Independence??? Day

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / 1 Comment

Why I Can No Longer Celebrate Independence Day

On July 4th, we commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the day when the US citizens declared their freedom from British rule.  For the past 247 years, we have celebrated this as the day of our “freedom” and have marked this day with fireworks, parades, carnivals, and backyard parties. We have celebrated July 4th as if we truly are free and as if the freedoms meant for some mean freedom for all. 

But the sad truth of history is that the freedoms declared in the Declaration of Independence and later set forth in our Constitution, were only intended for a few.  From day one of our nation, women and people of color were not given the same freedoms as the men who demanded them.  While some of this has changed in the past 247 years, and the freedoms given to U.S. citizens have expanded to include women (in some cases) and people of color (in fewer cases), there are still citizens of our nation and those who are seeking the freedoms we seem to guarantee who are not and may never be free.

Until the freedoms the United States seems to espouse are guaranteed and protected for all, I will not and cannot celebrate Independence Day.

Until the rights of some become the rights for all, we are not truly free!

  • Until women can walk the street without fear of being raped, we are not free.
  • Until black men can leave a place of business without being murdered, we are not free.
  • Until we have eliminated homelessness and hunger in our nation, we are not free.
  • Until a quality education is guaranteed and funded for all, we are not free.
  • Until access to medical care is guaranteed and isn’t a financial burden on those who are already struggling, we are not free.
  • Until women and children can feel safe in their homes, we are not free.
  • Until the justice system is fair and equitable, we are not free.
  • Until reform over incarceration becomes the norm, we are not free.
  • Until obstacles to voting are eliminated, we are not free.
  • Until we come up with REAL solutions to poverty, we are not free.
  • Until government corruption is eliminated, we are not free.
  • Until people can seek freedom in our nation without fear of reprisal, we are not free.
  • Until diversity is not only honored but celebrated, we are not free.
  • Until racism, police brutality, sexism, genderism, and religious intolerance are eliminated from our nation, we are not free.

For centuries, our nation has touted the glories of freedom, in a nation where millions are not truly free.  Until all are truly free, I will not be celebrating Independence Day.  Instead, I will be setting this day aside for prayer and for advocating on behalf of those who are not yet free.

50% off Select Magdalene Courses

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / Leave a comment

July is the month of the Magdalene! In honor of one of my most preeminent and beloved teachers and guides, I will be offering special content, class discounts, and a special event on her Feast Day of July 22nd. Please watch this email, the “musings” tab on my website (subscribe for free), and social media for all the Magdalene offerings.

In particular, I am offering:

50% off select Magdalene courses!

The courses are listed below, along with coupon code.

Thank you for giving honor to the Magdalene with me and celebrating her special month!

With love,
Lauri Ann Lumby, OM, OPM, MATP
High Priestess of the Magdalene

Click on images below for full course details.

At check out use coupon code

JULY2023

to get 50% off the regular price.

God is Love. Love is God.

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God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in them.  In this is love brought to perfection among us… There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment, and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.  We love because God first loved us.  1 John 4: 16-19

God is Love.

Love is God.

This is the heart of Jesus’ message as it was understood by the author of the epistle attributed to John. To me, this is the single most important teaching of anything Jesus spoke or was quoted as saying, and truly all we really need to know.

God is Love, therefore Love is God.

Understanding this truth makes everything so simple. No longer do we have to argue over what Jesus meant. Neither do we have to question the inherent contradictions of scripture, or stand in conflict over matters of doctrine. With LOVE as the lens, everything becomes clear. If it reflects Love, it is of God. If it reflects anything other than Love, it is either man-made, or needs to be contemplated more deeply.

The second teaching of Jesus is that we are ONE with the Love that is God. We are not separate from that Love. It is only our conditioning and the reality of the human experience that causes us to feel separated from God or that God might separate Godself from us. Feeling separate from this Love is what causes us to feel unloved and to act in non-loving ways. Jesus shows us the way to remember that Love that is our true origin and original nature. He then proves that as we remember that Love we are healed of the false perception of separation. The more we remember Love, the more we live as Love and treat each other in loving ways.

