588 thoughts on “Am I Religious?”

1. For me too the word religion was so associated with all that is totally hypocritical, totally horrendous and more, so I struggled with ‘religion’, ‘I have been almost ashamed or fearful of using the word religion because of its many connotations and so have shied away from using the word in my life.’

2. Blessed indeed are those who choose The Way of The Livingness, as this religion is so simple and it feels True in our bodies.

3. I know that one .. growing up to believe that others know more than me and are more important than me. I went to Sunday school and was taught all the biblical stories, but nothing truly confirmed the love and wisdom I have and hold within, my own innate connection to divinity. The church and church hall felt empty and cold.
   Crazy really that we go to these old cold buildings looking for connection and are not truly taught that the connection is within us and given tools to re-connect to this. From being a student of the The Way of the Livingness, I now have these tools and have been able to simply claim and confirm this innate connection within me, and also know that ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am.’

4. James, I loved how you have opened the discussion to consider the belief that runs many of us that ‘Illness and disease are punishments from God. This takes away all responsibility for our own actions… leading to us blaming and resenting God and other people’. Yours words are both wise and challenging for we are so used to going to doctors and expecting them to fix our ailments – but what would happen if we all allowed a deeper understanding of the root cause of illness and disease and actively committed to taking responsibility for our own healing process alongside and with the support of qualified healthcare workers.

5. I loved reading your experience of religion and couldn’t agree with you more about how religion is bastardised and in some respect keeps people where they are, in a cocoon oblivious to the harm it can keep them in.

   A universal religion is one that sees God in everything, it isn’t just in one place or building, it isn’t outside, it is within. After all who really created us? If we strip away the skin colour, underneath every body irrespective of which country they live, are made up the same. Muscles, tissues, blood etc. There is nothing that says we are different we are all made from the same source. Now what is religious and religion got to do with that?

6. Oh wow, I can see how we can fight ourselves and what is simply natural for us, just because of what we think it is.

7. ‘You had to prove yourself in order to get to Heaven and that life needed to be hard and arduous. So I could not simply be myself, I was always trying to be someone else, someone better.’ Growing up as a Catholic, I too had this feeling of not being worthy, not being enough and was always trying to be more.

8. The whole idea of heaven and hell is such a reward or punishment setup. It means you have to spend your life clocking up credits or living in fear of the consequences. Worse than this is being told we are born with sin or as sinners. So, you have to spend your life making up for not being good enough.

   1. It is a whole disgusting regime Fiona, institutionalised religion, ‘You had to renounce your sins and somehow they would be taken away at confession. This starts with the premise that you have sinned and are already bad. It also implies you can get away with anything so long as you confess it afterwards.’

9. The quote from Serge Benhayon says it all for me too, as if I am living in a way that honours the wonderful, naturally loving being I am I can’t help but take that out into the world with me. And I don’t have to ‘shout it from the rooftops’, for the reflection of how I am living will be a mirror for others, to accept or refuse, that is their choice. The Way of the Livingness is the religion I always knew was there for us to live, it just took me a long time to find it again.

10. The Way of The Livingness has definitely presented another way of being with God and having a relationship with him. The first point you make ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am.’ is so important to crack. What I have realised is that it is accepting and knowing that I am just as equal to God himself.

    1. The love is within us, no need to keep searching on the outside, ‘We are returning to the love we are and not going anywhere and so are able to live this love no matter what.’

11. “So I could not simply be myself, I was always trying to be someone else, someone better.” The Way of The Livingness is to live all the love that you are.

    1. The Way of The Livingness also reminds us that we are all equal, ‘We are all the equal Sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.’

12. We all grow up with an image of what being religious is. They can range from attending a building (whatever it could be from a church, temple etc), or praying morning, noon and night. They could also be women and children on one side and the men on another. It could also be men and boys on one side and women and girls on another; or it could be we are all in one building sitting in cold hard seats or uncomfortably on the floor with knees crossed.

    When I ponder on some of these images I grew up around they seem and are so separative.

    The Way of The Livingness has no image, it just is, we are it, no pastor, no priest, no brahmin, no nothing – we are part of the whole and no one thing is left out.

