Spiritual Recharge

Recharge, Rejuvenate, refresh, restore, revive, replenish

We want it, but what is it, and how do we get it? 

Are we batteries? Plants? Old and tired? Broken? Low on Mana or Life-force? Dry and dusty like old cardboard stored in the attic? Sometimes I feel like a peeping baby bird - mouth wide - hoping the right nourishment will arrive.

Whatever image makes sense… we need spiritual sustenance to be poured down our parched throats. But it seems to be so hard to find some, to make time to receive. 

Maybe one distraction is that we have narrow ideas about the RIGHT way to replenish.

It helps me to think about four ways of embracing spirituality. And then to ask questions about what most attracts me. And what most distracts me. Where do I need to lean in harder? Where can I loosen my grip?

Earth Air Fire Water = heart, spirit, head, and body = Relationships, Spaciousness, Knowledge, and Work.

Earth

Body-Serve-Action

Acts of charity and kindness. helping others, purpose and fulfillment, and contribution to the world we dream of. volunteering, donating, offering a kind word or gesture, acting for justice.

I am a spiritual person who is an "Activist" (I express that when I "do")

• What are some activities that fall into this type of recharge? Cooking a loved one a meal, selecting a gift, witnessing or listening to someone marginalized, Rallies or organizing

• So many options! All valid!

Air

Head-Learn-Contemplation

Intellect, reason and beliefs, purpose, meaning, direction, personal growth, study, seeker of knowledge, curiosity. 

I am a spiritual person who is a Theologian. (I express that when I "think")

• What are some activities that fall into this type of recharge? Journaling, taking a class, listening to a spiritual teacher

• So many options! All valid!

Fire

Spirit-Let Go-Meditation

Ascetic, removing busy-ness and the pressures to do, do, do from our lives. Simplifying. Creating spaciousness and empty space. Being at-one or being Present, esp to Nature - including your own body. leaning into awe and flow. Beauty, Silence, Mystery.

I am a spiritual person who is a Mystic. (I express that when I "be")

• What are some activities that fall into this type of recharge? Media-fasts, Rest, Yoga Nidra, forest bathing

• So many options! All valid!

Water

Heart-Connect-Devotion

Relationships, Communal effervescence, laughter, joy, fun, celebration, gathering. emotion, warmth and personal relationship, love, connection. I

I am a spiritual person who is a Member. (I express that when I "feel")

• What are some activities that fall into this type of recharge? Shared singing or dancing, shared rituals, shared meals, chatting with deity at your altar

• So many options! All valid!

For me?

Lately I've noticed that if my thoughts are racing and I can't get to sleep - it is time for some spiritual refreshment. This month that looks like Yoga Nidra practice. What is working about that for me is the ways it is like meditation practice. I bring my mind to the present. No catastrophizing (or planning for) the future. No rehashing and regreting the past. Just being here, now. It only takes 20 minutes. But the difference for me is profound! I didn't notice the difference for a couple weeks, but then, I was startled to realize that I was breathing deeper, my mind was calm, my muscles were loose, and I fell asleep soon after going to bed. I remember this feeling from when I was 10 years old and camping in our favorite spot in the mountains. Being fully in the present moment!

That's me this month. I don't know what will be the right thing for me next month. As it turns out, I keep changing. Living for 60 years means I have a lot of experiences, but it doesn't mean I stop growing, changing, and having new experiences!

So, What's Next?

For these four ways of recharging, what most attracts you? And what most distracts you? Where do you need to lean in harder? Where can you loosen your grip?

What external and internal factors influence the amount of time you have or take for recharging? If you had more time for recharging, what would you do? 

What is preventing you from taking that time?

Deities in April-What energies of divinity do you claim or claim you?

What energies of divinity do you claim or claim you?

There’s so many deities!

Mother Earth, often called Gaia, is often called upon this time of year as many people celebrate earth day.

April is full of celebrations of deities.

April 7-8 is the Greek feast of Artemis.

April 15 is the Egyptian feast of Bast.

APR. 15-17: Feasts of the Seas –

• Honoring Yoruban God-Goddess as Olokun-Yemaya and
• Old Greek Okeanos-Tethys.

