Closing The Gap

"...We are asked to consider that the distance we perceive between any other human being or living creature and ourselves is the exact distance that lies between us and our experience of Presence. In the same breath, we are invited to consider that in any given moment, the significance we place on this gap is what prevents us from realizing that it is always Presence looking directly back at us from the other side of the gap."       

                                        - Michael Brown, The Presence Process

 Today I muse  that Jesus sensed the real nature of the universe and was among other things, a master teacher of quantum reality.  Of course  he did not have quantum in his vocabulary, yet he clearly had the mystical awareness of the inseparable energy that connects all things.  He called it the kingdom of God, which in the language of his time, was the vastest encompassing descriptor of the boundless energy that is the source of all that is.

Quantum science refers to a "field," or "zero point field," an invisible sea of minuscule vibration in the space between all things. Some scientists, who do not subscribe to the "field" notion, subtract it out of the equations.  But when the field is considered fundamental to understanding reality, it resembles our spiritual perspective in which  everything and everyone is connected together by an imperceptible web.

We too have the choice to exclude the field, i.e. perceive separation or include, i.e., recognize connection when we look upon our world and the "others" that share this world.  Our mortal minds too easily perceive the boundaries of bodies, and space and time and fall into the belief that we are separate entities with scant resources, clamoring for separate interests. Our failure to notice the ties that bind us is most notable (and troublesome) in our inability to recognize Presence in other people. We may have an easy time "loving God with all our heart, soul and mind," but "loving others as our self" can be very difficult. 

I know that the separation I feel with other people is the crucible for my spiritual growth. It is the gap, Michael Brown alludes to in the opening quote, that becomes the very measure of my separation from Presence itself.  As Jesus, observed You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor^[i] and hate your enemy.'  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. Like the quantum perspective, we simply can't make exceptions to where we find Presence  It is Omni-Presence, which means everywhere and everyone.

Wherever and whenever I decide God is missing, marks the place and time of my suffering. Wherever I perceive a dark place in my life, or in an individual, I know I must invite Light to show me the truth about the situation or the individual. Until that Light illumines my perception, I do suffer, because maintaining the "gap" is a gaping wound in my relationship to my Wholeness, to Presence, to God.

This is why so many of Jesus teachings emphasized relationships, loving of enemies, forgiveness, compassion, and service to others. He held a deep understanding that closing the gap of separation by whatever means is the way to our Oneness with God.

One of the ways we can close the gap of separation is in serving others.  Even if we don't perceive the spiritual benefit beforehand we can often discover the personal value in fostering the good of another through the act of serving itself. Social scientists and biologists have established this phenomenon. When we serve others from an unconditional place of sincere help, we are blessed with the realization that our good is inseparable from the good of others. This is more than enlightened self-interest.  It is the actual experience of enlightened service that makes real the axiom "as I give, I receive."