13. ‘So yes, I can not only claim that I am religious, I can in fact state that I am deeply religious.’ This is beautiful James, I never thought I would say I am a religious person, but The Way of the Livingness changed that for me as well as this is a true religion that is absolute and offers such a grand connection back to God, love, truth and brotherhood.

    1. Yes I remember there was a time when I would say I was not religious but I was very spiritual. I began to question more deeply what it was to be spiritual – what exactly was the spirit and how did it differ from the soul etc and then I came across Serge Benhayon – great timing- a lot of what I had felt was confirmed and more there was for me we to ponder on. Every year I find there is more expansion and deepening in my understanding and in my lived way. The word religion I am easily able to claim now and not feel that it has to be linked to dogma in any way….it is not about believing in something or subscribing to something it is a way of Living…The Way of The Livingness.

14. If there is one thing that is sin-ister is the renouncing to the sins thing (confession). It gives someone the wrong impression that humans have the capacity to delete energetic records.

15. In answer to the title “Am I Religious? – unequivocally YES – in truth we all are – naturally and equally-so.

16. Blaming God for all your woes is to not take responsibility for the way you are living.

17. I was also bought up a Catholic and I have to say I always felt kind of ashamed to be one, and I never really knew why but now I guess it was because of all the things, (many you have listed here James) that just didn’t add up. I used to feel not right about putting priests on a pedestal and treated differently, as I could not feel they were any different, and in some cases they felt worse than the average Joe.

    1. It is amazing that the catholic religion still exists, surely people have seen through all the lies and hypocrisy, ‘That you would go to war over your religion. The sheer amount of bloodshed that has been caused over religion is inconceivable. We were told we are all equal, yet those who are not in the religion are perceived as sinners and will go to hell.’

18. Yes, I recognise this too Richard- in the trying to be the ‘perfect girl’ – same same, but different gender.

19. “It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me”.
    All the constant, driven, seeking outside of myself to find the missing piece of whatever it was I was looking for, stopped when attending my first presentation by Serge Benhayon – the words he expressed were felt deeply inside my body as a vibration and resonance of truth.

    1. ‘Re-finding’ The Ageless Wisdom was like an instant knowing that we have found that missing part, that we no longer need to keep searching outside for that ‘missing part’, ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am.’

20. ‘The doors are always open and no one is ever excluded or judged for their choices.’ Absolutely James, God never judges any of us, so there is no need to go to confession as he is all knowing in many ways, God is constantly around us, and if we choose we can build a relationship with God as his equal son.

21. There has been a lot of damage caused to humanity by this belief “That in order to be closer to God you needed to be a monk or a priest.”

22. “Do you believe in God?” The question assumes that it is not possible to know God or, at the very least, that the questioner doesn’t know God.

23. “Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.” When we accept and appreciate who we truly are we have no need for confirmation from another.

24. The two lists feel so different….both under the title of religion….but one feels very exclusive, hard, arduous, and the other feels very inclusive, open, and real.

25. ‘Religion’ today has become a product and a very well marketed one at that. We need to consider that there is a lot of money to be made in ‘religion’ and a lot of invested wealth at stake, which drives the marketing of it rather than making it about integrity.

26. What really stands out in the first list is how strong the attempt to make God exclusive is, that we have to earn our place in the eyes of God. When we expose this lie, all the other lies we have been accepting as our reality starts to fall apart.

27. I went quite casually jumping religion to religion, claiming that it was my belief. When none of them did anything for me I resigned from religion and proclaimed myself agnostic. Thank God I gave religion one last chance with The Way of the Livingness. It has changed my life and for that I am eternally thankful.

28. It did not feel right and I saw it clearly for the untruth that it is, that a man or woman of the cloth is indeed closer to God because they are a priest, and if you want a closer relationship with God this is how its done. But it is not, we are all equally close to God if we so choose. As God is about love and harmony, how could their be favourites?

29. There is something evil about placing religion as something beyond us, to be revered, worshipped and seen as greater than us, which creates a huge separation between many and religion, when true religion is within us all equally and can only be connected through when we bring our love and are to ourselves and begin to accept how precious we are.

30. From complication and imposition of organised religions to the simplicity and freedom of Love. This is my journey back to God.

    1. Simplicity of Love, we are already Love, ‘It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me.’

31. What’s lovely is there is no need at all to shout anything from the rooftops. I know my relationship with God is between God and I and what can be felt by others, as I develop this, is what they feel or choose not to feel.