April 22: Festivals to honor deities:

• Babylonian Festival of Isthar,
• Japanese Feast of the Divine Couple and
• Norse Odin’s Day

APR. 23: Festival of the Greenman—honoring the God of the Forest and vegetation.

APR. 25: Has a few Spring Festivals –

• In Britannia, dedicated to Herne, Pan, the Horned God. –
• and further south, the Roman Robligalia dedicated to the Corn Mother (Ceres or Demeter) and Harvest.

Deities, or Energies

Whether you relate to deity as the ground of being, archetypes, parts of self, discrete beings you can interact with, nature spirits, the designer at the beginning of time, emanations from the one divine, a spiritual essence that is in everything, all of the above, none of the above, or something else…

how do you choose which idea or ideas to include in your spiritual practice? What symbols of divinity or the sacred do you put on your altar? Who do you pray to or with, Who do you listen to? Who do you call yours? What energies do you look for within yourself? Or invite to travel with you?

Grew up with? I know pagans who grew up with God, Jesus and the holy spirit who let go of the guy in the sky, but keep the humble teacher and friend.

Your ancestors? I know pagans who have done extensive research to find out who their ancestors revered. Or who have adopted the ancestral deities of their community or chosen family. I know Pagans who cannot trace their family heritage but want to celebrate deities who are from a time their race was in revered history, such of Black Folks claiming deities from Kemetism, the religion of ancient Egypt.

The place where you live? I know pagans who have done research into the deities who were understood to care for or be from the places where they currently live. Maybe the Corn Mother, if you are in Algonquin lands. Or Cernunnos if you are in the British isles.

A deity who you feel you’ve had an experience where they asked you to be theirs? I know pagans who have done reading or visited other’s cultural traditions and became ‘claimed’ by a deity… Perhaps Brigit from celtic culture or Dionysus from Hellenic/Greek culture, or Yemaya from the Yoruba or Santeria traditions.

Divine Energies

Maybe the idea of named deity from a particular culture or place isn’t making sense for you…

Maybe it is “kindness” or “love” or some other concept that is of ultimate meaning for you?

Maybe it is the energy of a plant or animal or body of water or land feature… Maybe it is something that is in EVERYTHING…

Whatever it is. It is good to notice what makes sense and works for YOU!

War and Peace

 

To fight tooth and nail

To bite the bullet

In the trenches

To go over the top

At loggerheads

To hit the target

A battle of nerves

To cross swords

Have dodged a bullet

Don't shoot the messenger

To drop a bombshell

Great guns

Fight fire with fire

Gun shy

She's a riot

Knight in shining armor

In your sights

Long shot

A loose cannon

On guard

Pull the trigger

Offer an olive branch

Hold your peace

Make peace

A meeting of minds

At peace with the world

Offering grace

Peace and quiet

Leave in peace

Peace of mind

Peace and quiet

Peace

I invite you to connect with elements, forces and presences that feel good to you. Those which you can in good conscience invite into sacred accompaniment with you for our time together. I’ll make some suggestions and leave the process open to what works for you. 

Let us start by becoming aware of this self we call me or “I”. Notice your breath, your heartbeat, the sensations of skin, guts, muscles. Notice the heat that is created by your presence in the world. Notice the thoughts arising in the mind, and allow those thoughts to pass in and out of awareness. 

We are a network of community gathered here together through the magic of technology. This magical network comes into being for this hour and then disperses when we stop the electronic connection, but it does not ever cease to be even as it changes form. 

In this moment, let us call in the elements, forces or presences to remind us that this is sacred connection and community.

Calling on the powers of earth, soil, mountain and seed. What is near you that represents this for you. Is there a park or landmark? Orient your awareness to that place or thing. Bring the power into your whole self, into your body.

Calling on the powers of air, thought, wind and flight. What is near you that represents this for you? Is there an airport, university, or landmark? Orient your awareness to that place or thing. Bring the power into your whole self, into your mind.

Calling on the powers of fire, spirit, creativity, and fierceness. What is near you that represents this for you? Is there a place of justice, sunrise, or music? Orient your awareness to that place or thing. Bring the power into your whole self, into your nervous system or soul.

