On occasion, there are times when someone will ask us which faith we follow. Many of us will name one of the world’s major religions and/or the name of our church, synagogue or mosque. A number of us will say we are “on the fence” on that subject. But, for those of us who have a definite answer, most of us feel that our faiths are not defined by only a label or particular dogma. Those of us who try to live each day within our faith know that the spiritual element, or inner connection, is the key to our beliefs. The connection with spirit that we feel when we are in prayer or contemplation is the true meaning of faith for many of us.
As most of us may have seen on TV recently, one of the major religions of the world is in the process of choosing a new leader of the church. Based on the factors of perceived spirituality, intellect and faithfulness to the church, the selection of the next Catholic Pope is currently under way. The nations of the world are currently waiting and watching to see what type of leader will emerge as head of the Apostolic See. Among the comments many of us have heard on television interviews or read in newspaper columns, there appears to be a general consensus, and hope, that the new Pope should be someone of the twenty-first century – someone who is old enough to have experienced the evolution of religion and spirituality through the last century, but who has a clear understanding of the world as it is today, and a faith that is not bounded only by dogma.
There is always quite a bit of resistance to change, as most of us have experienced firsthand, however, without change nothing can grow, especially faith. There is an old saying that states, “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom .” Let us hope that this time we will be able to finally bloom.
Peace @-)-)------
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