“There are no boundaries in the real Planet Earth. No United States, no Soviet Union, no China, no Taiwan…Rivers flow unimpeded across the swaths of continents. The persistent tides – the pulse of the sea – do not discriminate; they push against all the varied shores on Earth…
The sea, the great unifier, is man’s only hope. Now, as never before, the old phrase has a literal meaning: we are all in the same boat.”
Jacques Cousteau, born on this day in 1910 (oceanographer, explorer and scientist, pioneer of marine conservation)
“One day, when Columba was visiting a graveyard in Iona, he saw an old woman cutting nettles. ‘Why are you cutting nettles?’ asked Columba. ‘Dear father,’ she replied; ‘I have only one cow, and it has not yet borne a calf. So in the meantime I am living on soup made from nettles.’
As he walked on, Columba decided that he too should eat only nettle soup. ‘If this woman eats nettles in expectation of a calf,’ he thought, ‘then I too must surely eat nettle soup in expectation of God’s kingdom.’ So when he returned to the monastery, he ordered the monk who prepared the food to give him nettle soup in future.
The monk was anxious that such a meagre diet might kill their beloved abbot. So he made a special stick, hollow in the middle, for stirring the soup. And as he stirred Columba’s soup he secretly poured milk through the stick.
Far from becoming ill, Columba thrived on nettle soup, little knowing it was laced with milk. Soon he was urging the other monks to follow his example; and, seeing how healthy Columba looked, many were eager to try his strange diet. The poor monk in the kitchen now had to make a huge cauldron of nettle soup, pouring milk secretly through his stick.
After a few days the monastery ran out of milk, and the monk had no choice but to confess his trick to Columba. For a moment Columba’s face went red with anger, then he broke into uproarious laughter.
‘It is God’s joke against me,’ Columba said. ‘It was only pride that made me tell others of my diet – so I deserve to be tricked.’
And he ordered that from then onwards all the monks on Iona should eat proper, nutritious meals.”
From Celtic Fire: An Anthology of Celtic Christian Literature by Robert van der Weyer
“Heavenly Love is like water. Water blesses all things, It does not hurt them. It loves the lowly place that men dislike, Therefore it comes very near to Tao. The Master loves to dwell upon the earth. In his heart he loves Infinity, In his benevolence he loves giving, In his words he loves sincerity, In his government he loves peace, In his business affairs he loves ability, In his movements he loves punctuality. The Master, indeed, does not fight, Therefore his Inner Life increases.”
Tao Te Ching, chapter 8, translated by Isabella Mears
“To pray you open your whole self To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon To one whole voice that is you And know there is more That you can’t see, can’t hear Can’t know except in moments Steadily growing, and in languages That aren’t always sound but other Circles of motion Like eagle that Sunday morning Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky In wind, swept our hearts clean With sacred wings. We see you, see ourselves and know That we must take the utmost care And kindness in all things. Breathe in, knowing we are made of All this, and breathe, knowing We are truly blessed because we Were born, and die soon, within a True circle of motion, Like eagle rounding out the morning Inside us. We pray that it will be done In beauty. In beauty.”
“Divinity is the enfolding of the universe, and the universe is the unfolding of divinity… The human mind is the enfolding of is own dream world and its own dream world is the unfolding of the human mind. Divinity is the enfolding and unfolding of everything that is. Divinity is in all things in such a way that all things are in divinity. Mind itself supposing itself to encompass, survey, and comprehend all things thus concludes that it is in everything and everything is in it.”
Nicholas of Cusa (1401 – 1464), mathematician, astronomer, theologian and philosopher
“Surely the day will come when color means nothing more than the skin tone, when religion is seen uniquely as a way to speak one’s soul; when birth places have the weight of a throw of the dice and all men are born free, when understanding breeds love and brotherhood.”
Josephine Baker, dancer, singer, actress and civil rights activist, born on this day in 1906
“The magic of story is everywhere acclaimed as healing and transforming. The power of story to change us and bring us to the brink of self-forgetfulness and wonder is a gift beyond measure. However, if we truly believe in the power of story, it is important that we find appropriate stories for our condition and that they are told at times when we are most receptive to (and therefore most respectful of) their power. We each participate in a greater story than appears in any book, film, or recording: the story that is telling us is more important than the story we are telling. It is unwritten and sometimes unheard by us, but it runs throughout our lives with an authoritative voice that we need to listen for. It is in periods of receptive silence and listening that this story becomes apparent.”
Chorlton Unitarians 