Divine Living Practice Newsletter
Nov 2004
Marie and Jaxon Wu
Foundation for Divine Living
If you are receiving this newsletter from us, it is by your request. If you wish to be removed from the mailing list, send an email to wu@divineliving.org with the word UNSUBSCRIBE.
Previous issues are available at : www.divineliving.org/Newsletter.html .
CONTENTS:
FOREWORD - "Newsletter Fund"
Q&A ARTICLE - "Two Christian Dilemmas : (1) Creation vs. Evolution? ; (2) Marriage vs. Celibacy?"
UPDATE and BROCHURE - "School of Daily Life".
The format of this newsletter must now change.
Jaxon Wu and the Foundation for Divine Living began sending this free occasional email newsletter in the mid 1990's. Some of you receiving this have been on the mailing list since that time, and some of you are receiving this newsletter for the first time.
In its life evolution the newsletter has undergone growth and many changes - in the writers themselves and in the content. There were times when the newsletter was sent almost monthly. Other periods there were years between issues. When Jaxon and Marie Wu married, and began to direct the Foundation and publish this newsletter together, we changed the newsletter name to the current "Divine Living Practice Newsletter" to reflect a fundamental shift in energy and balance. We also made a complete overhaul of the mailing list to make sure that the newsletter was being sent ONLY to people who personally requested it, because we were aware that the integrity of the list was not clear. We are now certain that all of you receiving this from us personally requested that it be so.
The aim of the newsletter has always been to inspire and uplift, to offer practical information which could help readers to make positive and lasting change in their personal lives and the lives of those around them. Through various formats - stories, teachings, philosophy, advice, responses to questions asked of us - we have endeavoured to communicate our experience and learning through words for the benefit of the readers.
Now the newsletter has reached a point on its life path where we may need to terminate it. Finito.
Why? The heart of it is a question of money. Otherwise, we would be happy to continue. Sending this newsletter over the years has been a source of learning, joy and inspiration for us.
Due to our current financial circumstances, we are unable to continue writing, publishing and distributing this newsletter completely free, as has been the case since its beginning. The time, energy and money it requires to do so properly is now unavailable to us. This is one of the main reasons why we have sent issues so infrequently lately - we have had to focus basically all our activity on different means to generate money, and that has left the newsletter near the bottom of the list of priorities. We are in need of financial support if we are to continue with it. If we are unable to generate that support we would rather terminate the newsletter entirely rather than keep it half-alive, while you - its subscribers - are left to doubt or wonder "what's up?" with it and us.
However, though we need financial support, we do not wish to charge an obligatory fee or subscription price from those who are interested to receive it. We do not wish that money be a barrier for those of you who cannot or wish not to pay, as is so often the case in our exchange based commercialized world in which people generally do not make themselves available to help - they want their obligatory exchange or trade, and usually in the form of money. We feel "help" - in the true and most profound sense - is meant to be free. That is our aim with this newsletter - to help. We now need the financial help of others to continue to give our help through this newsletter.
Because we need financial help, and at the same time we do not wish to charge people an obligatory subscription fee, we have come up with a proposal for you the subscribers.
We wish to create a Newsletter Fund. You may voluntarily donate any amount to that fund. The total current amount in the fund would be public information posted on our website newsletter page and mentioned in future newsletters.
As we work writing, publishing, distributing and managing the newsletter, the Foundation will withdraw money from the fund to cover the necessary operating costs. We estimate that it will be $10 US per hour. This is the lowest non-profit fee possible for us and covers the minimum costs to the Foundation of providing that hour of work, including office expenses, and food, lodging and basic needs for staff but no salaries.
This method of funding would offer many benefits, including:
1) Allowing us to continue giving and sending the newsletter for free to all subscribers, whether they choose or are able to donate or not. Those who can and do contribute financially would be giving to make this newsletter possible for anyone to receive without barriers of price.
2) As mentioned in our last newsletter, we wish to write and publish a book about our work and life, and are raising funds to make this possible. Those who donate to this newsletter fund would be supporting us to have the time to write, and in addition would receive in the form of the newsletter - along with everyone else on the mailing list - portions of the future book as it is being written.
