My dear
children—and believe Me, that is all of you – I consider Myself a pretty
patient God. I mean, look at the Grand Canyon. It took millions of year to
get it right. And about evolution? Boy, nothing is slower than designing
that whole Darwinian thing to take place cell by cell and gene by gene. And
I have been patient through your fashions, your civilizations, wars and
schemes, and the countless way that you take Me for granted until you get
yourselves into big trouble again and again. I want to let you know about
some of the things that started ticking Me off.
First of all, your
religious rivalries are driving Me up a wall. Enough already! Let’s get
one thing straight. These are your religions, not Mine. I’m the whole
enchilada. I’m beyond ‘em all. Every one of your religions claims that
there’s only one of Me, which, by the way, is absolutely true, but in the
very next breath each religion claims that it’s My favorite one. And each
claims its bible was written personally by Me, and that all of the other
bibles are man-made. Oh, Me. How do I ever begin to put a stop to such
complicated nonsense?
All right, listen up
now. I am your Father and Mother, and I don’t play favorites among My
children. Also, I hate to break it to you, but I don’t write. My longhand
is awful, and I’ve always been more of a doer anyway. So ALL of your books,
including those bibles, were written by men and women. They were inspired
men and women, they were remarkable people, but they also made mistakes here
and there. And I made sure of that, so that you would never trust a written
word rather than your own living heart. You see, one human being to Me –
even a bum on the street – is worth more than all of the holy books in the
world. That’s just the kind of a guy-and-gal I am. My spirit is not an
historical thing. It’s alive right now, right now, as fresh as your next
breath. Holy books and religious rites are sacred and powerful, but they
are not more so than the least of you. They were only meant to steer you in
the right direction, not to keep you arguing with each other, and certainly
not to keep you from trusting your own personal connection with Me.
Which brings Me to My
next point about your nonsense. You act like I need you and your religions
to stick up for Me or win souls for My sake. Please, don’t do Me any
favors. I can stand quite well on My own, thank you. I don’t need you to
define Me. I don’t need constant credit. I just want you to stop dragging
My name into your dramas. For example, I swear to Me that I never
threatened Oral Roberts. I never rode in any of Rajneesh’s Rolls Royces and
I never told Pat Robertson to run for president, and I have never had a
conversation with Jim Bakker, Jerry Falwell or Jimmy Swaggart. Of course,
come Judgment Day, I certainly intend to.
Now the thing is, I want
you to stop thinking of religion as some sort of a loyalty pledge to Me.
The true purpose of religion is so that YOU can become more aware of ME, not
the other way around. Believe Me, I know you already. I know
what’s in each of your hearts, and I love you anyway with no strings
attached. So, light up and enjoy Me. That’s what religion’s best
for. What you seem to forget is how mysterious I am. You look at the
petty differences in your scriptures and you say, “Well, if this is the
truth, than that can’t be.” But instead of trying to figure out My
paradoxes and unfathomable nature – which, by the way, you never will – why
not open your hearts to the simple, common threads of every religion?
You know what I’m talking about. Play nice with each other. Love
and respect everyone. Be kind. Even when life is scary or
confusing, take courage and be of good cheer, for I’m always with you.
And learn how to be quiet, so that you can hear My still, small voice.
I don’t like to shout. Leave the world a better place by living your
life with dignity and gracefulness, for you are My own child. Hold
back nothing from life, for the parts of you that can die surely will, and
the parts that can’t, won’t. Don’t worry, be happy. (I stole
that last line
from
Bobby McFerrin, but Who gave it to him in the first place?)
Simple stuff…now, why do
you keep making it so complicated? It’s like you’re always looking for an
excuse to be upset. And I am very tired of being your main excuse. Do you
think I care whether you call Me God, or Yahweh, or Jehovah, Allah,
Wakatonka, Brahma, Father, Mother, even the Void of Nirvana? Do you think I
care which of My Special Children you feel closest to – Jesus, Mary, Buddha,
Krishna, Mohammed or any of the others? You can call Me and My Special Ones
any names you choose, if only you will go about My business of loving one
another as I love you. How can you keep neglecting something so simple?
No, I am not telling you
to abandon your religions. Enjoy your religions and traditions, honor them,
learn from them, just as you should enjoy, honor, and learn from your
parents. But do you walk around telling everyone that your parents are
better than theirs? Your religion, like your parents, may always have the
most special place in your heart. I don’t mind that at all. And I don’t
want you to combine all of the great traditions into One Big Mess.
Each religion is unique
for a reason. Each has a unique style so that people can find the best path
for themselves. But My Special Children – the ones that your religions
revolve around – all live in the same place in My heart, and they get along
perfectly, I assure you. The clergy must stop creating a myth of sibling
rivalry where there is none. 
My blessed children of Earth, the world has
grown too small for your pervasive religious bigotries and confusion. The
whole planet is now connected by air travel, satellite dishes, telephones,
fax machines, rock concerts, diseases, and mutual needs and concerns.
Get with the program! If
you really want to help Me, then commit yourselves to figuring out how to
feed your hungry and clothe your naked, and protect your abused and shelter
your poor. And just as important, make your own everyday life a shining
example of kindness and good humor. I’ve given you all the resources you
need, if only you abandon your fear of each other and begin living and
loving and laughing together.
Now, I am not really
ticked off. Not really. I just wanted to grab your attention because I
hate to see you suffer. But I gave you free will, so what can I do now
other than try to influence you through reason, persuasion, and a little
old-fashioned guilt and manipulation?
After all, you know I am
the original Jewish Mother. I just want you to be happy, and I’ll sit in
the dark. I really am with your always. I promise.
Always. Trust in Me.
Your One and Only,
God