32. Is saying yes to ‘religions’ yes to God? What does truly mean saying yes to God? What these questions reveal is the extent to which ‘religions’ are self-feeding realities starting with the understanding of the meaning of the word religion, which has to be in line with what they call to live religiously. Obviously, each religion offers something different. The question we have to pose is what are we truly saying yes when we sign up for a specific religion?

33. Every aspect of the The Way of The Livingness I can say resonates with me and I agree wholeheartedly with, there is no aspect that doesn’t make sense. Whereas in every other religion that I’ve come across there may be elements of truth so to speak but there are also tenets or practices that are loveless and so the whole package of those religions so to speak, are not bringing truth…

    1. The Way of The Livingness also makes complete sense to myself, yes, every aspect of it makes sense.

34. “It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me.” this is the truth that needs to be constantly confirmed in order to renounce those patterns that keep us in separation to God.

35. Thank you Susan, it is a very apt quote from a man Serge Benhayon who is a walking, living and breathing example of what religion is all about.

36. The more I claim The Way of The Livingness as my and the true way of living the more I see it filter into all areas of my life, rather than holding it back in certain areas in case people may somehow ridicule me for claiming the love I am – crazy really how much I have held love back when it is what everybody deeply wants.

37. “I have been almost ashamed or fearful of using the word religion because of its many connotations and so have shied away from using the word in my life.” I know what you mean James. I can hold back from saying I am religious because I think that even though I can feel the true meaning it holds, the bastardised version is what most people think of (just as I would have done a few years ago) so I think I will be misunderstood. This is exposing because it shows me I haven’t yet fully healed my relationship with the word religion and with God, for I can also feel that if I had, I wouldn’t give a hoot about what another thought I meant, I would be living it with all my body so they’d feel it anyway.

38. When Religion is opened for a debate then those who are walking there talk so that the way of moving brings what is a constant reflection of divinity. It is simply seen for that way, so living and walking your talk is a constant evolutionary way-of living that is so simply recognised. It is also the way other movements are performed other-than walking because true religion when walked is simply applied to every aspect of our lives.

39. The greatest tension we experience is to know what is truth and not live what we know.

    1. Veyr powerfully and wisely said Adele – it is a massive tension we all have felt and feel when we are not living the absoluteness of the truth we know. The more we know truth the more tension and uneasiness we feel when we oppose it.

40. When we know we are returning to the love we are and not going anywhere the world begins to feel safe and the need for the protection gradually drops away, as we start to live that our love in our lives.

41. Blogs like yours James have made me more aware of how my Catholic upraising has formed my perception on how to live a decent life, Decency was something like you’ve described as ‘ always trying to do the right and best thing whilst not wanting to own up to or admit mistakes.’ I am discovering how hiding my own expression is coming from this imposed ‘decency’ what is not at all what is decency is about. Decency is what comes from within and is known by all and is to be expressed in all my relationships.

    1. Developing and deepening my relationship with myself and others, I’m constantly learning these words, that we may have taken for granted and assume we know, in fact hold more than we have been lead to believe.

42. Powerful words that come from deep James Nicholson. Adding a profound quote: Religion is and will always be, that which is within me. Let that all that is within me be lived in full.
    Thanks to Serge Benhayon and my Soul I have found that is The Way of The Livingness – my religion that I now choose to live.

    1. That is a very revolutionary quote showing that it, religion, and everything we need and far more is within us. So it is not about the external searching to acquire or attain truth but rather a surrendering to that which is already within.

43. When I was growing up I didn’t like the word religion at all and it always made me cringe, because I could never comprehend why people would go to a creepy building like a church and pray. It was the pictures of religion and how people talked about it that bothered me. The truth was I believed in God but not as something or someone outside of us but a connection to everything around us in particular nature, which I was very connected to as a child. I now feel the truth of being religious a way of life and how we move, which makes it all encompassing and holding of all equally and that’s true service at it’s core.

    1. I was the same Kelly but do you find that now you have accepted the true meaning of God and are more connected to yourself, that the way you view main stream Religion has also changed? For me, I now have no judgement now about people that choose to attend church, I am much more open to understanding that each of us is on our own journey and my job is to simply reflect as much light as possible so as to remind everyone of where we truly come from.

