What do you think of these words?
posted March 14th, 2007 at 12:04 pm by Betty
Dear Readers: I would be very interested in what you think of these words from Jesus in The Gospel of Mary Magdalene:
“I tell you, ‘Be in harmony…If you are out of balance, take inspiration from the manifestations of your true nature.”
For me, these words are a treasure. Much depends, I think, on what you take as your “true nature.” 
gospel of mary
Sufism
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9 Responses to “What do you think of these words?”
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March 20th, 2007 at 5:28 am
To me, as a Sufi, this beautiful passage touches on the difference between our “false self” (nafs) and our true Self, which is rooted in the Divine Beloved. The Gospel of Mary talks about this false self when Jesus says “There is no sin. It is you who make sin exist, when you act according to the habits of your corrupted nature” (Leloup’s translation). That corrupted nature is not our true Self, it is the nafs, which hides our true Self as dust covers a mirror. In Sufism, the practice of zikr (sacred chanting) is a process of “polishing the mirror” (as the poet Rumi put it) so that we can more clearly see the reflection of the Divine Beloved in ourselves.
The passage you have posted here from the Gospel of Mary invites us to be in harmony with that true Self and to manifest our true nature — the Kingdom of God within us.
March 20th, 2007 at 8:40 pm
Darrell,
Thank you for your beautiful reply. I hope you will tell us more about the practice of zikr. In our community we are deeply interested in processes for “polishing the mirror.”
When I am feeling conflictive and out of balance, these words from the Gospel of Mary have been powerful for me Recalling those moments when I have glimpsed my “true nature” - that true Self not covered with dust, that Self that is to be distinguished from the nafs - helps reconfirm (for myself) that I am indeed rooted in the Good and in the Divine Beloved. When we come to see that the Divine Beloved resides within, that we are truly made in the image of God and reflect God, we are raised up and brought back into balance. When this happens, it is a resurrection moment.
March 21st, 2007 at 11:12 am
I am currently reading your book “The Magdalene Mystique,” and all I can say is Thank You. I did a presentation last fall on the Gospel of Mary (and will be doing another one soon), and I have really felt her presence in my life. I’m only halfway through your book and already I’ve had to stop several times and just let the tears flow. Thank you.
Here is a practice I’ve used when leading Sufi groups as well as other groups. I’m Episcopalian as well as Sufi, and this practice combines elements of both traditions:
Blowing on the Embers of the Heart
I invite you to close your eyes and to be present to your breath, simply observing it.
[a brief silence]
Follow an in-breath all the way down, into your heart chakra – the domain of the heart.
As you continue to be present to your breath, allow yourself to open up to the boundless space in your heart.
Allow your breath to breathe into your heart center. The ancient Christian and Sufi mystics of the desert called this “blowing on the embers of the heart.”
Feel your heart center opening up, like a flower unfurling. Be present to whatever you experience in your heart center.
Experience the infinite nature of your heart: a vast, boundless void, what the Sufi mystic Ibn al-Arabi called “a sea without a distant shore.”
Thomas Merton called this space “the center, the existential altar which simply IS.” As Merton tells us, “Our inmost ‘I’ exists in God and God dwells in it.”
Allow yourself to feel the presence of the Divine Beloved. Allow yourself to open up to the infinite love, the infinite openness, the infinite healing presence in the domain of your heart.
As you prepare to open your eyes and return to our circle, allow your heart to remain open and boundless as we listen to each other share from our hearts.
The Sufi teacher Hazrat Inayat Khan said, “The heart kindled with love throws its light on all it sees.” May we allow that light from our hearts to illuminate us during this sacred time together.
blessings ~
Darrell
March 21st, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Darrell,
Thank you for your kind remarks about the book. Such words are music to my ears. My hope in writing the book was that others would resonate with my thoughts and meditations.
I trust it is okay to use your meditation as the opening of our Magdalene Community service this Sunday at the Rothko Chapel. Perhaps others
in the community will begin to join our conversation.
I am intrigued that you are both Episcopal priest and Sufi. What did you think of the House of Bishop’s Resolutions? Would be interested in your take. Blessings on your work and let’s continue to stay in touch.
Betty
March 21st, 2007 at 2:48 pm
I’d be honored if you’d like to use this meditation in your group. If you use it in a printed program, please mail me a copy. (PO Box 655, Marietta, GA 30061)
When I do my Gospel of Mary workshop in a few months, I’m going to use your book as my main text. You do a great job of mixing the personal along with the historical and spiritual, and I love the parallel translations in Appendix B.