Calling on the powers of water, connection, and emotion. What is near you that represents this for you? Is there a family home-base, a hospital, a lake or ocean? Orient your awareness to that place or thing. Bring the power into your whole self, into your heart.

Calling on the power of the center, the web, the diverse complexity and the all. What is near you that represents this for you? Is it the stars or the core of the earth or your own spine?Orient your awareness to that place or thing. Bring the power into your whole self.

We are between the worlds beyond the bounds of space and time where birth and death night and day joy and sorrow meet as one.

Look around this place where you are and notice 5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, and one thing you can smell and/or taste. Take another deep breath. Welcome back!

Cherry Hill Seminary SpiDir Certification Starting Spring '24

Spiritual Direction Certification Program

Do people seek you out for spiritual companionship and support? Or are you already a spiritual care provider, looking to expand what you offer? 

Honor your calling by becoming credentialed in spiritual direction work at Cherry Hill Seminary. 

• 2-year program 

• affordable

• cohort based virtual community 

• grounded in earth-relating traditions 

• diverse teachers bring Pagan, Indigenous, Catholic, Sufi, Animist, neuro-diverse, gender-fabulous, and more wisdom

Applications accepted on a rolling basis until a cohort is formed: Expected start is March 2024.

You are whole, holy, and good. Deepen and grow as a human, expand and clarify your faith formation, and level up as a spiritual care provider.

Check in directly with Amy by finding time at: https://www.amybeltaine.info/Home/schedule

SpiDir Program: Click Here

Spiritual Direction Supervision: Starting September

Supervision for Spiritual Companions Facilitated group supervision for practicing Spiritual Directors who yearn for affirmation and enrichment in a context of diverse spiritualities.

Global Majority and LGBTQIA+ Affirming Semi-monthly option Lucy Abbot Tucker, Urban Spirituality, and Earth-based trained 12 years experience  Starting September!

Supervision Info: Click Here

 

U, U, & UU History Cherry Hill Seminary’s U, U, and UU History class: open for Pre-registration

Discover the Broad Scope of Unitarian, Universalist, and Unitarian Universalist history and key stories from that history. Fall session Semi-intensive All online Designed to correlate with the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Ministerial Fellowship competencies 6 and 7. Includes 8 required hours for buddy/small group work outside of class. 7 course meetings, over 4-7 weeks, will be held on Tuesday/Wednesday evenings, 4-6:00 PM ET starting mid-September. Specific dates TBD with students and instructor, Rev. Amy Beltaine. Join us! (And pass the word!) Email to pre-register or review the syllabus.

U, U, & UU History: Click Here

Are You A Good Witch?

"You claim an alignment of neutral good. Yet you went against your nature!"

Stirge by Ir'revrykal  CC3.0

When memories insist on replaying, it is usually because there is a message there. The tape on eternal repeat in my mind is of a Dungeons and Dragons encounter many years ago.

Gnome illusionist, Orma Garee (that's me) and her intrepid companions are exploring a ruined Abbey. Gingerly carrying her torch across the rubble-filled room, Orma opens a door into what must once have been the sanctuary. Blinking in the sunlight streaming through the broken roof covered with vines, she notices a small group of people huddled together staring upward. Suddenly they start screaming as ugly bloated birds, giant mosquitoes really, come arrowing toward them. Stirges! Shudder! Orma slams the door closed. Time stops. Orma's goddess shimmers into being. The awesome Amberra. The angry goddess slams her staff into the ground and says, "Orma! You serve a deity of compassion. You claim an alignment of neutral good. Yet you went against your nature and your deity when you closed the door on those suffering people! You have lost my favor. I will not answer any calls for help, nor will you be able to channel divinity for your spells, until I know you have repented! DO BETTER!" and Kaboom! She disappears. End of memory.

Wouldn't it be helpful for us all if our deity appeared before us instantly the moment we broke covenant with them. Wouldn't it be nice to get a clear and direct memo when we broke faith, missed the mark, or strayed from "the path." There is something so appealing about that clarity! Unlike in the D&D world, in the real world I don't get to have one-on-one chats with my deity. My deity speaks to me, if you can call it that, through the wind in the trees, the events in my life, and the still small voice whispering within.