       1. Absolutely Sarah. As I have come to learn and explore more of my own connection to myself I have also found a greater love for learning about others and their experiences too. Everyone experiences life differently and the more we learn and connect with others from our connection to our bodies, the greater understanding we encounter for life as a whole and that is pretty cool.

44. Its always so interesting how inconsistent formal religion can be, and the mixed feelings and emotions that this inevitably brings up in people. Just in that it gives us all a moment to ponder what is really being preached from the pulpit? Does it resonate with out heart consistently so?

45. The concept of confession begs the question why ‘sin’ or do something in the first place that you have to confess to – where is the integrity in that?

46. The Way of The livingness was the first time I had ever heard about God being brought into the every day, which is beautiful!

47. If we have to fight to defend our religion, to harm others because they don’t agree, to enforce ideals of what our religion says we must or must not do, or to want all others to convert to your religion, we know that religion does not really represent truth or love, or God.

48. I was angry and hurt by the word religion, I now breathe the sweet gentle breath and reconnect and know with all my heart it is God’s breath and this is religion. Living from this breath in my movements (without perfection) is a religious life.

49. Claiming our true connection to God has never been so simple, all we have to do is move and breath in a way that is about connecting us with our inner-most, and then we can all feel the truth that emanates from that true connection.
    Thank you James, The Way of The Livingness has delivered the truth about religion and this is needed to be shared as you have done.

50. Simply breathing our own breath is a big part of being religious. When we breath our own breathe and therefore not take on all the woes of others we can then be free to have a true relationship with ourselves and everyone else.

    1. By breathing our own breath, and not taking on the ideals and beliefs, that may otherwise go un-noticed, provides the freedom for us and others to have a different more unencumbered relationship with life and each other.

51. Being asked if we are religious can be such a loaded question, and I guess it is what we define as religion that determines our answer. I would say being religious is about a feeling and a quality of living, this is far more defining of the word than the often considered associations of church and worship.

52. I love how you mention how it does not matter what others think of us and the religious way we are choosing to live. Almost all religion that I have come across apart from The Way of The Livingness promotes the judgement and at times condemnation and vile hate of others that don’t believe what you do. Total separation if you ask me!

53. I agree, anything that states we are not equal sets us up against each other to start with and so cannot be love. This was one of my main struggles with ‘religion’ growing up as how could God have his chosen people when we are all Gods children – it made no sense.

54. I remember when I first heard of religion it was in RE (religious Education) in primary school and when I was asked by the teacher what the first words in The bible were I was stunned, as I didn’t have a clue, and from that point never felt like I stayed alert during RE. I then found it was identified as ‘cool’ to draw all over the religion pamphlets we were given and desecrate them so to speak, but meanwhile inside I still knew there was something true about the word ‘God’ and ‘Heaven’ but never could match it with the teachings here.

    1. I know what you mean – a lot of what I learnt or was told about religion and God at school contradicted itself and also made Jesus out to be the special or chosen one, someone we could only look up to but never actually be like – it was this unreachability that did not make any sense to me. If this was the case then what would the whole point have been, what would the purpose be. Surely if God is all loving, which he is then everything he would be about would be to create equally and space for us all to be the love that we are and no amount of energy would be given towards separation in any way.

55. A great blog and I wonder if much of the confusion about religion is simply the same as our confusion about love. When we understand that love is, not an emotion but something quite different, everything else starts to fall into place.

    1. That is a great point Christoph, I agree as soon as we claim back the meaning of words then everything makes sense religion and love are two of these words which are very sacred yet have been used to mean anything and everything but the sacredness they come from.

56. It is very amazing to claim back the truth we have always known, freeing it from misinterpretation and dogmatic control. Religion is an innate quality in us all, way beyond the confines of any organised institution.

    1. Beautifully said Matilda – for religion is expressed in the quality of how we live our everyday in all that we do.

57. ‘I grew up thinking religion was something outside me.’ Me too James. There always had to be a mediator between myself and God. Realising that I can have direct communication with God and the Hierarchy was an awe-inspiring moment for me to understand, with the grace of the Ageless Wisdom teachings.