I’m not an Episcopal priest, just an active laymember who is sometimes called upon to speak at retreats, adult education classes, etc. I am ordained as a Cherag (minister) in the Sufi Order and its healing ministry, the Sufi Healing Order. I lead a monthly Sufi Healing Circle in Atlanta.
As a gay man, I am discouraged by the conservative bishops who want to exclude people like me from the Anglican Communion. I am grateful that we have a Presiding Bishop and other bishops who are willing to take a stand for welcoming and inclusion.
Do you know if there is an established Magdalene Community in Georgia?
~ Darrell
March 22nd, 2007 at 10:07 am
Darrell,
How wonderful for Betty that you’ll be using her book! I am one of the founding members of the Magdalene Community here in Houston, and Betty is very dear to me. I’m mentioned in the book…I think it’s page 100. Betty talks about a conversation she and I had about the type of place we’d love to be able to hold the Magdalene Community worship services.
I am also the “scribe” for the community. I take the readings, meditations, sometimes music, dialogs, etc., that one of the community has chosen for the week and put them together in the service leaflet, then print copies for the service. I will be delighted to mail you a copy of the service leaflet! However, it will also be online. Go to the “Links” page on this website, then click on the “Brigid’s Place” link listed under “Other Links.” On the left side of the page, you’ll see a link to “Magdalene Community.” Click there and you will then see a link to “Service Leaflets.” At this time, the last service listed is December 10, 2006, but the Brigid’s Place Executive Director will have the leaflets current soon.
To my knowledge, there’s not a Magdalene Community in Georgia. Betty, do you know of anything? If you are ever in Houston, we would be extremely pleased to have you visit us. As you know from the book, we meet at the Rothko Chapel, which is an incredibly moving place. I would also be pleased to add you to our email list. My email is .
Bridgitt
March 22nd, 2007 at 10:09 am
I see that my email didn’t show up. It can be found at the bottom of the service leaflets at the website I mentioned above.
Bridgitt
March 23rd, 2007 at 8:56 am
Darrel,
I am very happy that you will use my book for the main text for your Gospel of Mary workshop. Thanks for communicating that to me. In our community we found the three translations to be very helpful in our attempt to internalize the spirituality. Seeing how three different people understand the Coptic opened us up to our own views.
I don’t know of a Magdalene Community in Georgia. My dream is that Magdalene Communities might start cropping up in various parts of the country, and the world. I spoke to someone last week who is interested in forming a Magdalene sanctuary in California and is awaiting the right time. Perhaps there will be some in your workshop that might want to think about forming such a community. That would be marvelous. Have a blessed day!
April 1st, 2007 at 8:47 pm
Dear Betty, I have enjoyed and been amazed reading the inspirational conversation connecting sufi teaching, the Magdalene openness and the words from Jesus in The Gospel of Mary! Your question triggerd me thinking what these words mean to me - for is this not what the question asks for, an individual experience?! To speak about being in balance sometimes feels like a unreachable “goal”. As a woman, I often feel this goal has been kind of a “Male” way of being. As if it is void of strong feelings and emotions. As if walking around, untouched and un-smitten by the “unpure” world around me, with a somber smile. (Excuse my irony to make a point!) Still I have felt, that for myself to be in balance, means to really be A Part Of This World of Chaos. To be upset when I see a child being unjustly treated. To grief the loss of another young life in Iraq, reported in the newspaper. To laugh at a silly joke and to rejoyce in worldly matters as making dinner or putting color on my toenails. To be in balance for me is to allow these feelings to fill me up and then also to allow them to fade away. To feel myself being a part of all this and yet also to feel the boundaries that part ME from all this that I meet. To be able to “handle” all this and still be aware of myself in the moment; To be and not to be swept away, at the same time. For me this is balance. So, if I am out of balance, if I get caught and occupied in such a way that I loose my energy, Jesus in these words actually urges me to connect in to myself. Like Darrens simple yet surely powerful way to connect to my own breath and heart. Also I guess to simply be inspired from something that I Manifest from my true nature. Like my breath in my body. Also for me a manifestation means the mark that I make in the world. What is it that I do? What is it that I love to do? What is it that I DO and it always gets to be the right thing? (For me, it is to sing. I sing to soothe my soul.)It could be to arrange a boquet of flowers, to crochet a beautiful pattern, to paint or draw something, to write. When I manifest my true nature, it is something that makes me aware of the beauty of My Life.
Thank’s Betty for a inspiring question!
Sincerely,
Anneli Leander