Let's Get Real, by Dr. Carol Carnes

 

As a Religious Science minister, and one who loves our teaching, I have never quite felt at ease wearing the robes and stoles our ministers seem to cherish. We are neither judges, academics, nor traditional religious ministers, so why are we acting as if we are part of one or more of those clubs? I get a little embarrassed when I see us all lined up to profess down an aisle clothed in our finery. Personally, I do not own a robe. We have never quite figured out where we belong. It all started when Dr. Ernest Holmes railed against becoming a “church.” He knew we did not belong in that milieu. He understood we are a teaching and a way of living that can be learned and practiced. Ridding humanity of superstition and dogma was his reason for organizing in the first place.

Our teaching has effectively kept millions of open-minded seekers outside our doors precisely due to our religious appearance. The teaching itself is beautiful, democratic, and a true blessing for anyone who can wade through the outer trappings of religion and practice its techniques of self-realization. Today it is often presented as a mind-control device alone or a path to “God,” neither of which is enough to satisfy the curiosity of the educated. We are spirituality, but that is not religion. It is a perception of Reality that frees us from fear and opens us to a higher level of livingness.

There must be a pairing of science and wisdom and a constant explaining of terms since we tend to use old-fashioned language in reference to our place in the grand dance of life. Some ministers leave out the science part, which, according to HH the Dalai Lama, any spiritual teaching must have to be valid. An interesting footnote: he refers to Tibetan Buddhism as “the Science of Mind.” When he read Holmes, he remarked it was the closest thing to Tibetan Buddhism he had ever seen, minus the cultural differences, of course. The rituals and symbols come from culture, not the teaching.

Our Centers (the word church has been replaced) have tacked on the rituals of other teachings to make us appear more…something! I am not sure what. We are not “Interfaith” nor are we a blend of other religions. We are the conclusions drawn from the observations of brilliant thinkers who have surmised how the universe appears to work and how we personalize what it is doing. It is a deep, complex and ongoing revelation, dependent on the latest in science, as well as the evolving awareness of dedicated students of Truth.

One of the most important additions to our open-at-the-top philosophy is meditation. When I first came into this teaching in 1975, meditation was considered taboo by, at that time, the president of the organization! I asked that person what they meant by “going within,” and they had no genuine answer. Over time, with so many of us having been initiated into Transcendental Meditation, it came to be seen as a natural part of Science of Mind. Now it is routinely taught by our ministers. What evolves is our awareness, our personal experience with Truth. We open our minds to the revelations of Quantum Physics and cosmology to the betterment of our teaching.

This teaching has surfaced in the world many times, over the millennia, in different forms and has been driven underground again and again. Holmes’ articulation of it was perfect for the early 20th century when so many were questioning Calvinistic Christianity that seemed to go against natural human desires and needs. It was, at that time, a way of setting the teachings of Jesus apart from the rest of the Bible, showing how he came to show us how to be human, not how to be religious fanatics.

Today, more ministers have adopted psychology in their version of the teaching, believing more in the “shadow” of Jung than the wholeness of our Essential Self. They have, perhaps unintentionally, somewhat abandoned the principle that “consciousness precedes form and experience” for some brand of Trauma is Cause. Yes, it is, if we do not know we are greater than even the worst kind of treatment. Why are we not comfortable teaching that?

I am not saying this is an easy fix. I am not setting myself up as the perfect example. I am not even close to realizing my true self, but I know we will go dormant once again if we continue to mask ourselves and our teaching, pretending to be what we are not. What Holmes gave us is the mechanism to transform this world. Can we accept the power in our hands? Will we stop trying to make people feel good about their pain and set them free? We have the means to liberate humanity from superstition and dogma. Let’s not add to the problem with our false rituals and our silly pomp and our fear of being misunderstood and challenged. As the great Dr. Kennedy Shultz always advised ministerial students; “If you are doing this to be loved, do something else because you will be sorely disappointed.”

Emerson said, “To be great is to be misunderstood.” I add, “Initially, perhaps, until we stand up and make clear the gift we are offering. Humbly and lovingly, all we want is for humanity to awaken to its spiritual magnificence.

Dr. Carol Carnes