Interview on Spirituality -- 2

What are your beliefs regarding a deity?

       I’m not currently comfortable with the word “God” because of its early associations to a male deity.   At the same time, since I was raised a Christian, and adopted that faith as my own when I became an adult, Jesus Christ is the clearest face of God for me.  Recently, a Lenten speaker at the Carmelite Monastery suggested we pray to the God we know and name this God something meaningful.  What has been coming to me of late is, “You are the God who has been with me.  You are the God who understands.  You are the God who loves me.”  I’m using these names for God in prayer and finding it personalizes God for me.

       The God I find reflected in Jesus Christ is a god who loves, forgives, converts and saves. Loving to me means always available with affection and interest and the willingness to be present in a practical way.  Forgiving means fully understanding, seeing my need for healing and meeting me where I most need it.  Conversion to me means the Spirit working within me to move me from limiting modes of being to a more abundant, fulfilling life.  Saving refers to God helping me make that inner shift from ego-centered living to Spirit-centered living.

      In a visionary encounter with Christ while standing in front of a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus at the Basilica Sacre Coeur in Paris, he revealed himself to me as thoroughly loving of each human person and having a fullness of compassion and a deep respect toward each one of us.   
     For years, when I have been unable to change an attitude for the better, I have prayed, “Jesus, in your grace and mercy, be born in my attitude of (fill in the blank), and work out your healing, re-creative love in this place.  This prayer is always answered, and when I look back, I can see how a shift has occurred in my mind and heart.