Conscious Speech and Emotions by Rev. Teresa Stuefloten M.Div. 7/6/2025

Good morning! Today I am speaking about conscious speech and emotions, examining our reactions to the current political situation and the decisions that are being made in light of our higher consciousness. I want you to know that I am speaking to myself just as much as I am speaking to you. I know a lot of people who are finding this a challenging time to react in integrity, in light of what their faith in God tells them, so I think it is a timely topic.

I will freely admit to you that when I am listening to the radio in my car, or watching TV at home, and there is news of intent to take things away from people who need them, food, shelter, medical care, and other things people need to survive, I have been getting angry. When I hear lies coming from people who are elected to protect the American people, I have sometimes yelled, “Liar! You are lying!” And sometimes in my anger and frustration I have called them names that I won’t repeat here!

I have also been incensed with the lies about federal employees who have been fired, saying they were not good employees and did not go to work, when this is simply not true. I believe it is wrong to falsely disparage another person’s reputation. The Golden Rule says, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” This is found in the Bible in Luke 6:32, but it is also universally found in all religions. It is a universal value.

The Ancient Egyptians said: That which you hate to be done to you, do not do to another. The Eloquent Peasant

Buddhism says:… a state that is not pleasing or delightful to me, how could I inflict that upon another? Samyutta Nikaya 353

The Buddha said: If you see yourself in others, then whom can you harm?

‘Is there one word that can serve as a principle of conduct for life?’ Confucius replied, ‘Reciprocity. Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.’ Doctrine of the Mean 13.3

Hinduism says: Do nothing unto others which would cause you pain if done to you. - Mahabharata, 5:1517

• Impartial everywhere he looks, he sees himself in all beings and all beings in himself. Bhagavad Gita 6:29

Islam says: “None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself. Qu’ran Surah 59, “Exile,” v. 9.

• That which you want for yourself, seek for mankind. Hadith Sukhanan-i-Muhammad

Jainism says: Killing a living being is killing one’s own self; showing compassion to a living being is showing compassion to oneself. He who desires his own good, should avoid causing any harm to a living being. Suman Suttam, verse 151

Judaism says: What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. This is the law: all the rest is commentary. Talmud, Shabbat 31a

Native American wisdom says: All things are our relatives; what we do to everything, we do to ourselves. All is really One. Black Elk

Shintoism says: The heart of the person before you is a mirror. See there your own form.

Sikhism says: Don’t create enmity with anyone as God is within everyone. Guru Arjan Devji 259

Taoism says: Regard your neighbor’s gain as your own gain, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss. T’ai Shang Kan Ying P’ien

The Tao te Ching, 49, says, The good I meet with goodness; the bad I also meet with goodness; that is virtue’s goodness. The faithful I meet with faith; the faithless I also meet with faith; that is virtue’s faith.

Notice that some of the wisdom from humanity’s religions is about understanding our oneness with one another, our oneness with all of humanity and all living creatures. What we do to another we do to ourselves.

In Divine Science we believe in the Truth of our oneness with all beings. We believe that we are Divine emanations of God, one with God and one with one another. We have a temporary ego self to function in the physical world and may make mistakes on the ego level, but that does not change the Truth that at our core we are perfect, whole and complete in God. We live and move and have our being in God. It is up to us to come back to this realization through our spiritual practice. All of life is a spiritual practice, not just when we are praying or meditating, but in every moment of every day, in everything we do.

I have been bringing some awareness to my words and emotions surrounding the current political situation. The budget just passed takes healthcare and food assistance from many who desperately need it, and gives tax breaks to those with monetary wealth who do not need tax breaks. As I have already admitted, I can be tempted to be very angry about this and say some choice words about it. I heard this news on NPR as I was diving in my car, and I admit that I slammed my car door as I was getting out. I was so hoping that there would be enough with the courage to say no to the harm this budget will inflict that it would not pass. But was my anger and door slamming the enlightened response?

I firmly believe that we have a responsibility to help others. My faith tells me this is so. The Master Christ Jesus gave us very specific guidance on our responsibility to help others.

Matthew 25:34-46

34 Then the King will say to those at his right, Come you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom which has been prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

35 For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you took me in;

36 I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you visited me; I was in prison and you came to me.

37 Then the righteous will say to him, Our Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you? Or thirsty and gave you drink?

38 And when did we see you a stranger, and took you in? Or that you were naked and clothed you?

39 And when did we see you a sick or in the prison and came to you?

40 The king then will answer, saying to them, Truly I tell you, Inasmuch as you have done it to the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.

41 Then he will also say to those at his left, Go away from me, you cursed, to the everlasting fire which is prepared for the adversary and his angels.

42 For I was hungry and you did not give me food; I was thirsty and you did not give me drink;

43 I was a stranger and you did not take me in; I was naked and you did not clothe me; I was sick and in prison and you did not visit me.

