new church life: jan uary/february 2016
All the wisdom of
which you are capable
is in your soul. It’s not
that you consciously
experience it. But that
wisdom works in you.
stirring up the other servants to laugh
at her – for barrenness was considered
a serious reproach for a woman in that
earthly culture.
It was intolerable. Sarai complained
to Abram, and in effect Abram said,
“She’s your servant. Deal with it.” Sarai
was harsh to her. But Hagar, either
from fear or rebelliousness, ran away.
Then the angel of the Lord found her,
and told her she had been wrong. She
should go back and submit to Sarai – in
effect, stop despising her.
This very human story about frail people tells the secret of how the
rational mind comes into being in us today. In our minds, Abram represents
the goodness of our souls. Deep within us, when we are born, the Lord has
created our soul, the father of all future life in us, and it contains all the love –
for the Lord and for others – that we will ever have. We’re not conscious of it,
but it’s there, and it gives us life and the impetus for everything good.
In our soul is also the spiritual Sarai – wisdom, an awareness of the truth
that makes love work. Once again, all the wisdom of which you are capable is
in your soul. It’s not that you consciously experience it. But that wisdom works
in you, and every time you see a truth or learn something, it is your soul’s
wisdom recognizing a truth that causes you to understand.
At first there was no Jewish nation: just Abram and Sarai. In our minds
at birth there is just our soul – and a tiny body. Then a baby grows and gets
experiences and knowledges and develops an imagination. And there comes
a time when he is ready to become rational. For rationality is the ability to use
our minds to be useful. The Writings
teach that rationality is human nature
itself. It is the power in us to love God,
to love others, and to know how to
show that love! This is true rationality.
The ideal for Abram and Sarai was
that they would have a son, Isaac, and
that would be their future taken care
of. But it wasn’t to be so yet. That has
a spiritual counterpart with a growing
child. The ideal would be if the soul
produced in the growing mind a
gradually deepening rational ability.
The Writings teach that
rationality is human
nature itself. It is the
power in us to love
God, to love others,
and to know how to
show that love!
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