3) We would be able to send newsletters more regularly. The newsletter would therefore have more life activity.
4) We could make it more interactive with you the subscribers, by including a "Question & Answer" (Q&A) section in which we could respond to selected questions from among those asked of us. Anyone could submit a question, and we could choose a question or two to respond to for each newsletter (the questioner would remain anonymous unless we agreed together to make their identity public). We have included an example of such a Q&A as an article in this newsletter entitled "Two Christian Dilemmas : (1) Creation vs. Evolution? ; (2) Marriage vs. Celibacy?", and there was one in the last issue called "Healthful Advice", viewable on our website.
One of our goals in our work is to innovate and transform the ways and consciousness of money. This idea of a newsletter fund is one of our approaches to working creatively and more co-operatively with money - money for people and not for profit.
We feel strongly that people must come together with a deeper spiritual commitment and surrender to create a world that lifts money to another level of consciousness - out of the possessive, materialistic, power and profit based motives of "I", "me" and "mine", and into the realms of "we", "us" and "our". And in our view this is only a first baby step towards realizing the Kingdom of God on Earth - we the people of the world have a long way to go to heal the damage and scars of money misconduct. We can and will do it - but we have to want it, we have to play our unique part with creativity, innovation and courage, and we need to be willing to "pay" the price of peace in our own personal conduct.
If you wish to donate to the newsletter fund, "How To" information is on our donation page at www.divineliving.org/Donations.html . Small monthly donations are possible and be sure to include the words "Newsletter Fund" with your donation, so that we know what it is for.
We will wait a period of time to receive your responses (or non-responses) and will then send another newsletter again in a few weeks or months, either with the news of its continuing life, or the news of it being put to rest.
May God's Will Be Done
May God Bless Us All
Jaxon and Marie Wu
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Q&A ARTICLE - "Two Christian Dilemmas : (1) Creation vs. Evolution? ; (2) Marriage vs. Celibacy?"
A devout Christian asked us:
Question: What do you think about the model of evolution and the origins of the universe? Did the Lord God use that method to bring us to where we are today with all this bio-diversity, beauty and design? What is the mechanism of the evolutionary model?
God asks us to be committed to Him and Him alone. What does that mean for the commitment of marriage to a husband or wife?
Note to the reader: In our Answer below we choose to refer to God in the masculine form "He", "Him" and "His" for the sake of the Christian who typically views God as masculine. However for us God is beyond all gender and includes all genders. The English language is also limited because the third person pronoun must be either masculine or feminine. In some other languages, such as Chinese and Bulgarian, this is not the case, i.e. the third person pronoun is genderless. We could just as easily, and sometimes do, refer to God as "She", "Her" and "Hers". We also choose to use a Christian-like vocabulary.
Answer: We are committed to each other as husband and wife. However, we are both totally committed to God first, without exception. For us there is no contradiction, nor conflict. We were both prepared to live an unmarried life, and prayed to God that we would only marry if it was for Him, His Purpose and His Plan. He brought us together and it is for Him alone that we have chosen the married life. We weigh all our decisions, down to the minutest detail, for God's sake. In our understanding, marriage can be an important spiritual learning ground, and does not bar one from entering the kingdom of heaven. Celibacy and marriage are both equal and valid paths. It depends on what the individual has to learn. What is important is that the path is walked in and for God, and that the fruit, i.e. the experiences and learning, is offered to Him.
Regarding evolution and science in general, God created everything and is beyond everything, including evolution/science and also religion. Even if some people in science take a view of skepticism about the existence of God, this is only their limited thinking and experience. God exists whether people believe in Him or not. It is only human arrogance and ignorance that supposes that God and God's laws operate only if man believes in them of has "discovered" them. But arrogance and ignorance are normal human weaknesses, and God knows that - He created us. God is beyond all human limitations, including religion, including science. God is not dependent on man but man on God.