44 Then they also will answer and say, Our lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not minister to thee?

45 Then he will answer and say to them, Truly I say to you, Inasmuch as you did not do it to one of these least ones, you also did not do it to me.

46 And these shall go into everlasting torment, and the righteous into eternal life.

I want to clarify the references in these verses to a place of fire and torment, since in Divine Science we do not believe in a literal place of Hell where souls are sent permanently. Charles, Fillmore in the Metaphysical Bible Dictionary clarifies that “Fire is generally used in the Bible as a symbol of destruction of evil and error. It stands for cleansing and purification. In its true essence it is the fire of Spirit, or the divine energy, which never ceases its life-giving, purifying glow; when its cleansing work is completed in man’s mind and body there is no more error to be consumed, and it then manifests in purified man as his eternal life.” So what is being said in these verses is that if a person does not have the consciousness to understand their duty to help the hungry, the poor, the stranger, the sick, and the prisoner, he or she will need to undergo a change in consciousness until they have learned compassion for the suffering of others and are willing to help.

So, getting back to my response to the upheaval, chaos, disruption, cruelty and harm I see proliferating in the country I love, the United States of America, what is my appropriate response if I am coming from my higher consciousness? Am I allowed to be angry and name call those responsible for this situation? What am I creating if this is my response? And are only the people I am blaming responsible, or are we all responsible?

If we are all one, as I do believe, then if I call another person a derogatory name, I am also calling myself that name. When we point the finger at someone else, there are four fingers pointing back at us. If I am angry at another person, that anger is being directed back at me and it may come from some place I do not anticipate, at a time when I am totally caught off guard. I need to think about what I am creating with my emotions and my words.

Ephesians 4:29 says, Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

If I want those who are supporting the current situation to give it another, more considered thought, I cannot be putting them down. Who wants to look at the point of view of someone who is disrespecting them?

I admit that I am baffled by many of those who support what is happening, as a good portion of them say they are Christian. As I have laid out, the Bible is very specific in our responsibility to our fellow beings in this Earth realm. “Love your neighbor as yourself” appears 13 times in the Bible, 12 times in the New Testament and in Leviticus in the Old Testament. And everyone is our neighbor, not just the people who live next door. We are to be kind, caring and supportive of one another. But my judgment does not help them change their viewpoint. Unfortunately, I think many of them will have to face negative consequences in order to take another look.

There is a large prejudice against immigrants playing out right now, and there will be consequences to this as well. So what is the proper response right now? The advice in the Bible says:

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

— Luke 6:27-28, NIV

Rather than getting angry and name calling, I can bring to prayer those who are responsible for supporting and voting for the current situation, both the constituency and the elected representatives. As I lift them up in prayer, I can say, “The Christ in me sees the Christ in you.” I can see the Truth of who they are at their core. As I do this in consciousness I help others to see the Truth of who they are, seeing the I Am of all beings. We all contribute to the Collective Consciousness. Do we want to make a positive contribution or a negative contribution to the consciousness that affects all of us?

I know that this is easier said than done. I am experiencing it, too. I may feel it is righteous anger, but anger is not healing. When I am feeling angry I can take some deep breaths and calm myself, bringing awareness to my emotions and allowing them to settle through the breath. Breathing down into the belly is very calming. I can continue breathing until I feel a shift in my emotions and my consciousness.

Another calming breath is breathing in to a count of 4, holding the breath for 4 counts, and then releasing the breath slowing to a count of 8. Try that with me now: breathe in, 2, 3, 4, hold, 2, 3, 4, breathe out, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8… (repeat). Repeat this a few times until you are feeling calm and centered in your essence of being. This is one way to deal with heightened emotions.

We can go to marches and rallies to band together with others to create positive change. But every article I have read with advice about going to rallies and marches says not to go with anger. It is just not effective and promotes violence.

Mahatma Gandhi and Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr. brought their spiritual beliefs into their work for positive change, and they both eschewed anger and violence.

Rather than what we are against, what are we for? Rather than being against cruelty, we can be for kindness and caring. Rather than being against cuts in healthcare and food assistance, we can be for providing everyone with all that they need to thrive. Rather than being against tax cuts for the wealthy, we can be for economic fairness for everyone. We can advocate for this, signing petitions and communicating with our elected representative in a positive way, telling them what we are advocating for.

Isaiah 58:9b-10 says, “If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.”

Meantime, we can give of our own resources, donating as much as we can to help others. There are so many good organizations that are assisting the poor, the immigrants, the unhoused, and those who have experienced a natural disaster. We can also volunteer our time to help others through these organizations.

I met a young woman last fall who is doing a little DoorDash to get money to buy food to give to the homeless at a homeless encampment. And she has a young child and a job caring for a disabled man. Now that’s really dedication to doing good for others! I was quite impressed with her!

