I was brought up with the Ten Commandments, even before I went off to meet the Sisters of St. Joseph at Sacred Heart School. My Catholic familia pounded these laws into us from birth...It wasn't until I was almost seven that I found out one could be forgiven for one's popcorn-on-the-water transgressions...transgressions for which I usually received a whack on the behind or a slap in the face (often after asking such smart-assed questions as to "why?" something was considered punishable in the first case.)...transgressions which adults continued to imbibe in, and for which I got the worst punishments when I dared to point this fact out...(They could show up for "Confession" and emerge totally fresh, forgiven, and with a second wind for the next week's adventures.) Until I left home for good, I never had such a "Go to Jail Free" pass in my possession.
In Catholic School, the nuns were still allowed to put their hands on us at their discretion--much as the priests were--though the nuns' rough-handling was much different... When I was falsely accused of chewing gum and swallowing it (third grade, Sr. Concepta Agnes), my first thought was to try to explain that it was spit I'd swallowed and spit which was still stuck in my throat out of absolute fear of this four foot eleven eighty-six year old with the thick brogue and the gnarly muscles. (Why it did not occur to me that rational and truthful explanations to adults, who were just itching to whack somebody--anybody--for whatever frustrations their lives were currently filled with--would ever work, eludes me. Why I still sometimes believe this plan is also weird, I know. Must be hard-wired in my brain. God knows I've tried to therapize it out, over the decades...sigh.) Sr. C was no exception.
I found myself hung over the second floor stone windowsill of the red brick building, my upper body hanging in space, my eyes focused on the tarred schoolyard below. My lower body was tilting, off the ground, held by one mighty fist of Sr. Concepta, my dress knotted in her veiny right hand, my short legs dangling two feet off the classroom floor. I truly believed I was going to die--or, at the very least, be smashed like a pumpkin, my dress over my bloody head, flung into an afterlife that probably held even more humiliations, as I never got time for a final Confession. Luckily, the screaming and horrified shouts from the rest of the class (less in worry about my fate than in terror for their own third-grade lives) called another nun from next door. I was reeled in and set free. The nuns conferred in the outside hallway for all of three minutes. Sr. Concepta Agnes returned, alone, and the transgression was never discussed again. (Neither hers nor mine...)
As an adult, I have travelled seeking out Bigger Truths. I have sought ways to work out my angry memories and to find forgiveness for my sins. I have even re-explored the Catholic Church of my ancestors. Wherever I go, I find that our sins are mostly against ourselves. Seeking forgiveness from those we've wronged is the best medicine. Only then, can we begin to heal the rot inside our own lives which leads to our bad behavior against other beings. The ten commandments, it turns out, are a good blueprint--if hard to follow. Versions of their message can be found in almost all cultures, past and present, if one seeks a Higher Path. On my adventures, I came to the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. They offered a slightly different (and more esoteric) "take" that spoke to me in a time of exploration of alternate realities--something even the highest Physics Scientists now attest to being real. During this time of Lent, it is something to consider. (An addition to the Survival Manual for life on Earth).
Peace be with us all.
P.S. Allow the kids' questions...
My take on what I've discovered:
FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS
All life is sorrowful, suffering
The cause of suffering is ignorant craving
The cessation of suffering can be achieved
The way is the Noble Eightfold Path
THE EIGHTFOLD PATH
Right views (keep your mind on the study of Higher Stuff)
Right aspirations (try to follow the good stuff)
Right speech (no mean speaking; no negative gossip; no lies)
Right conduct (kindness; gentleness)
Right means of livelihood (do no harm in your work, to the Planet, or yourself, or others)
Right endeavor (pursuit of Higher Spiritual Awareness)
Right mindfulness (awareness of Higher Self )
Right contemplation (education, prayer, meditation)
In Catholic School, the nuns were still allowed to put their hands on us at their discretion--much as the priests were--though the nuns' rough-handling was much different... When I was falsely accused of chewing gum and swallowing it (third grade, Sr. Concepta Agnes), my first thought was to try to explain that it was spit I'd swallowed and spit which was still stuck in my throat out of absolute fear of this four foot eleven eighty-six year old with the thick brogue and the gnarly muscles. (Why it did not occur to me that rational and truthful explanations to adults, who were just itching to whack somebody--anybody--for whatever frustrations their lives were currently filled with--would ever work, eludes me. Why I still sometimes believe this plan is also weird, I know. Must be hard-wired in my brain. God knows I've tried to therapize it out, over the decades...sigh.) Sr. C was no exception.
I found myself hung over the second floor stone windowsill of the red brick building, my upper body hanging in space, my eyes focused on the tarred schoolyard below. My lower body was tilting, off the ground, held by one mighty fist of Sr. Concepta, my dress knotted in her veiny right hand, my short legs dangling two feet off the classroom floor. I truly believed I was going to die--or, at the very least, be smashed like a pumpkin, my dress over my bloody head, flung into an afterlife that probably held even more humiliations, as I never got time for a final Confession. Luckily, the screaming and horrified shouts from the rest of the class (less in worry about my fate than in terror for their own third-grade lives) called another nun from next door. I was reeled in and set free. The nuns conferred in the outside hallway for all of three minutes. Sr. Concepta Agnes returned, alone, and the transgression was never discussed again. (Neither hers nor mine...)
As an adult, I have travelled seeking out Bigger Truths. I have sought ways to work out my angry memories and to find forgiveness for my sins. I have even re-explored the Catholic Church of my ancestors. Wherever I go, I find that our sins are mostly against ourselves. Seeking forgiveness from those we've wronged is the best medicine. Only then, can we begin to heal the rot inside our own lives which leads to our bad behavior against other beings. The ten commandments, it turns out, are a good blueprint--if hard to follow. Versions of their message can be found in almost all cultures, past and present, if one seeks a Higher Path. On my adventures, I came to the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. They offered a slightly different (and more esoteric) "take" that spoke to me in a time of exploration of alternate realities--something even the highest Physics Scientists now attest to being real. During this time of Lent, it is something to consider. (An addition to the Survival Manual for life on Earth).
Peace be with us all.
P.S. Allow the kids' questions...
My take on what I've discovered:
FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS
All life is sorrowful, suffering
The cause of suffering is ignorant craving
The cessation of suffering can be achieved
The way is the Noble Eightfold Path
THE EIGHTFOLD PATH
Right views (keep your mind on the study of Higher Stuff)
Right aspirations (try to follow the good stuff)
Right speech (no mean speaking; no negative gossip; no lies)
Right conduct (kindness; gentleness)
Right means of livelihood (do no harm in your work, to the Planet, or yourself, or others)
Right endeavor (pursuit of Higher Spiritual Awareness)
Right mindfulness (awareness of Higher Self )
Right contemplation (education, prayer, meditation)
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