The message and teachings of Jesus really are this simple. It’s only human beings that make it complicated.

God is Love.

Love is God.

Our Original Nature is Love.

Remember this Love.

Be that Love – in all ways, all the time, toward everyone.

This is the truth that Jesus taught.  This is the truth that sets us free. Nothing else really matters.

Is Your God Too Small?

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Growing up, I was taught that “God” is infinite (without limit), omnipresent (present everywhere, at all times), omniscient (all-knowing), omnipotent (all-powerful), and unconditionally loving. One teaching went to far as to define “God” simply and profoundly as love (1 Jn 4:16).

And yet, everywhere I look, even (especially) within the Church that taught me about God, I find human beings limiting “God.” 

  • “Sure God is unconditionally loving…..unless or except when…”
  • “God loves you without condition, but if you disobey God, you will be condemned to eternal damnation.”
  • “God is infinite, except when it comes to those things “not explicitly handed down by the magisterium.”
  • “God is everywhere at all times, except in those who don’t believe in Christ.”
  • “God is all-powerful, except when it comes to “Satan” or “Lucifer.”

I am continually amazed at all the ways in which human beings limit their “God.” It seems instead of coming to know the Divine, they are creating “God” in their own image:  jealous, fickle, wrathful, vengeful, judgmental, hateful, prejudice, racist, etc.

How can one preach a God of love while simultaneously preaching a God of vengeance? How can one preach a God of welcome while preaching of a God who excludes? If I wasn’t a woman of reason, I might find myself confused. Instead, I find the answer to this quandary quite simple…an answer that has been given to us by the very guy who called God LOVE:

He who does not love does not know God; for God is love. (1 Jn 4:8)

As John points out, those who find themselves limiting God don’t really know God, and I find that very sad.

Jesus: a Model of Self-Actualization

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Today’s blog explores Jesus and his teachings as a model of psychological and spiritual development through which we are empowered to become self-actualized and through which we are able to be freed of the obstacles which prevent us from reaching our full potential as human beings.

Has Jesus Become Irrelevant?

It saddens me that in our quest for intellectualism and individuation, Jesus and his teachings seem to have become irrelevant. When we pierce through the veil of dogma, however, what we can see is that Jesus provides a model for psychological and spiritual development which supports the self-actualization of those following his example.  What Jesus taught rivals the currently popular paths toward enlightenment and might even be more befitting those who were raised in the Christian tradition. While I acknowledge all these paths as holy and sacred and as valid means through which we can develop and grow as human beings, I contend that we are missing a HUGE opportunity by ignoring or worse yet, demonizing, Jesus and the gifts that he brings to the journey of self-actualization.

Jesus as the model

When we read scripture without the threads of dogma obscuring our view, what we see in Jesus is a man who came to understand the fullness of his human potential and who lived that out as freely as was possible. Examining Jesus’ life through the lens of psychological and spiritual development, we see:

  • A man committed to his spiritual practice.
  • Who came to develop a deeply intimate and personal relationship with that which he called “Abwoon” (God).
  • Who found healing, comfort, restoration, inspiration and guidance through this connection with his higher self.
  • Who, through a process of formation and discernment came to understand his unique giftedness and how he was called to live that out.
  • Who overcame the inner obstacles, temptations and fears which might prevent him from living this path with humility
  • Who learned and practiced the gift of spiritual obedience.
  • Who learned to surrender to and trust the Source that was guiding him.
  • Who was able to stand freely and without compromise in his truth, even to the point of death.
  • Who was a force for change and a voice for justice – ministering to and speaking out on behalf of those who had been ostracized by society.
  • Who challenged the laws that provided privilege to some while infringing on the rights of others.

From the perspective of psychology, Jesus was a man who became self-actualized, who reached the fullness of his human potential and who left behind a collection of stories and teachings which show us how to do the same.

