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A shared peace
The hundred and forty-eighth Mary Magdalene book in my library is by Betty Conrad Adam, and is called The Magdalene Mystique. In it, she chronicles the establishment and growth of a spiritual community based on the person of Mary Magdalene. To my surprise, she is an Episcopal priest.
She quotes the words of Sufi teacher Salaheddin Ali Nader Shah Angha:
“The true meaning of peace refers to the inner freedom and spiritual elevation of every individual.”
Rev. Adam goes on to write, “In our community we want to know completely the meaning of peace and to feel the inner freedom and spiritual elevation within ourselves. Perhaps then we can impart the shared peace.”
She makes an important point. How can we share what we ourselves do not have? We can’t. In fact, it’s a form of spiritual thievery to try.
Simply put, unless we ourselves know the inner freedom of peace, we are quite literally incapable of sharing it.
Peace, like so many other intangibles, has to start at home. Within each one of us. Only then can we even contemplate a shared peace. After knowing inner peace, a shared peace dawns in consciousness. Then, and only then, may we take action to share peace with others.
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