Member-only story
This Morning I Was Blessed by a Cardinal
And I don’t mean the Catholic kind
It’s Sunday morning. I step outside and enter my Church. My Church is Nature. I look up towards the sky, and in the highest branch of a tree, there sits a cardinal.
I give thanks.
My mind immediately begins to calm as my eyes search the branches of the tree for the cardinal’s mate. It feels peaceful to have my mind occupied by birds, tree branches, and blue sky.
Again, I give thanks.
I feel no need to question the reality of the birds and the trees. That’s what makes Nature such a grounding force for me. Nature simply is as it is, even when no one is noticing.
On Sunday mornings, other preachers are doing their thing. I have never felt at peace during their services. My early adult years were spent in search of an organized religion that would offer a sense of belonging; a sense of awe like the one that I find in Nature.
Unlike Nature, organized religion requires an audience. There is a leader, and there is a congregation that follows the leader. And, there’s a “fee” expected; a donation to keep the church running.
And, there are many different churches preaching many different messages. If we are truly one humanity, why do we attach to a message that lies in opposition to the message that the people in the church across the street are hearing? That has never made any sense to me.
Again, I give thanks to the cardinal that blessed me this morning.
