Methodology
"There are certain procedures and methodologies for replacing self-destructive behaviors with behaviors that are constructive for you and for other people. You will perhaps find very powerful methodologies that can help you."[1]
"People think the methodology alone is enough: 'I have found this wonderful teaching. It has a practice. I will practice it. It has a methodology. I will use it.' But they soon find out they really do not have the strength to implement it and to consistently apply it. Perhaps their ship has sails, but there is no wind."[1]
"As soon as you think that you have arrived and that your education is complete, your studenthood will come to an end, and your mind will begin to close in upon itself. You will stop where you are and begin to slide backwards.
You can see the evidence of this in the self-proclaimed leadership of many people who profess to know great things and have great methodologies. However, unless their minds are fresh and open, unless they are pliable and can adapt to new experiences, these people become increasingly fixated upon the past and increasingly defensive about their own position and understanding. As a result, they become increasingly selective about what they will experience and less and less open to life, to relationship, to Knowledge and to real Wisdom."[2]
"Instead of adding on and adding on more information, more ideas, more experiences, more methods and more conclusions, you keep opening yourself to the unknown."[2]
Methodology in religious traditions
"Religion is a means. It is a method. It is a way. It is a way to advance. It is a way to prepare. It is a way to get you up that mountain and to enable you to make the journey. Religion provides the instruction, the curriculum and the companionship that you will need to make it up the mountain and to find that vantage point where you can look out on your life and really see what it is, where you have been and where you are now."[3]
"Learning traditions, methodologies and the historical context for any religious tradition are only meant to inspire you and must only be adjuncts to the real preparation itself. Unfortunately, few people are ever able to find the real preparation in their own tradition."[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ending Violence Within (September 4, 2008)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 10: How do you prepare?
- ↑ Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 19: What is religion?
- ↑ Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 20: What is religious education and who is it for?
See also
Guidelines for Living the New Message