    1. I too found the fact of needing to have a mediator between myself and God to be somewhat strange. It was like, on one hand, I could pray/communicate directly but on the other hand, there were those who by rank/ordination were closer to God. But what made them more special? I could not feel a greater depth or sense of love from the monks or priests compared to anyone else, in fact, I felt a coldness from them because it felt like they were there out of obligation and a need to be there rather than because of love.

58. One of the many things I love about The Way of The Livingness is how holding, understanding and accepting it is of all other religions. It simply does not force itself down other people’s throats and try to proclaim to the world how amazing it is. It simply just is pure unimposing Love lived with everyone regardless of what they choose.

    1. Yes, free will is an amazing tenet to have as a religion.

    2. ‘Pure unimposing Love lived with everyone’ what a great definition of what The Way of The Livingness is all about. It is not about the individual finding salvation or anything like that rather sharing the love we all are and know within with everybody else. It really is that simple and brings a whole new meaning and purpose to life. Just like when we were children – nothing else was or is more important than being love with each other.

       1. Great observation James. A lot of people miss the freedom joy and innocence they once experienced as a child and no longer do in the same quantity and quality in adult life. Yet it is this innocence that The Way of The Livingness is founded on. It is certainly not about following a way as dictated by a leader or teacher although there are people with access to higher levels of wisdom and intelligence. It is actually about reliving that way which is within us and because it is all us together sharing this love inside with each other it makes the unification true and whole and utterly equal.

       2. Thanks Joshua, and that is the one of the keys I feel in life – it is living what we already know within and not trying to attain something or get anywhere rather just returning to the love we have all come form.

59. Universal Medicine has been incredible in supporting me to understand that true religion is my relationship with God. That is 247 and me letting go and allowing God to be with me. God is the vibration of Love and it is quality that we are equally able to access.

    1. Me too Natalie, without Universal Medicine I would still be extremely hesitant to word the word Religion. Whilst I have never denied there to be a God, I have also never felt at ease with the way he has been made out to be. Whereas now I know God for the absoluteness of love that we are held in and the more I allow myself to surrender to the love the more content and alive I feel within my body.

60. Those are great sharings Doug. It is important we come back to using the full meanings of the words in their truth and then we can get the blessing that they offer.

    1. It is great to have somewhere we can go to that brings us back to the true meaning of words. The fascinating thing for me is that most of the words that can actually be truly supportive and beneficial for humanity when used in their true sense are the ones that now are used in a completely different way. Serge Benhayon has been great and is great as bringing us back to the truth no matter.

61. Having God and religion in a picture will never make them true.

62. It’s interesting as I often feel we still hold a massive reaction to the word religion even if we say we don’t. Is this because we have been part of it and feeding everything we don’t like about institutionalised religion for many many years, such as I am better than you, separation, one god, your religion is not as good as mine, arrogance, suffering, being lesser, not worthy etc etc – we can do this in our own homes, by the way we live and move. And at some point in our lives been part of it.

63. It is very beautiful to reclaim words that we have turned away from because of their mis and re-inteprations. Religion is one such word. Derived from the latin word ‘religio’ – religion has a sacred root, meaning to re-connect to the unity of our essence within. Not only am I enjoying embracing the word religion back into my vocabulary but this exploration makes me curious about what we have done with other words too. Let’s take love, God, responsibility, intelligence as examples… next month’s homework!

    1. That is awesome Matilda and a joy to read. Religion is so sacred yet because it has been used in the name of war, rape, pedophilia to name but a few we want to disassociate from the word at all costs rather than fully embracing what it is offering us.

64. The word religion has been bastardized for so long in a way that interferes with our connection to inter-dimensionality of all there is and us claiming ourselves equally as the sons of God.

65. Understanding the difference between what we know to be true and what we have taken on in terms of religion is so important. When I was 17 I renounced Catholicism because it didn’t marry up with what I was feeling but because of my confusion I threw the ‘baby out with the bathwater’, thinking and feeling sad about it, that I was renouncing God. This was not the case at all but from then on I didn’t call myself religious when in fact everything about me was and was wanting religion in its true sense!

    1. It is amazing how we can know something like God so innately yet be swayed when we are told otherwise and then take those beliefs on and place them above and over what we know truth to be. There are so many things I have found and keep uncovering that I have done this with – ultimately it comes down to what will I tolerate that is less than love in my life.

