three weeks were up yesterday and as a result, I have been called a hater, a dumbass, a liar, a moron, ignorant, stupid, uninformed, unqualified, Anti-Mormon and on my way to hell. It is interesting when you push people’s buttons how they react. Wanting to be fair, I chose to respond to the commenters. I discovered that not only did it take up a great deal of time, it was stressful and hurtful; not just to myself, but my family as well. When you jump into the snake pit and spew venom repeatedly, it takes its toll. Since yesterday was the conclusion of my experiment, I am relieved to begin pro-acting again instead of reacting.

When people learn something and emotionalize it, it becomes real to them. No matter what anyone else says, they will choose to believe what they are convicted to believe. The snake pit of commenters is like a trip to virtual hell. It is place where everyone is trying to make his opinion known and correct and saying the hell with what anyone else says. This venom wells up from their spirit and spits out at others with such velocity that it burns the recipient, but ultimately, it hurts the person who spews it more. As I have said in my past articles, if you believe something, test it. Conduct experiments to test the validity of your convictions. In the snake pit, there are attacks and anger, as well as compliments and kudos. However, entering the daily sparring match can not only take away precious time from your family; it can have a deleterious effect on your mind, body and spirit.

I have led an absolutely wonderful life. God has blessed me immensely with a large family, great friends and a joyful spirit. During my 20’s and 30’s I was a recording and touring musician. I progressed into recording engineering and production in audio and video. Currently, I design and market websites and multimedia productions. I am quite busy with my work and I simply don’t have the time and energy to live in the snake pit. I have, and will continue to speak my mind on subjects that I have studied and learned about; much to the dismay of some commenters. I know who I am. Do they? Living in the snake pit and spewing venom has become a way of life for them. That is their choice. One particular commenter has a fascist like hit list where he discloses Anti-Mormons to the world. His delusional behavior and self-aggrandizement is indicative of a very sick mind. Is his faith in his religion so weak that he has to attack and label anyone who disagrees with his church? He has challenged me to produce my credentials, yet refuses to declare his.

I know what I have done and I don’t need to prove it to anyone. He feels that I have announced my credentials in my bio because I want to prove to the world that I am an authority. The truth of the matter is that is what examiner.com asked for and they put it in my bio. During my undergraduate studies in psychology, philosophy, religious history and computer science, I concurrently attended seminary school. We studied in depth the world’s religions, comparative gospels and I wrote a dissertation on ancient religions. I graduated from UCS, a Los Angeles based seminary school in 1985 and the school closed in 1989. During my studies I had to learn Aramaic (Hebrew), Koine Greek, geographic idioms, language nuances and the re-translations of the Bible by the Catholics into Latin. It was fascinating to learn about how some of the things that we have been taught are totally erroneous. Prior to college I had spent most of my child and teen life attending Pentecostal churches. I learned the Bible inside and out. But there was more I needed to learn; hence my attending seminary school.

My good friend and confidante Pastor Dr. Benjamin “Twin B.” Brown relayed a story to me about the situation concerning the Anti-Mormon accusations. He said that if you throw a brick into a pack of dogs, the one that gets hit is the one that yelps the loudest. How true! Greg West, whom I refer as the Anti-Mormon hater (I guess the brick had hit him), disputes my credentials and surely goes out of his way to include me on his Anti-Mormon hit list. This is a form of fascism, and his Mormon cronies don’t seem to like it. The tell me to look it up. I know what it means. They need to look it up. I call it as I see it. And this man questions my spirituality? Why, because I reacted fervently against his hatred and lies? I have had many years of experience with the Mormons. Having attended one of their wards for several years and having to deal with their incessant meddling into my private family affairs, I decided to leave their controlling, dominating and manipulating philosophies of life. After I left, I spent years investigating exactly who Joseph Smith was and what he was all about. I will be doing a series on them in the near future.

