Well I left my happy home, to see what I could find out. I left my folk and friends, with the aim to clear my mind out. Well I hit the rowdy road, and many kinds I met there. And many stories told me on the way to get there. 

On The Road To Find Out.   Cat Stevens

 

Hi everyone! I am so excited to have a connection with you through this ongoing column I’m entitling, “I Remember Now.” Here we will be discussing what happens with the soul when it comes to the intersection of religion and a broader, more inclusive spirituality. Plus any questions or issues you may have about the two.

Perhaps you have had some prior experience with religion and a church of some kind, but have moved on to the wonderful gifts Echo and her Center provide. Maybe you’re still at least occasionally attending a church of some kind. Maybe you’ve had no experience with organized religion but have heard some things or have always had issues or questions about it.

I’m 70 years old in this present lifetime, and took off on quite a spiritual path the past 11 years. At the age of 59 I began hearing an inaudible, clear voice within saying, “There is more. It’s time. You are ready and open enough. Everything is laid out before you. All you have to do is pay attention to what your inner voice and the present moment is telling you to do.” I was still serving at a Lutheran Church as a pastor when I heard this clear message.

I was a Lutheran parish pastor for 35 years. I served three churches during those years. I received my Masters of Theology Degree from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN  (a 4-year program of study which I managed to cram into 7 years) Before Seminary, I graduated from Augsburg College. I grew up in St. Cloud, MN where my family and I were very active in our Lutheran Church. It was a center of our lives.  FYI: Echo’s brother, Michael, calls me “the Mister Rogers of New Age.” Yup. That’s me…without the cardigan!

The title, “I Remember Now,” speaks to what I have come to know over the past eleven years. Our souls come here with an innate and inherent spiritual knowing.  When I began walking down this path eleven years ago,  I was led to one new writer, mystic, or community after another. As I took this all in I realized my soul was talking to me. It was singing and vibrating, and was happy as my remembering unfolded. My soul was saying, “I already know that.” Wait. What? How could that be? This is all new to me? Or is it?”

It’s become my experience that what we call Awakening or Enlightenment is a remembering,. A rising up into our consciousness of what the soul already knows deep within itself. A bringing into our consciousness (awareness) of the Truths the soul already holds. It is not adding something that is lacking, such as new information.

One day I was walking in Boston (where our daughter lives), and I saw a little sign in the corner of a window. It said “Psychic.”, and my intuition told me that I should go visit a Psychic. “A what? A Lutheran Pastor going to see a Psychic? Hmmm. That’s weird!” But at that point, every single time I listened to the inner voice on this journey I was now on, it had led me to wonderful experiences that my soul loved. I was learning that the inner voice isn’t much of a conversationalist. It uses few words. In this case, just one word: Go!

I didn’t know any psychics, but I knew about Echo from radio and TV. She always felt solid and trustworthy to me. So as Echo wrote about in her introduction, we did our own version of “A Psychic and a Pastor Walk Into a Bar”(actually a coffee shop.)  We met every two weeks, for two hours, for an entire year. We had a zillion questions for each other, and we laughed and laughed. We’ve stayed very connected, and it continues to be amazing!

So that’s part of my answer to Echo’s question, “What makes you interested in spirituality coming from a strong religious background?” It was my inner knowing that was always there.

While I remain deeply grateful for the many experiences and incredible people I was able to walk beside during my life in the Church, I want to make it clear. I’m convinced that the Christian Church and religion have been off message for 2,000 years in many essential ways. I will be taking a look at the message the Church has offered, and the profound message it has not told people in terms of who WE are. We’ll look at what “God” is, and the inherent relationship between the two. Spoiler alert: they’re not two, but One!

Along with this, I would love it if you would email me with your questions or comments about the Bible, Christianity, and the Church. I’ll respond to them in this column, without your name included.

Let’s meet again in the next, “I Remember Now.” Until then, remember you are Love!

Tim Tengblad

timtengblad@comcast.net