And as God is beyond religion, so ultimately is man, as we are made in His image. Religion is made for man and not man for religion. "The Sabbath is made for man and not man for the Sabbath" said Christ according to the Bible (Hereafter all text in "quotes" are from the Bible). If a religion helps to bring us closer to the Creator, than it serves us. But we must remember that religion serves us, we do not serve religion. In the same way, science serves us, we do not serve science.
However evolution/science plays a valid role in that it serves as a learning ground for those who doubt their Creator and are not yet ready to have a direct relationship with Him. When they are ripe, the Lord will pluck them. And before they are ripe it is better they are left on the tree, i.e. left to their science and theories. If they are sincere in their work, they will find God. When the time is right they will not be able to doubt. And many scientists do/did believe devoutly in God, among them Einstein and Newton. For the skeptics it only reveals their insecurity and small mindedness. We can have compassion for their suffering at not knowing, feeling and experiencing their Creator who loves them always, even when they forget Him and spit on Him.
Evolution as a concept is not in contradiction to God. Some of the theories which exclude God are incorrect, but it is feasible and logical that God created and used all the matter, particles and energy in a way that progressively built more and more complicated forms of life, and intelligence; suns, stars and planets too. Scientists have worked a lot at explaining HOW physics, chemistry, biology etc. work, i.e. how the laws of the physical universe function, and this has led to some technology, but they have not and cannot explain WHY they work, nor WHERE they come from. God created the laws of how matter, energy and evolution work. Man can only attempt to understand them, but he forgets the most important thing, which is to know himself. "Know thyself". Because he does not know himself, because he is ignorant of himself and thus God who created him, he makes all these errors with the technology that he has, doing much harm. Man is too immature spiritually to handle his own technology wisely.
Within man is contained all the laws of God, and God Himself, but these cannot be ultimately understood by the analytical mind/mental, nor by the feeling. Mind and feeling are bridges. But God wants us to experience Him beyond mind and feeling. To unite with him inside ourselves. To Be one with Him in conscious experience. "The kingdom of heaven is within you." God is to be experienced as a state of consciousness, a state of being, exemplified by Christ Jesus . "Ye are Gods". "All that I have done, ye shall do and even greater things".
Man stops at intellectual understanding of the physical world, i.e. science. Man also stops at intellectual understanding of God, intellectual understanding of the Bible, i.e. religion. But intellectual understanding is not enough, though this can be a useful step or bridge. Intellectual understanding is not the same as direct experience. We must learn to differentiate between the two. We have a tendency in our excessively mental world to confuse that what one understands with the mind equates to one's experience. We give too much power to what people say and claim, and not enough attention to their actions and fruit. "By their fruit you shall know them". Thus all the hypocrisy in the world, whether in the 'secular' world, or among Christians who 'claim' the same beliefs. To understand or think about what water is, is not the experience of drinking water. To think about God is not the same as the experience of God, though it can help to bring us closer.
The goal of humankind is first to remember God always, then to see and experience God, then to merge with God. We find God, we experience God, through our complete and total unconditional surrender and devotion to Him, surrender of ALL our thoughts, beliefs, feelings and actions, and/or through deep silent contemplation or meditation. This is not easy. "The gate is narrow and few will enter". This is not easy because, due to people's lack of worldly and spiritual experience and lack of sincerity, they fall to the temptations of the body, mind and emotions to seek the pleasures and pains of matter, "of the flesh", and thus resist God and forget His Eternal Love. This includes the pleasure/pain of intellectual comprehension, book knowledge and argumentation. God's Love, Understanding and Plan is much vaster than the thinking mind can comprehend, and we can have faith that He is directing everything.
**********END Q&A ARTICLE**********
UPDATE - "School of Daily Life"
Our School (mentioned last issue) is slowly growing. We now see several adult students who come for private and group sessions. We also have started a weekly class for 4 children of ages 4 and 5 years. Our new brochure (1 page double-sided) about our approach to education is included as an attachment to this email or you may go to: www.divineliving.org/SDLBrochure.pdf .
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