66. “We are all the equal Sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.” I love this James, it rings so true for me, especially the knowing part, it’s partly a concept at this point to me too that I’m just beginning to feel and know more and more from my body, a remembering that I embrace as it becomes clearer and clearer to me. That to me is one of the keys of The Way of The Livingness, that is everyone’s own return back in their own way, at their own pace, which totally honours everyone, their way however that is.

    1. It is one of the Joys of The Way of The Livingness, that we are on our return back to the love we are all from rather than attaining anything. It is letting go of the shackles and layers we have imposed over the love we are and so the unfolding process is each individual and unique because our layers may have similar flavours but are different. The choice is ours how quickly we choose to let them go and return. The love here is knowing the hold these layers have had over us and so it is not always easy to shed them but very possible and doable when we commit to love and nothing but love.

67. It is amazing that we continue to live with the glaring indiscrepancies of religion; calling ourselves intelligent but not questioning the falsehood that we have created under the banner of religion.

    1. I agree these indiscrepancies are huge – also like 2 completely different ends of the spectrum – it feels a bit like bi-polar because the high is so good that the low or the evil can somehow be justified. However, when we look at it this way it makes no sense!

68. “Am I Religious?” – A great question to ask James. Even though I had been brought up with a ‘good Christian’ ethic, I never considered myself to be religious as I could never truly relate to what was being preached to me. So when anyone ever started to talk about religion and tried to include me in the conversation, I would adamantly say ‘I never discuss religion’. It wasn’t until I met Serge Benhayon and began to understand and appreciate the true meaning of this word, and was able to dissolve the pictures of what I had been led to believe religion was about, that I could accept that I am religious, simply from connecting to the divine essence that I know is already within me. So now it’s not really a case of discussing religion, but rather living it, through the way I move and how I connect to others.

69. I loved reading these tenets of The Way of The Livingness James. Like seeing an amazing sunset, a hundred year old tree or a new born baby – these words and simple statements make me warm in my heart. How beautifully this is – our body knows Love and natural laws a mile off, without any need for rules or regulations. The key doctrines of The Way of The Livingness are written in the stars, in our eyes, in our hands – and so naturally it’s wisdom is available to every man.

    1. Joseph it is so very simple, as life can be when we get ourselves out of the way. As you say,’our body knows Love and natural laws a mile off’, we just have to connect, well re-connect and everything we could ever have wanted to know we have access to so long as it is for all and not simply to better or advance ourselves at the expense of others. It’s the self that gets in the way wanting to know and own everything which has been our downfall – I know myself how trapping it can be and how truly liberating it is when I let its grasp on my life go.

70. We know God and we know love before anything else when we come into this world. It makes sense why it is so confusing for children to try and link the knowing of God and knowing of true religion with what is taught about God and religion in school etc.

    1. We only have to look into a baby’s eyes to know this. The clarity and depth of knowing is exquisite – and we can have this too, we just need to reconnect to the divinity we know within. Nothing else makes sense in this world or is greater than the depths of love we can feel within.

    2. I can remember this exactly Kylie, being told one thing, seeing another, and then knowing neither fitted what I knew.

    3. When we know we are returning to the love we are and not going anywhere the world begins to feel safe and the need for the protection gradually drops away, as we start to live that our love in our lives.

71. I can now say that I recognise a religious person, not by their attire or job title, but by the quality they move with and relate to others in.

    1. What a great quality to recognise someone by. For me it has redfined what I know religion to be and taken it away from the robes and glamour I saw in the catholic church growing up to the practical everyday quality of the life we live.

72. Everyone has a religious relationship with life. Some are based on denial of God, but that is still an active relationship. This may sound like semantics, but it is important because the understanding of the term religion has been hijacked to refer to the dogmatic beliefs and structure of mainstream religions. Of course it does not make sense to do so, because at some point even those religions only belonged to a minority. And if we were to refer today’s definition to them back then, what would we have called them? A cult? Actually, yes, that is exactly what they would have been called. For the true definition of a cult was invented by sociologists in order to attempt to pidgeon-hole people’s various beliefs into various categories so they could be better understood. The term was later hijacked by those with vested interests who felt threatened by those who broke away from mainstream thoughts about things, and so it became a derogatory term. But tell me this, what is the difference in subscribing to the teachings of a man who lives before you today, and subscribing to the apparent and widely reinterpreted teachings of wise men who lived thousands of years ago. At least with the former, you can see for yourself whether the teachings are reflected by the way the man live’s himself.