My best friend says that I can’t stop the birds from flying over my head but I can prevent them from making a nest in my hair. As for the snake pit, I am done. In fairness to the commenters and their right to comment, I will allow their new comments to appear if they decide to write them. They can fight amongst themselves if they so choose. I will be removing all of the comments currently there to wipe the slate clean and start anew. I will not be entering the snake pit anymore to read any of the comments. Post your hatred and disagreement if you like and if it is obscene and racial, I will remove it. I have a great life and I choose to live it without animosity, stress and strife. Furthermore, if anyone tries to email me with negativity I will summarily block their addresses. I will continue to speak my mind on a variety of spiritual subjects, analyzing religions and what they teach people as well as the beauty of being one with God. If you don’t like what I say, then go somewhere else to learn more or spread your hatred. I challenge you to NOT read my articles. Only read them if you want to learn about where your accepted beliefs came from and how they have been manifested in today’s world. Don’t be like the Greg West’s of the world who’s insecurity in their own religion and their desire to enlist other’s attacks on people who disagree with him causes them to resort to fascism and hatred. I am truly sorry if I have offended anyone with my retorts. My goal was to get you to think. If you choose not to, then it is on you. Challenge your beliefs daily to learn the truth. May God bless you and your families now, and forever.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

The religious right: sore losers and bible abusers

The recent onslaught of right wing holier than thous preaching to me has been most amusing. One particular reader, Greg West, has added me to an Anti-Mormon hit list for his constituents. Hmmm. Sounds fascist, doesn’t it? What does that mean? Will I be denied a loan? Do I have to keep watch for skinny tied young men on bicycles? Must I look over my shoulders or have my cable cut off? Mr. West begins by trying to poke holes in my credentials and then getting into my family business, just like I stated to a Mormon commenter about MY experience with the Mormon Church. He claims that because I attacked Glenn Beck, who is Mormon, that I am attacking all Mormons. What a small mind! In his quest to diminish me, he has reinforced my argument. Maybe I should make up a list of anti-spirituality people and post that on the Internet; no, I’m not a fascist like Mr. West.

And what about the right wing sore losers? They have claimed to be the “sleeping giant” yet my assertion is that the real sleeping giant was awakened and acted last November 4, 2008. This was one of the most important times in our history, because the people spoke loudly about how they were tired of the good ole boy network of corporate rapists, crooked politicians and self-serving mercenaries. The people have spoken and no matter how much rhetoric is yelled loudly at town halls, no matter how many would-be pageant contestants spread hate and lies and no matter how many holier than thous writhe in pain, finally, the voice of the people will be heard. Let’s face it; the days of making a fortune off the other guy’s hard work are on their way out. People are finally really listening to what Christ said and following his tenets and principles. No, it will not happen overnight; but it WILL happen. People are tired of being abused by big business, government and self-righteous haters.

Now, here comes the fun part. The Bible abusers. Those holier than thous who beat their Bibles or beat you over the head with their Bibles. Especially those with the Bible AND the Book of Mormon. I think it’s funny, that if you take the “C” that Glenn Beck left out of oligarchy, and add it to the name of the Angel Moroni, it spells “MORONIC.” That’s why he left out the “C!” He didn’t want to reveal his true nature! Nice try, Glenn. Those who abuse or bastardize God’s word are the worst kind of morons. God has given us a set of rules to obey and follow, yet, through many years of mistranslations and agenda fulfilling, the Bible has been made into a vehicle to whip game on others. It was NOT intended for that. Jesus laid out specifically our attitudes to be. Read them and take time to absorb what they mean. Then, go and read or view the hatred spewed by Gary West and Glenn Beck and tell me that they are following Christ. Hardly.

The Bible is our guide to live a blessed life. Each book for each major religion is their guide for life. Jesus said for us to follow the “SPIRIT” of the law and not the letter of the law. When any man makes what is written down more important than feeding a hungry child, helping a sick and elderly person or giving of your time to help those less blessed than you, than he is truly missing the point. Jesus said that if ANYONE knocks on your door and you turn them away, then you are turning him away. Yet, in this health care debate the Republicans are fighting the very thing that Jesus told us to embrace. Compassion and care for the poor. Respect for all people, no matter what they believe. Giving of yourself to others because it makes us all stronger.