Photo used with permission by @OregonGirlRebecca

I spent some years jealous that other people had a straightforward language and image for a socially accepted God. As a Spiritual Director I have colleagues from many spiritual paths and many of them have personal conversations with the divine-within that they refer to as Jesus or God. That's where they go for insight when they have moral questions. 

Now, I have made peace with the fact that my higher good speaks to me through less easily described means.

So what is the message of this persistent memory? I suspect that I know what my deity or higher power or greatest good or whatever I hold holy is asking of me. I must not shut the door on people who are in danger. But when I do, I have an opportunity to do better. We all have the opportunity to repent, to forgive ourselves and each other and to begin again. In the real, we are facing blood-sucking dangers: real dangers to real people.

If you did not vote in the last election: forgive yourself, and begin again. If you did not realize how pervasive racism was in our culture until you saw it unleashed and naked on TV: forgive yourself and begin again. If you are inclined to stopper your ears because it is hard to hear the pain and anger of those who who are experiencing a heightened sense of danger. Forgive yourself and begin again. If your heart has broken after learning about people who have been set on fire, beaten up, been attacked, or had their places of worship attacked... but you didn't reach out in any way: forgive yourself and begin again.

Image Source: iStock

I can hear the voice of my D&D deity in my mind. "Do better!" This is how the sacred speaks to me - poetry, imagery, story, and memory. 

Message received.

In that D&D game I called for my companions to come help me. I opened the door again. Together, we defended the frightened people from the bloodsucking stirge. I was forgiven, and I began again. Let's all attend to the messages of our deities, and then work together to protect those who need to be protected. Let us fight off the death-dealing, blood-sucking stirges of our reality.

I See Dead People

We decided to cram all 15 family and extended family members into the family time-share at the beach this year. It was crowded, but full of good humor and friendly participation. Each person contributed something, what they could. Vegan dishes were available for one brother-in-law. Smoked oysters, a favorite contribution from Thanksgivings past were provided by another. One 15-year-old brought a diorama of his Great Grandfather.  A Dungeons and Dragons game was offered after dinner... we made room for everyone to be with us.

Family on the Beach

Everyone 

Great Grandpa Harry had a place of honor with the diorama, and the presentation that came with it. Grandma Laura was very present, since we brought an oil painting by her, depicting the scene outside the beach house from 1984, and hung it up, along with sharing of memories. The blessing before the meal included memories of my sister's father-in-law. The smoked oysters reminded my spouse and his brother of their mom and her love of seafood. Of course, my Mom was present: this beach house holds many childhood memories for my sister and me. It is the only residence still in the family, almost 50 years later.  Everywhere I turn, I see dead people.

An Unbroken Line

I can see the people and their stories, stretching back to the 19th Century, and further. A curious thing happens when I pay attention to that vision. I also see the heritage stretching into the 21st century. My son paints, just as my grandmother did. His son looks forward to fishing just as my sister's father-in-law did. I imagine my niece's daughter (some day, I'm not rushing her!) loving to sing, or play an instrument, like great Grandpa Harry or my Mom.  They are not related by blood or even direct lineage, but they are related to one another through love, memory, and hopes for the future.

"untitled" by Corey Post

Invitation

Then I wonder, am I the living embodiment of love and hope from my forebears? Will I be a memory that offers joy or inspiration or at the least, connection, for those who come after me? That could be a big responsibility to carry. In fact, learning every day how to be a better person is hard work! But right now, I'm finding it comforting. My life is not insignificant and there is an invitation always waiting, from the divine, to become the fulfillment of the best hopes and the embodiment of treasured memory. I'm saying "yes" to this invitation, today, and every day.

"Fairy" painting by Corey Post in my home office

Bone Deep

Our people are a part of us, like our bones and our blood. Our people who are no longer with us in body are with us in the ways they have changed the world, and how their memories live in us. I see dead people when I look in the mirror or look at the work that I do. Right now, that's a good thing.
-------------------------

Reverend Amy invites you to explore how you say yes. Stop worrying about what you are supposed to do and start doing it! Click Here.

Your Gift: Imposter Syndrom and Sacred Tending

Am I Doing the Right Thing?

