In the opening of his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches that the kingdom of heaven belongs now to the "poor in spirit", which translates as "the very empty ones". What does that kind of poverty or emptiness imply? Surely Jesus wants us to have an abundance of His Spirit, but is our vessel empty? In this episode, Christopher and Riley break down identity recognition, formation, and cleansing. They hit on what might be considered positive and negative aspects of the identity formation process, with a view towards the beatitudinal ideal of non-attachment to the identities of what many have referred to as "the false self".
Riley and Shiloh talk about the various ways that we, and others, have experienced God. They explore how the preparation for experiencing God is, in itself, an amazing divine experience, as there are multiple ways that each of us partake of the divine gift of sitting with God. While we often talk in terms of "feeling" the Spirit or God, sometimes we experience God in completely unique ways that aren't within the realms of "feeling," aren't commonly recognized or spoken of, and that sometimes we don't even realize ourselves without careful and intentional self-reflection. Many times in those moments when we recognize those precious and unique ways that God is touching our lives, we seek for validation and, as weird as it may sound, "permission" from others that what we're experiencing is acceptable and sufficient. We hope to impress and encourage everyone in their walk with God to validate their divine experiences that bring peace and good fruit into their lives. ...
In this episode Christopher and Riley welcome artist Greg Olsen. Greg is particularly well-known in LDS circles as a painter of Jesus. Our hosts had the opportunity to mine his experiences becoming a professional painter of religious iconography and images that convey the relatable nature of the Savior. Of course, he is much more than his public works and this conversation takes them through his contemplative practices, the nature of symbols, and simplifying our faith by practicing loving-kindness. ...
Mysticism, properly understood, is a process or pursuit of divine oneness or communion with God. While that seems like a worthy aspiration, many can feel uncomfortable with mystical practices such as transcendental meditation. Mystics over the centuries have largely been misunderstood, characterized as heretical, or marginalized to protect orthodox authority. Indeed, Joseph Smith was treated similarly by religious leaders of his time; and yet today within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints there exists a strong, literal, materialist tradition which becomes the filter through which we view God, leaving many with unmet spiritual needs. In this episode, Riley and Christopher suggest that our image of God and the ways in which we represent the divine, are inherently incomplete, and were never meant to be the truth of all things. While structure, dogma, practice, and liturgy are all important in pointing us to the truth of God, the first-hand, spirit-filled experience of divine communion itself, untranslated and ineffable, is far more profitable. Fortunately, this pursuit is not only possible but a present reality. ...