    1. It is not semantics at all Adam – the one thing about seeing the way a teacher lives today is that we get it first hand – just like with Serge Benhayon – it has not been allowed to be re-interpreted. Whereas the great teachers of the past did not generally have the teachings written down until long after they were gone and so there was not the direct livingness represented rather an interpreted viewpoint. We have also been given translations as often you cannot capture what was said in words especially when we go from the older languages to the more modern ones and so the essence of what was said has been altered.

    2. Adam absolute Gold.

73. No matter what stories I was told or how real it was depicted, I never believed that hell was an actual place, nor indeed that God would cast a judgement that would send you there as punishment. It just did not make sense in my mind or body as a child.

74. That is the bottom line we are all equal sons of God and anything that tries to separate us is not true religion and we don’t need fancy buildings to worship in for the kingdom of God is truly inside each and every one of us.

    1. I see our religious buildings as a very clear representation of how we complicate things. The simplicity of the fact that the Kingdom of God is within us is something we craftily avoid.

       1. This is a great point Matilda. So much money, time and effort is put into religious buildings which are ultimately used as a distraction to make us avoid paying attention and giving value to the connection to God that is already within us.

       2. It is a very interesting point – how often we go all out to make something look great or grand on the outside to try to make up for the cold and emptiness on the inside – love is simple, equally available for all and needs no building.

    2. Spot on – I would add to that anything that is less than love is not only abuse it is also evil because it is separation from love and soul.

75. “That in order to be closer to God you needed to be a monk or a priest. This put God out of personal reach.” wow this is a big one and something that I had growing up, what also got in my way was that I never liked the life that these Monks or Priests would lead so it meant that I was torn between knowing there was more to life than the eye could see yet not wanting to lead a life like a monk or Priest in order to somehow be closer to God. I’m deeply appreciative to now know and understand that we are all equal and all equally close to God no matter our title as we are all equal sons of god.

    1. If we stop to think about it, it makes no sense for anyone with any title to be closer to God if he loves us all equally – why then would he give anyone any special privileges? The more we view things in life with the notion of, does this make sense to love, then the more we will see the discrepancies we have allowed in and thus can re-claim the truth we know.

76. It is completely absurd to read your list of dot points. How irresponsible we ALL are as a species to allow such a bastardisation of God and our own essence of pure Love.

    1. I agree, Nicola, it is completely absurd how irresponsible we have been in allowing the meaning of words like religion to have been changed to mean the complete opposite of the divinity they bring when used correctly. I know for me, the moment I settle for anything being less than love I am settled and accepting it to be that way, and so gradually we can go from love to complete and utter extreme forms of abuse all by allowing subtle increments away from the truth we know. And what we see in the world today shows how far we have gone from the truth we know.

77. The Way of The Livingness is the true religion for me because of the truth and love that is present and absolute, which I have not seen or felt anywhere else. It is a religion that empowers people to make their own choices and teach us what energetic responsibility is and how to truly live a loving life that is purposeful and all encompassing of everything and everyone. Our connection to God is also up to us to choose and develop.

78. True Religion is a living science that is known to each and every one of us and is only ever a connection to our inner-most truth away.

79. The knowing that we are all equal sons of God is something that resides deep inside us all and it is beautiful to reconnect to this and very honouring. True religion as you share is very simple and a living of that knowing and love of who we are allows us reconnection to true religion and ends the confusion and searching outside and brings with it a real honouring and knowing of God within us all.

80. Thank you James for sharing the simplicity of true religion, that it is a deep connection to our inner heart and the love that resides there, and bringing that love of God into all aspects of our daily life.

81. “I grew up thinking that religion was something outside of me, where I had to go to a church or a priest to have access. This meant sitting in a cold church on uncomfortable seats, listening to things that in the main did not make much sense to my life!” This is what all religions (bar that of The Way of The Livingness) want us to believe, that the only way you can access God is through the Priests and the Rabbi’s and the many different leaders of religions and through the buildings they en-house. This is why I love The Way of The Livingness which starts with the premise that we all know God,, and we are all Sons of God equally so. So knowing this it does not make sense as to why anyone would want to sit in a cold damp Church on hard seats listening to priests that don’t make sense talking about God in a way that keeps us separate, when we have the choice to feel God everywhere, in nature in our home, at work, and in the people we meet, this to me is true religion.

