Be The Christ

Last month, in observance of Unity World Day of Prayer we organized and hosted an interfaith service at Unity Spiritual Center Denver. Representatives from Buddhism, Judaism, Islam and Bahá’í participated. I invited each of them to share from their tradition’s perspective on this year’s theme, “Courage to Heal.” I experienced each of them as inspiring and informative. However, one presenter, at the beginning of her presentation said something that has stuck with me since. I have reflected on it again and again.

Sensei Kaitlyn Mascher-Mace from the Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temple, in speaking about healing, said that as a Buddhist if one were to go to a teacher and say, “I want to heal,” the teacher would reply, “Your first mistake is ‘I.’ Your second mistake is ‘want.’ All you are left with is ‘heal,’ so go and do that.”

Her words struck me at the core. From a Buddhist perspective attachment to desire is the cause of all suffering. Further, it is only the ‘I’ or what we might call the “adverse ego” ¹ that can be attached to any outer desire. When we can release attachment to an ‘I’ that we believe is separate from the One and let go of our longing for some future outcome, we can begin to realize that we already are all that we can imagine.

I have said many times, and I honestly believe that our greatest desire is to realize our Divine Nature, which in Unity we call the ‘Christ,’ and to live from our full potential to be the Christ in the world. In a nutshell, that is the message of Unity’s approach to Christianity. The master teacher, Jesus, was here to teach the truth – we are the Christ made manifest – and to be a living example of one who embodied that potential.

For some time now, I have been reciting the following Gaelic prayer.

Oh Christ, Thou Son of God.
My own Eternal Self.
Live Thou Thy Life in me.
Do Thou Thy Will in me.
Be Thou made flesh in me.
I have no will but Thine.
I have no self but Thee.
Oh, Christ, Thou Son of God.

Since hearing Sensei Mascher-Mace at the interfaith service, I have come to recognize that what I have been saying, without verbalizing it, is “I want to be the Christ.” With this recognition, I am also realizing that in my desire I have been putting pressure on myself to do more, be more, read more, pray more, meditate more in my effort to make myself into the Christ. In my effort, I “suffer.” I know that I am attached to an outcome which I imagine being a destination that I have yet to reach. Additionally, I have been thinking that it is the ‘I’ that must do the work.

When I apply her lesson and release attachment to an ‘I’ who thinks he is separate and let go of the desire for some future outcome, all I am left with is “Be the Christ.” It is a simple and clear directive, yet one that is not always easy to follow. It should not require a great deal of effort on our part. In truth, it only requires us to surrender. Surrender our attachment to the adverse-ego based desires and be in service to the indwelling Christ.

While I have yet to find the citation, I have heard others quote Unity cofounder Charles Fillmore saying, “Self-awareness is the prelude to Christ consciousness.” Being the Christ requires us to be self-aware. I suggest we awaken every morning repeating the mantra, “Be the Christ,” commit ourselves to remaining aware of when we are allowing our adverse-ego based desires to get in the way, and practice surrendering every thought, word or activity that does not embody the Christ.

When we surrender to and are in service to the indwelling Christ, we are also in service to the Christ in others and to the Christ as it is made manifest in all creation. In that way, we will demonstrate in consciousness and manifest in form a world that embodies the Christ. We will realize the second coming of Christ and institute a reign of peace and good will on the Earth.

In the book, I Am The Word, the “guides” through author and medium Paul Selig, say,

“Once you understand that on a higher level your frequency is one with the Creator, everything seems to change. Once you understand that the availability of this energy we call the Christ is available to you, available to all, everything changes. Once you understand that the Son-ship, your Son of God self, is who you truly are, everything changes. If you are already aware of this on a minor level, you can get an understanding the heavens are about to open to you. When you have an understanding that this is the time of this coming age of Christ-dom, everything changes. When you believe that you are one with the Christ, everything changes.”

This book is a discourse that encourages and empowers us to “Be the Christ.” Phyllis Hoover and I will be facilitating a study of the book as well as experiential practice of the principles. We will kick off with an experiential gathering on Wednesday, October 17, at 7:00. The book study will begin on Thursday, October 18, and will meet each Thursday evening 6:30 – 8:00 through December 13, except for Thanksgiving Day. Please email Phyllis if you are interested in participating.

I also invite and encourage those who are in the Denver area to join us on Sunday, October 7, as we welcome author, motivational speaker, and workshop facilitator, Tama Kieves. She will present the lesson during our 10:00 service and facilitate a workshop beginning at 12:30 based on most recent book, Living Through Uncertainty: Moving Beyond Fear of the Unknown and Making Change Work for You. 

For more information on Tama, please visit her website. For an introduction to her book, please watch the short video here.

¹ The Revealing Word