I have been attacked because of my acerbic tone in my writings. I have been called foolish, angry, full of it and a loser. I really don’t care what any one of you calls me. I choose to follow the words of Christ and not the words of those who THINK they know what he has said. That’s why I spent most of my life studying the Word in church and in seminary school. Mr. West can try to diminish my credentials, but what right does he have to diminish my spirit? Absolutely none. His form of hatred and lies are the very reason we are all in the mess we are today with health care, wars and strife. If you teach fear and hate you will reap the rewards of that in your life. My message is simple. Don’t believe everything you read, view or hear. Investigate it. Listen to the still small voice of God. He will guide your steps no matter how many freaks come out of the woodwork.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

Glenn Beck: nonsensical or spiritual?

As a result of the recent diatribe over the validity of Glenn Beck and his endless chalkboard points, I decided to watch his program one more time to see if there was anything of value purported by the commenters on my articles and the commenters of Keith Wimer’s articles. I entered the experience with an open mind and as sure as I can say, “You Betcha”, Glenn proceeded to make a complete moron of himself on national television. And the commenters say I should take this man seriously? Give me a break! This man puts his foot in his mouth so much that it’s natural for it to live there. He begins his monologue with his famous chalkboard supposedly spelling the word oligarchy. However, his spelling was O-L-I-G-A-R-H-Y. Not noticing his blatant mistake, he comes back the next night and states that he purposefully left out the C because it stood for “Czars.” ??? The stupidity of this man goes beyond his entertainment ability. Why? Because he believes his own horsecrap! He then proceeds to identify points based on each letter which have absolutely nothing to do with each other, save in his own demented mind. Calling Mr. Beck a sound political commenter is like calling a rapper a musician. A musician creates and translates music through his being into an instrument. He doesn’t sample what others have done, add his own spin to it and call it original music.

This nonsense of his is insulting to those of us who seek a greater knowledge of the world around us. Being aware of your physical existence is only part of the equation. We have, as human beings, other aspects of our beings that need to be recognized in order for us to grow individually and collectively. If we but took the time to nurture and develop these aspects, we would become more aware of the world around us. When we go to school or college we are developing our mental aspects. We learn how to study, listen and think. We are inputted with many types and forms of information, and through the practical application of this information we obtain knowledge. By developing our emotional intelligence, we learn to listen and respect the other guy and his position, even though he might not agree with us. However, when someone continually subjects us to moronic and unsubstantiated claims, we either fight them or simply turn them off. In my non-self righteous indignation, I have chosen to refute the claims of nonsensical individuals like Glenn Beck. His daily dispensing of misinformation no doubt comes from a deep-seated emotional and mental problems. His behavior is so indicative of a “dry-drunk” (an astute observation by Kerry Martin, the FBM.com).

But is he truly spiritual? The final, and most important aspect of an individual, is where we can truly see whether this man is telling the truth. His religious affiliation is Mormon (The Church of Latter Day Saints). I have had many years of exposure to Mormon believers and I have plenty of information about their belief system. My eldest son is a devout Mormon and he and I have had heated debates over what Joseph Smith witnessed on the hill of Cummorah in New York state. You can rest assure, I will have a series of enlightening details about Mr. Smith and his “Latter Day Saints.” My experience with this church is that they brag about family values and their commitment to their people, yet they stick their noses into people’s private business where they have NO purview. To me, they are the worst form of hypocrites. Why? Because they feel that they have some special knowledge and dispensation from God just like I called out Mr. Wimer on in his first article on Ted Kennedy. Anyone that tells you that they have as direct channel to God is waving the worst kind of B.S. possible. A truly spiritual person seeks to develop their spiritual side by becoming one with God; without a middle man. The religions of the world are great for those who are novices in spirituality. But there comes a time when you must grow up in your beliefs about God. When you understand the knowledge you have obtained, then, and only then, do you obtain wisdom.