Lately, I’ve been having hard conversations with myself, with others doing soul work, with fellow spiritual companions and creatives. The same questions keep arising: Does this work matter? Is it enough? Am I enough?

I question my calling. I struggle with the demons of self-doubt, fear, imposter-syndrome, and distraction. On the bad days, I have unhelpful thoughts, like "you did more good when you were an activist," or "You affected more people, created more good, even when you worked in higher education."

Why can't I be peaceful like a tree? Trees offer their fruit, not because they are bullied into it, not because they are paid or expected to produce. They offer their fruit because they have been nourished and protected.

The Struggle

Here we are, caught in a capitalist culture that insists the rich are rewarded by God and that a person’s value is tied to what they earn. But our compassionate hearts yearn for meaningful work, deep connection, and lives rooted in truth.

We struggle with the myth that Spiritual work should be unpaid, and an unpaid profession isn't a "real" profession. Money has never been a valid measure of value. The worth of your work cannot be tallied in invoices any more than your own worth can be measured in bank statements.
 

I also wrestle with feeling responsible for doing something about the political, human rights, and survival crisis that is present all around me.  When the world is burning, spiritual and inner work can feel self-indulgent, like lighting a candle in a wildfire. I feel urgency to get out there and put out the fire, to tend the burned, to warn people, and to recruit people for the bucket brigade... 

The Humbling Thread

Perhaps you take a leap, to a new profession, to a training program, to a new kind of embracing of your call. Following a call will humble you.
What once felt natural, your storytelling, your listening, your healing touch, now feels awkward under the scrutiny of training. You question your instincts. You wonder: Was it ever really a gift? Am I faking it? Was I just lucky before?

I remember the sick feeling in my stomach that entire first convocation during seminary. I had left a job as a department chair, responsible for employees, budgets, and outcomes and suddenly I was not the expert, not even competent, not the extraordinary compassionate person people turned to in a cutthroat corporate environment. Had I just made a terrible mistake?

This is the terrain of imposter syndrome, and it shows up when you take your gift seriously enough to deepen it. When we stop winging it and choose to learn, to apprentice, to unlearn, we often lose access to our old confidence. That’s not failure, it’s faith.

Faith that your gift is worth growing.
Faith that your offering can ripen.
Faith that your call can withstand being questioned.

If you're in that vulnerable place where everything feels unsure, where the thread that once led you forward now tangles around your feet, you're not doing it wrong. You're becoming an artist of your calling. And every artist begins again.

So seek out the thread. Let it lead you where your ego might not go. Your calling can take it. And so can you.

We Need ALL our Gifts

I still miss the sit-ins and visits to legislators' offices and the time spent with patients in hospitals. And yet. I can’t do all the things. I can't carry ALL the buckets of water. Maybe it is okay that my role is to feed the souls of the people on the bucket brigade. 

• Your poetry can be (and already is) nourishment for the laborer in the work for justice. 
• Your testimony is transformative for the reluctant. 
• Your hospice work is making a difference in one life, one family, one community at a time. 
• Your teaching is transforming young people into leaders of tomorrow. 
• Your book is going to have ripple effects.

What you do is your gift, and someone, somewhere, is waiting for it. 

Kumquat by Ninjiangstar CC3.0

Living Like a Tree

I think of people as trees: we draw sustenance through our roots and offer fruit through our branches. But fruit doesn’t come every season. And producing that fruit, your kumquats, or pomegranates, or walnuts, isn’t effortless. It takes light, nourishment, trust, and time. Still, your gift may be someone else’s only nourishment.

I know this because I’ve tasted it. Your poem gave me breath. Your words helped me return to myself. Your witness reminded me I’m not alone. 

So if you're wondering whether your gifts matter, they do.

If you’re afraid they’re not enough, they are.

If you feel like you’re not producing fast enough, maybe it’s a season of root-growing.

Feed your roots. Trust your fruit.

Someone out there needs your kumquat.

Beloved, you are whole, holy, and worthy,

Rev. Amy

Losing the battle, Reflections on Monday's Holiday

Fighting the Capitalist, Colonialist, Racist, Hetero-patriarchy

Starting in 1550, the Mapuche of South America began their fight against a colonizing, hetero-partiarchal, capitalist invader. We in North America, and other countries around the world, are resisting fascism that is home-grown, right now. The process of placing a right wing puppet onto the supreme court of the USA can be seen as yet another move toward fascism by the right wing, and a kind of disfigurement, or maiming of our democracy.