Jesus as the teacher

Jesus did not go up on a mountain, become self- actualized, and then stay there. Instead, Jesus lived his self-actualization in the midst of the human race and taught others how to reach the fullness of their own potential.  Jesus accomplished this through his example, and through his teachings. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to those writers who attempted to capture Jesus’ model and message in the scriptures that have been handed down to us, as well as those that did not quite make the cut (many for obvious political reasons!).  Again, looking past the Institution’s attempt to doctrinize Jesus’ model of psychological and spiritual formation, these are some of the tools Jesus left behind to help us in our own journey toward self-actualization:

  • practices of meditation and prayer which help us to quiet our minds so that we can be open to the higher intelligence that speaks to us in the silence, that guides us, moves us, inspires us, comforts us, heals us.
  • stories which teach us about the call to justice, that speak to us of the importance of compassion and forgiveness, that heal us from our own fears and woundedness, that remind us of our own unique giftedness and the call to share those gifts in the world.
  • The beatitudes – pithy statements that demonstrate for us the natural results of our potential – as we grow toward our human potential, we are naturally poor in spirit, merciful, working for justice, etc.
  • Stories that remind us that first and foremost….we are loved….more than that….we ARE love and that the purpose of the human journey is to remember that love.

Reclaiming Jesus’ path to self-actualization

I am inviting us to set aside the wounds we may have experienced at the hands of religious institutions, to look beyond the veil of dogma and to restore Jesus to his rightful place as psychologist, spiritual director, healer, teacher, and guru.  Let us give ourselves permission to know Jesus anew and to look at his example and teachings through new eyes.  And my prayer is that through this willingness to be open that we might see the truth beyond the words and in Jesus find our own path to self-actualization.

Reinvigorating Our Missions

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Please enjoy these video excerpts from the Soul School Weekly Spiritual Service (part of our virtual community membership). In this video we explore this solstice gateway and the invitation to hone in on our missions to be bearers of and heralds of the light of truth. Truths are increasingly being revealed and with the revelation of these truths, the world is getting closer and more open to seeing us and to finally receiving the gifts we’ve so generously shared.

Speak the Truth

Be the Truth

Live the Truth

Explore Our Membership Communities Here.

The Courage to Wake Up!

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This week, I was reminded of the price of waking up and why most of the population works really hard at defending their right to stay asleep.  The answer in short is because if we wake up….we are obligated to do something about the pain, hardship, disorder, violence, fear and hatred in our world.  In waking up we become personally responsible for making different choices in our lives. modeling these choices for others and if we are so-called, being a force for positive change.

If we stay asleep, however, we don’t have to do a thing.  Instead, we get to remain in the mindless patterns of familiarity that define our lives.  We get to remain in the status quo that gives us the illusion of safety and security….only because it is known, not necessarily because it is safe or secure.  We don’t have to rock the boat, risk rejection or condemnation, or even respond to another person’s pain.  We get to avoid responsibility, falsely believing that it is someone else’s job, or hoping that if we ignore it long enough, it will simply go away.  The problem is it doesn’t go away.  As the Buddhists know:

What you resist will persist.

The more we resist it, the harder the problem works to be known, usually by coming out sideways in horrible acts with devastating effects. 

This is what happened in the Church (and continues to happen).  This is why the sex abuse scandal erupted the way it did.  For centuries, the Church looked away as their priests were sexually abusing children and taking advantage of other vulnerable populations, silently hoping it would go away (or worse, priding themselves in their power and their right to have control over others).  In this, they have never had to take responsibility for what CAUSED the sex abuse scandal in the first place – the demonization of the body, sexuality, and the Holy Feminine, an institution built of fear, power and control, guided by the Unholy Masculine.  And finally…..systems that continue to attract and keep underdeveloped men in the priesthood.  The Church needs to wake up…..but they are highly invested in status quo, in their power and wealth and if they actually took responsibility for all that needs to be changed….they risk losing all of this.  What they don’t know is that there is so much more to be gained, if they could only risk being Christ-like – putting the authentic teachings of Jesus to work and being the force of change Jesus calls us to be. 