Make the time daily to still yourself and become one with God. The reward you will get is less stress, more peace, a developing spiritual connection to the divine, and finally, the ability to distinguish nonsense from truth. Take the peace from this time and seek the truth. Develop all of the aspects of your being; physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. Don’t just develop one aspect and think that it is enough to get you through. Balance of all of the aspects is what makes one aware and truly a contributor to truth and understanding.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

Spirituality and the public option

Much has been said recently about the public option of HR3200. The supporters say that we need such an option to provide health care for millions who don’t have it, while the nay-sayers preach fear and distrust because it increases government and takes away an individual’s right to choose. Let’s examine. The word option means the power or right of choosing. Hmmm. How is a public option taking away a person’s choice, when the very root of the word is choice? I really think the nay-sayers have blown it on this one. No matter how many times they are told that it won’t affect their own insurance, or right to buy that insurance, they still listen to the Beck’s, Limbaugh’s, Hannity’s, O’Reilly’s and Murdoch’s of the world. People who make a living on spreading hate.

Spirituality is the belief that things that cannot be seen affect things that can. However, it works both ways. What you do outwardly every day affects your inner spirit. The nay-sayers don’t seem to have any clue how their negative behavior based on innuendo and not the facts is affecting their spiritual being. Thomas Paine once said, "A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right." Are the nay-sayers fooling themselves? Or do they have a point? They base their argument on the right of individual choice.

Years ago I had the privilege of studying under Dr. Cleon Skousen. Dr. Skousen, a staunch conservative and Mormon, taught about how individual initiative is what allowed the first settlers to this country to survive. Communistic policies that were enforced in the first winter after their landing led to laziness and lack of contribution by some members of the community. But was his assessment correct? At that time it was. We, as people, are dynamic. As our bodies and minds grow, the awareness of our spirit grows as well. Because some form of behavior created a set of circumstances at one point in history does not necessarily make it viable at other points in history.

We have grown as a society in incremental steps toward a greater understanding of our spiritual nature. However, there are many churches, priests, preachers and religious leaders that still attempt to beat us up with fear, sin and eschatology. If you believe that God has created this universe then come to realize one thing; this universe is abundant. Can you count the blades of grass, the drops of water and the stars in the sky? We have the tools, like most of our Deistic (not Judeo-Christian) founding fathers utilized; to take what God has given us and make it a better world. We have that opportunity with HR3200 to give everyone an equal right to healthcare. It does NOT take away individual initiative, it reinforces it!

A public option would push the insurance companies to negotiate more fervently and as a result it would lower current health care costs. Currently, some Medicare beneficiaries have experienced cost increases; the public option would lower these costs as a result of more fierce competition. Costs wouldn’t be shifted to Americans with private insurance because we would be paying for value, not volume, and subsequently, a practical elimination of over payments. Socialized medicine is NOT socialism. We will still operate as a democratic state and not become a welfare state. The public option will lower costs to families due to the more intense competition. The fear that is being preached is that Americans will be forced to purchase insurance from a public plan. That is so far from the truth it is disgusting! Remember what the word option means. Finally, the patient-doctor relationship would improve because only the necessary care would be administered. Currently, insurance companies decide what they will pay out regardless of what the bill says, and stick the patient with the rest. How is that fair?

Dr. Skousen was right on one very important point. Competition is the soul of our capitalistic society. Furthermore, if we need to resort to socialized medicine to drive up competition, then so be it. To the nay-sayers, stop preaching fear, lies and lack. Realize your true spiritual connection to God, your fellow man and yourself. The more tightly you squeeze on something in your hand the more easily it will slip through your fingers. This is an abundant universe and we are all children of God. Stop hoarding, lying and being self-centered. It will make you a better human being for yourself, others and the rest of the world. As was once said about Ted Turner, “lead, follow or get out of the way.”

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.