Galatians 6:9, says, Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Luke 6:30 says, “Give to every one who asks you; and from him who takes away what is yours, do not demand it back again.”

Acts 20:35 says, “I have showed you all things, how that one must work hard and be mindful of the weak and remember the words of our Lord Jesus, how he said It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

In John 13:34, Christ Jesus says, A new commandment I give you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

Marty Wuttke, a minister of the Center for Spiritual Awareness in Georgia, has an article in the Summer edition of Truth Journal titled, “Anchored in Challenging Times.” He says: According to Vedic time cycles, (Yugas) we are now in the beginning of an ascending cycle of spiritual evolution. As the collective consciousness of humanity evolves, there is often resistance to growth and change. This resistance will ultimately give way to a greater degree of compassion, peace, and cooperation. But this will take time.

What is our role as spiritual aspirants, and how can we assist and flow with this change?

Without exception, everyone and everything is an expression of Divinity. These “personalities” are temporary and illusory. We look impartially through the problems and personalities, beyond duality (good vs bad, right vs wrong), and acknowledge the Truth of ourselves and those who come to us. The Truth is there is only one consciousness playing all of the roles, manifesting as all there is.

Our experience of the Truth resonates at the deepest level of the individuals with whom we interact. Whether the person recognizes it or not, our experience of the Truth will bring about a corresponding resonance at the Soul level. This is an acknowledgment and recognition of Divinity and occurs silently, secretly, and sacredly. This is why being in the presence (a palpable invisible field) of a spiritual master will have a spiritually uplifting and quickening effect.

At first, learning to see people in this way is an intellectual exercise, a daily practice we undertake. We may encounter difficulty training our minds to stop personalizing, judging, analyzing, and projecting our own subconscious beliefs and conditionings onto the people who come to us; the way to overcome this is through dedicated spiritual practice.

Eventually, spiritual practice will lead us beyond intellectual understanding to realization. Realization often occurs first as spontaneous moments of experience where we begin to sense the interconnectedness of everything. With time, realization reveals the highest Truth and becomes permanent. We are no longer deceived by the illusory belief we are separate from God. Rather we behold everyone and everything as a manifestation of Divinity.

When we are anchored at this level of consciousness, everyone and everything in our field is affected because of the resonant effect. This has a great impact on not just our immediate environment, but the whole of planetary consciousness as well. (End of quote)

As I said, I am bringing a practice into my daily meditation of recognizing the Christ in the leaders of my own country and in the world’s leaders in other countries. Then I expand this to include seeing the Christ in all beings everywhere all around the planet and beyond. I begin with the leaders of my country who I believe are making decisions that harm people. As Marty says, at first it is mechanical and there is resistance to seeing the Christ in these people because I am judging from the level of their temporary ego personality. It is the same with leaders of other countries who are perpetrating war, seeing beyond the ego personality to the divinity at the core of the Truth, that they are all Divine expressions of the One. If I sit in the silence after affirming the Divinity of all, an experience of peace opens up. My heart is expanded and I experience my true Divine Self and my oneness with all beings and with my Source, God. You can try this regularly in your own spiritual practice, inwardly affirming “The Christ of me sees the Christ of you.” and see the results in your own life and consciousness.

There is a Cherokee Story about two wolves.

THE TWO WOLVES, A CHEROKEE STORY

A young boy came to his Grandfather, filled with anger at another boy who had done him an injustice.

The old Grandfather said to his grandson, "Let me tell you a story. I too, at times, have felt a great hate for those that have taken so much, with no sorrow for what they do. But hate wears you down, and hate does not hurt your enemy. Hate is like taking poison and wishing your enemy would die. I have struggled with these feelings many times."

"It is as if there are two wolves inside me; one wolf is good and does no harm. He lives in harmony with all around him and does not take offense when no offense was intended. He will only fight when it is right to do so, and in the right way. But the other wolf, is full of anger. The littlest thing will set him into a fit of temper."

"He fights everyone, all the time, for no reason. He cannot think because his anger and hate are so great. It is helpless anger, because his anger will change nothing. Sometimes it is hard to live with these two wolves inside me, because both of the wolves try to dominate my spirit."

The boy looked intently into his Grandfather's eyes and asked, "Which wolf will win, Grandfather?"

The Grandfather smiled and said, "The one I feed.”

Which wolf will we choose to feed? Prayer, affirming Truth, and deep breathing allow us to calm our emotions and feed the good wolf. Daily meditation feeds peace in us, as we grow in consciousness, becoming more able to maintain our inner peace in challenging emotional circumstances and difficult times. We may still sometimes feed the angry wolf, but with commitment and dedicated spiritual practice, we can choose love, peace, and harmony more and more often, until it is our automatic response. Choose this day, which wolf will you feed? And so it is.