at Unity of Fort Pierce want to provide you with opportunities for spiritual development. Meditation, yoga, tai chi, these are practices that will take you out from the world of worry and fear and lift you into being a witness, living grounded and open to the Universe.
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I just went to see The Odyssey, which depicted all the real and imaginary fears Human Beings face. There is the Cyclops and huge armies of iron clad soldiers that fight and try to destroy the hero, Odysseus, who is the King of Ithaca.
The journey details his ten year struggle to find his way home to his wife, Penelope and son, Telemachus, after the fall of Troy. The Odyssey and its prequel, the Iliad, both by Homer, depict the desire of human agency and identity. Following the Trojan war, Odysseus is shipwrecked and washes ashore on Ogygia. There he stays with Calypso (whose name means to conceal) who offers him everything a human could possibly want, including endless life. However Odysseus spends his days weeping on the beach, yearning for his homeland and Penelope.
Recognizing she could capture his body but not his heart, she eventually helps him build a raft in order to continue his voyage home. The message she give him is to “surrender” to the winds of the Universe, which will take him home.
This story is depicting the eternal pull of human love and the desire for immortality. His love for Penelope is stronger than all his earthly desires and so he seeks to return home.
Likewise, we as human beings, have a craving to return home. We know that this planet, as beautiful as it is, and our relationships can provide us much joy and sorrow. Yet there is something in us that knows we are not of this place.
In the meantime, let us remember we have been given the gift of inner guidance, wisdom, knowledge, and we are here to cultivate our faith while we are on this plane of physicality. Yet there is in us a light that invites us to push our comfort level, trust the Universe and reach for more adventures; whether they be literal adventures or new experiences, foods, sports, hobbies to master.
Whether it is the Iliad, the Odyssey or the Bible, these epic books point to point to the lesson humanity must learn. Human kind was given the gift of free will, which is why all creatures, desires autonomy and freedom.
May we find our way Home to ourselves.
Blessings, Rev Janice