What is true of the Church is also true of every other institution that has its roots in a patriarchal, hierarchical model, based in fear, power and control.  Government.  Education.  Healthcare.  Psychology.  Academia.  Banking. Corporations.  Commerce.  Etc. Etc. Etc.  The longer they avoid their own disease, their own shadow, the more it will be coming out sideways. Pretend it’s not there, and then we don’t have to do anything about it.  Change is hard. We don’t know how to support change.  Change scares us.  So, we keep our heads in the sand hoping it will go away on its own or that someone else will clean up the mess. 

The longer we look away, however, the larger the pile of debris becomes, and the harder the truth works at being known, being seen and being addressed.  As we look away hoping things will go away on their own – our planet is being destroyed, millions of people are living under the constant threat of war, millions are now homeless refugees, people are getting sicker.  Joblessness and underemployment are at an all-time high.  Corruption rules our government and corporations, and our children are dying.  None of this will change.  In fact, it will only continue to get worse the more we choose to stay asleep.  And for the 99%, this is what they will continue to choose.

The good news is that it only takes a pebble to start an avalanche.  As the power of the 1% has ruled our world, it is THE OTHER 1% who have the power to change it. 

You know who you are.  Thank you for being awake and thank you for being willing to listen to the voice of your soul – a voice crying out in the wilderness speaking to sand, perhaps….but you are listening.  We are listening.  The OTHER 1% are awake.  We are listening.  We are taking personal responsibility and we are working for change. 

We are the pebble that starts the avalanche….

and the time for the avalanche is NOW!

There is No Sin

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / Leave a comment

Below is an excerpt from my book Authentic Freedom – Claiming a Life of Contentment and Joy. Visit my Amazon bookstore to learn more.

If we look carefully at the life and teachings of Jesus, we see that he is inviting us to embrace an image of God that is a departure from the traditional image of the Hebrew religious authorities of his time.  Jesus was constantly being challenged by the religious authorities who believed in a God whose approval needed to be earned.  God’s love was thought to be conditional, at best, and only attainable through strict adherence to the law.  If you were disobedient to the law, you were known to have lost favor with God and were considered to be a “sinner.” 

Jesus invited those “who had ears to hear,” to consider another possibility.  He set forth not only a new image of God, but an entirely new paradigm – a paradigm based on personal relationship and compassion.  Having grown in the knowledge of God’s love and his Oneness with God, Jesus was able to lead us to his understanding as the truth which sets us free.  The God that Jesus knew was a God of unconditional love, compassion and forgiveness.  This is the God that Jesus invites us to embrace.  When we know God in this way, sin is no longer “that which separates us from God,” but merely a symptom of our own false perception of separation.  Jesus explains it this way in the noncanonical gospel of Mary Magdalene:

Peter said to Jesus: “Since you have become the interpreter of the elements and the events of the world, tell us:  What is the sin of the world?”

The Teacher (Jesus) answered, “There is no sin.  It is you who make sin exist, when you act according to the habits of your corrupted nature; this is where sin lies.”

Gospel of Mary Magdalene 7: 11-19

Sin, when viewed in this way, is no longer subject to judgment, but instead invites us into the greater depths of compassion.  “Love the sinner and not the sin,” becomes our mantra.  When sin is looked upon as a symptom of the fears that come about as a result of an unhealed core wound, then all sin becomes an invitation to healing. 

From this perspective, we can now look upon even the Jeffrey Daumers and Charles Mansons of our society with compassion.  This compassion does not excuse their behavior, but it allows us to see the deeper fears within them that drove them to such heinous acts of violence.  In our own journeys, it allows us to let go of the blame, shame and guilt that so often plague our lives.  Our compulsive behaviors (sins) are no longer something to look upon in anguish, but something to treat as a wake-up call to a deeper healing being called forth.  The compulsive behavior becomes the trigger that alerts us to our false sense of separation, to the need for healing, and invites us to name the fear and allow God to heal us of these fears so that we may once again live in the knowledge that we are loved.  In this knowledge of God’s love, we know peace, we know joy and we are able to openly and freely share our gifts in the world.  It is to this place of Oneness that Jesus invites us when he proclaims, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.”  (Matthew 4:17)

Enroll Today!

