Gratitude – How to feel it?

gratitude

Psychology research is showing that grateful people are more likely to have higher levels of happiness and lower levels of stress and depression. An attitude of gratitude can make the difference between a life of fulfillment, or a life of emptiness. True gratitude is more than merely saying ‘thank you’. It is not just noticing … Continue reading Gratitude – How to feel it?

What is our destiny?

heaven and hell2

In these days of social inclusion and non-discrimination, the idea of ‘judgement’ is such a suspect word. It means different things to different people and some of those interpretations can be scary. According to spiritual philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg, the notion of judgement in a next life is the process of sorting out a final and … Continue reading What is our destiny?

I hate life – How can I feel better?

I hate life

There’s a lot about life I rather dislike e.g. crime, bad parenting, shoddy goods in the shops, bad-tempered colleagues, dishonest politicians, and the list goes on and on. I bet at some point we all have wanted to blame misfortune, fate, or life itself for not giving us what we think we need. Feeling disgruntled … Continue reading I hate life – How can I feel better?

Angels and other beings – What do stories reveal?

angels

Review of “The Sacred History: How angels, mystics and higher intelligence made our world” by Jonathan Black. Quercus Editions 2013. This book is about angels, demons, gods, magic, giants, fairies, miracles and other such things. These appear in many folk stories, fables and myths, some found in sacred writing, others passed on by word-of-mouth. Jonathan … Continue reading Angels and other beings – What do stories reveal?

How to approach death?

There is a cliché which says that there are only two things of which we can be certain in this life, that we are born and that we will die. Yet death is an aspect of life with which it is perhaps difficult to feel at ease. There may be many reasons for that, and … Continue reading How to approach death?

Good Omens: A review

Good Omens

When I was lent the book Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, I suspected I would have a mixed reaction to it. This fantasy novel is not meant to be taken seriously and has been lauded by many as hilarious. Yet it deals with what I feel are serious issues. It certainly made me laugh, yet in poking fun at religious names and events in the Bible.

Will we meet in heaven – my partner and I?

meet in heaven

Poets sometimes voice a feeling that even death cannot break the bonds of love.

I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints, — I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! And, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.

(Sonnets from the Portugese XLIII by Elizabeth Barrett Browning)

But does love really transcend bodily death and do we ever meet our loved ones
again?

Children who die – What happens to them?

children who die

Judging by the popularity of the American fantasy television series Ghost Whisperer, many people, even if they haven’t made a jump of faith, would like to believe in death survival for everyone including children who die . Some people are willing to talk privately about having felt a presence, heard a voice, or seen a ghost … Continue reading Children who die – What happens to them?

Swedenborg’s ideas

For me, Swedenborg is the grandfather of today’s new spiritual consciousness. The Divine revelation he received back in the 18C is concerned with our awareness of the inner process of spiritual awakening and connecting to God. Swedenborg’s books contain a wonderland of ideas which help me to understand God, truth and the purpose of my life here.

Here are his current top 3 ideas ……

A Vision of Utopia

Turn on the television news and there is an almost overwhelming focus on financial mess, social problems or crime. So what actually is the meaning of life? When I look around me I can’t help longing for a better kind of world. Sometimes I feel we are so used to the unsatisfactory state of things that we have given up hoping for something better.

Is idealism completely out of fashion? Have we become too cynical to have a vision of utopia? Or are we too scared of being tarnished with the same brush as the fanatical extremists who have not been slow in broadcasting their own hate filled criticism of modern life. Perhaps I’m being hopelessly idealistic but surely society could be better. How can I find my perfect society? What follows are the prejudices of an idealist.