"Contemplation of Justice" by James Earle Fraser, US Supreme Court, Washington, DC, USA (Public Domain)

On Monday, the calendar tells me, my country should be celebrating a man who furthered empire. He was instrumental in the genocide of the Taino and the Arawak of modern day Puerto Rico. He brought Spanish attention to the Americas which eventually led to the colonization and destruction of the empires and nations from Louisiana through Argentina and Chile... And English and French attention to the Americas which brought destruction to the empires and nations of North America.

I'm Not Dead Yet!

Not all nations were defeated easily, and not all nations were ever truly defeated. For instance, the Mapuche of Chile/Argentina. One warrior, early in the conflict with the conquistadors, is famous for his bad-assery. Galvarino, as he is known in story and history, was captured in one of the early battles. The Spanish, with horses, guns, armor and crossbows, had the advantage over the Mapuche with their strong bodies, courage and spears. The captured Mapuche were "sentenced" to have their noses and one hand cut off. Galvarino ended up with both his hands cut off. Then the Mapuche were sent back to show their people what danger they were in.

Mapuche Warrior: Glavarino, illustration from "La Araucana" (Public Domain)

Galvarino remained defiant and was put in charge of a force of warriors to carry the battle back to the Spanish. In a particularly bad-ass move, he strapped knives to his stumps so that he could still fight. His force lost that battle in 1557, but the Mapuche remained independent (not without additional conflicts when they had to defend their territory and independence) until 1883. They continue to fight for the protection of their forests and rights for their people.

Finding a Reason to Keep On

My friend and colleague Theresa pointed me to the story of Galvarino when we were discussing how to find hope in the face of political and social shifts toward fascism. How to keep building the world of compassion, dignity, and justice that we dream of despite the confirmation of an opponent to that dream to the US Supreme Court.

The "arc of justice" quote on the southern granite wall of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C. Photo by Tim Evanson (CC 2.0)

The story of Galvarino tells me that you can still fight even when it feels like your hands have been removed. The story of Galvarino reminds me that even when you are losing, sometimes you are providing the inspiration for others to continue the fight. The story of Galvarino reminds me that though I'm afraid for myself and my loved ones, we are not in the extreme circumstances others have faced. They faced oppression, destruction, and pain with strength, solidarity, and courage.

Finding Your Own Inspiration

Last week I wrote about calling on the power of the Furies to fuel our work. This week I'm calling on the spirit of the ancestors who fought and the ancestors who lost. Galvarino is not my direct ancestor and may not be yours, but his story is still a reminder that the fight for the worth and dignity of the oppressed is worth giving your money, time, energy, and love.

Juraj Jánošík, A Slovak "Robin Hood"

Who are YOUR ancestors who fought? Who will be the ancestors our descendants look up to in the coming years? Will you make the list of Honored Ancestor? Will you be on the list of those who worked to make the world a better place for our great-grandchildren?

Indigenous People's Day

A Poem by Rev. Jeremy Rutledge

I am not
Hawai'ian
but I was
born in
the islands.

I am not
Kiowa
but I was
raised on
the plains.

I am not
Sewee
but I am
living near
the salt marsh.

And I am not
an admirer
of Columbus
that lucky
sailor.

He found
what had
not been lost
and named
what was
already known
which doesn’t
seem a feat
if you ask me.

But don’t
ask me
ask any
Sewee
Kiowa
or Hawai'ian
this Indigenous
Peoples’ Day
how it feels
to be from
a place
that pauses
once a year
to remember
and commences
every other day
to forget.
x

Let us persist

We are mad. We are full of rage for the insult to women and democracy. Let us use that rage as FUEL for our actions. Let us get out the vote, hold our politicians accountable, change things at the local level, prepare for the worst, and persist, persist, persist!

 

Dr. E. Faye Williams, National President/CEO of the National Congress of Black Women, speaking outside Mitch McConnell's house on Capitol Hill,  Photo by Lorie Shaull (CC 2.0)