In Spirit and Truth

Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall you worship the Father.
An hour is coming and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such people the Father seeks."
- Gospel of John

There is a story in the scriptures which tells of an interaction between Jesus and a woman at a well. Jesus and his companions had been traveling through a region called Samaria. After a long day, his disciples went off to procure food, and Jesus sat resting beside the local well. When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus asked her for a drink.

"How is it that you, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?" The Jews had no dealings with Samaritans. The nation of Israel had lost control of this region duing the Israelite Assyrian Exile. As well as bitterness over the loss, the Samaritan people were seen as an impure Jewish/Assyrian mix. The Jewish people, as well, viewed the Samaritan form of worship as corrupt. For although the Samaritans believed in the Talmud, they did not adhere to later Doctrines established over time in Jerusalem. The city of David. The city of God.

Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is who says to you "Give me a drink, you would have asked Him, and he would have given you living water."

The woman said to him, "Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall you worship the Father. An hour is coming and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such people the Father seeks."

Not only was the woman startled by Jesus’ words, but the disciples, as well, were shocked upon their return, to find him speaking with this woman. Not just speaking. Revealing profound truths. Do not go to the Holy Mountain for find the kingdom. Do not look in the Holy City for the kingdom. The kingdom of God is Within.

A time is coming, and now is, he tells us, when we will see.
Worship is not dependant upon a site.
A time is coming and now is, he tells us, when we will understand. Worship is not dependant upon a doctrine.

Sacred space and established ritual can help bring us out of the temporal and connect us with the Unseen World of Spirit. Rites can be a powerful vehicle for Mystical Experience. But, so can a work of art. Or digging a garden. Or gazing at a flower.

The Hua Hu Ching says, "Chanting is no more holy than listening to the murmur of a stream, counting prayer beads no more sacred than simply breathing, religious robes no more spiritual than work clothes."

Although Spirit may be accessed through ritual and sacred space, it is not dependant upon such things. Rites and doctrine are merely expressions of an Unspeakable Subtle Reality.

And though aspects of worship may be external in nature, the true essence of an act of worship is internal. True worship is within. Unseen. And if one is to find entrance into this hidden dimension, into Spirit, Jesus tells us, the gateway must be Inner Truth.

"A man’s proper truth is pure sincerity in its highest degree," Chuang-tzu tells us. "Without this pure sincerity one cannot move anyone. True sorrow can mourn without a sound. True anger can be awesome even before it is visible. True affection brings harmony even before it brings a smile. When Truth is inside, the Spirit can move abroad. This is why we count it so valuable.
Man’s proper Truth is what he has received from Heaven, operating spontaneously, and unchangeable."

Sincerity. A rare quality in these days of duplicity and cynicism. So make it simple, Jesus tells us. Become as a child. The teachings of Jesus and of Taoism speak of the qualitites of a young child as desirable inner qualities.

A child is pure and holds no design or motive for an action.
A child is open and holds no definition or judgement of an experience.
A child is free from conditioning and abides in Original Nature.
A child’s inner world is in accord with her outer and therefore abides in Truth.
A child, therefore, is Joyous. In all things.

Let us be born anew this Easter. Let our inner accord with our outer, so that we know ourselves. Then we shall be known. Then we shall enter the Kingdom.

It is written.
With all this talking, what has been said?
The subtle truth can be pointed at with words, but it cannot be contained by them.
Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed.

Love your life.
Trust the Way.

Make love with the invisible subtle origin of the universe, and you will give yourself everything you need.

Awaken and purify the world with each movement and action. You will ascend to the divine realm in broad daylight.

The breath of the Way speaks, and those who are in harmony with it hear quite clearly.

Following this truth with unabashed sincerity, one becomes whole, courageous, indestructible, and unnameable."
Hua Hu Ching


footnote: Happy Easter, Spring Festival, Season for Newness. One of my favorite Jesus stories. Not meaning to be preachey (mostly preaching to myself). For many have already had their sermon this morning. Some held service walking their dog in the morning light. I go now to join the choir of birds and work in the holy garden.