Learn Authentic Freedom

Authentic Freedom is a protocol and practice developed by Lauri Ann Lumby which supports you in identifying and then healing the fears that have kept you imprisoned by your past wounding and cultural conditioning.

Through recorded lessons, reading, discussion, mindfulness and creativity practices, you will be given the tools to identify, heal and transform the fears that:

There is not enough.
You are insignificant and have nothing of value to offer the world.
You cannot live as our most authentic selves.
You are not loved (or that love has to be earned or can be taken away).
You are not free to express our truth.
You do not know the truth.
You are alone.

At the end of this course, you will have the tools to support you in the continued liberation from your fears and the conditioning that has placed them there.

Reconsidering Jesus

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / 2 Comments

This article explores a critically important part of our journey toward self-actualization – the searching stage of spiritual development and how for many Westerners, Jesus has gotten lost along the way and why we don’t need to set him aside in our quest for spiritual fulfillment.

Questioning, Asking, Challenging our Childhood Beliefs

The searching stage of spiritual development is absolutely critical to becoming spiritually and emotionally mature adults.   The searching stage of spiritual development is when we start asking questions:  challenging dogma, doctrine, rules; wanting to find reason in mystery; and wanting to claim our own beliefs over those imposed on us by an outside perceived authority. The searching stage is when we start looking both within and outside the religions of our youth for that which speaks to our heart, that which nourishes and feeds us, and that which might have a bit of reason added to it.  Searching is healthy, necessary and exciting – eventually leading us to spiritual fulfillment and ultimately to our life purpose and mission.  If we don’t search, we are doomed to being a pew potato, doing what we are told and believing what we believe because someone told us to. 

Ripe with Opportunity, Ripe with Dangers

As the symbol of the ouroboros suggests, this time of searching is ripe with opportunities and ripe with dangers.  The opportunities are there to learn and to grow, to mature and evolve.  The dangers, however, require a stout and courageous heart.  Sometimes in the searching, we find that the religion of our youth no longer fits who we truly are.  This is only a danger, however, if we are unduly attached to our childhood religion or to the approval of our tribe (parents, clergy, members of the community, etc.).  The greatest danger in this searching phase of spiritual growth, however, is really the danger to the religious institutions to which we had been affiliated.  It is for this reason that most religious institutions DO NOT provide the tools, the permission, or the processes by which members can effectively searched.  Religious institutions are afraid that if their members search, they will no longer be obedient, and that they might leave.  And people have and continue to leave……in droves.  For men and women raised in Christian traditions, however, there is an even more catastrophic danger of not being supported during this searching stage of spiritual development.  

How Jesus Got Dumped

The catastrophic danger and resulting casualty that I am referring to is the loss of Jesus.  During the searching stage of spiritual development many raised in Christian traditions find fulfillment and meaning in practices from the East (yoga, zen meditation, tai chi, etc.) or in the rituals of Wicca or Native American spirituality, and decide that Jesus is no longer relevant and might even be ridiculous.  Even though the religion of their youth may no longer speak to them or they have found fulfillment in other traditions and practices, that doesn’t mean that Jesus wasn’t a profound teacher, healer and spiritual leader.  Just because our religions have often twisted Jesus’ teachings to further their power agendas doesn’t mean his teachings are not relevant to our spiritual growth and development. We do not need to throw Jesus out with the bathwater.

Reconsidering Jesus

It may be time to reconsider Jesus as a powerful teacher, healer, prophet, spiritual leader, way-shower.  Reconsidering Jesus’ relevance does not mean we have to believe he’s the messiah, was raised from the dead, or even the Son of God…..it just means that we can look beyond the constructs of doctrine and institutional manipulations and see the man for who he really was – a man of purpose who tried to teach us how to love.