    1. It is extremely disempowering thinking that anyone else has greater access to God because of a title or a position. And then comes the buildings being set up to look grand and unattainable and then with the cold and hard pews setting us up to feel we need to repent our sins – for me it feels like we are told we have to struggle to get back to love as opposed to surrendering to the love we are. It is a very cunning ploy that has been used to sub-consciously dis-empower us.

82. Religion is something so personal and precious to us that often we don;t want to admit to it in case it gets trashed. Living it is a beautiful way to express it.

    1. ‘Living it is a beautiful way to express it’ I fully agree Rebecca. And it is this preciousness that we all have within and the more we share the more everyone gets to appreciate their own preciousness as well. It s a joy to share and appreciate it with another.

83. Not only is this a great line James but I know it to be absolutely true . . . .”It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me.” . . . now all I have to do is live this!

    1. Me too Kathleen, I am learning to live true religion every day without perfection but knowing that everything is already within all of us.

    2. I love it Kathleen, so very true – ‘now all I have to do is live this!’

    3. Indeed – all we need to do is live the life we know within and everything else will be taken care of. We just need to look at babies to see this taking place before our eyes.

    4. Indeed – we just have to live what we all know and have always known deep within. Then just like when we were children we get to see the real beauty and magic in the world and essentially are freed from the misery and struggled we have chosen to fit in and get through life with.

    5. It is a great line and worth remembering when things come up to look at. We are fully equipped to deal with whatever is before us to think any less is making ourselves lesser amd giving our power away to something outside of ourselves.

84. It is funny as I have always known that we are the equal sons of God, even with the upbringing in the catholic religion it never felt true that there was only one son of God. We are all equal and are created from the original Divine source and when you know this to be true you start to see the corruption in the world that is set up so we don’t live as equals.

    1. And then the inspiration to do so?!

85. “We are the equal sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.”
    True, as a child I had a natural connection to God which I lost when I grew older.

86. Sins are an interesting concept. Designed to keep us from developing true self-esteem, confidence in ourselves and keep us from being truly responsible for all of out choices. Relying on the forgiveness of someone else doesn’t really make sense either, when it is something that we need to address, develop and learn from in our lives, without going into self-criticism and blame.

87. Reading the blog this morning and in particular the line which said ‘You had Heaven, a state of nirvana or bliss to look forward to at the end of your life… if you lived a good life, otherwise you would end up in hell.’ gosh I can feel how this makes for living anything but yourself and I could really relate to trying to be ‘good’ and never true either to myself or God! Thanks James

88. It is in our essence to be truly religious, there is no need for a church it is our own connection to god and our divine nature, it is in honouring ourselves to the max. Knowing we are love and so is god.

89. So much in the world tells us that we are separate from others, but everything in truth points and leads back to a knowing that we are one family.

90. Reading your blog James, I realised I have always been religious, just at times looking in the wrong direction. To return to the truth that religion is, through The Way of The Livingness, has meant connecting back to the love that I am and always have been and knowing that I am, as we all are, a Son of God.

91. That quote by Serge Benhayon is beautiful and as you say James it is very freeing to be supported to know the love that we already are in full – that we don’t need to obtain or reach for something outside of us but to release what is already innately and eternally there.

92. True religion is known in our hearts and is lived in our every movement and knowing, and the beauty of returning to this as presented by Serge Benhayon and the Ancient Wisdom is immense and life changing and allows a quality and love that is divine and who we all are. Thank you, James, beautifully shared.

93. Thanks to Universal Medicine and The Way of The Livingness I can fully claim to be the Son of God and religious to the best of my ability. As my Livingness evolves so does my ability to connect more deeply with God!
    Thank you James, I agree no place or space is more blessed than the next for someone to get closer to God.

94. “Am I Religious?”, what I’ve learned through The Way of The Livingness, is that inside all of us is already an innate religion…who doesn’t enjoy, seek or feel restored from experiencing the order and harmony of nature, its seasonal cycles and sequential truth it communicates?! What we see in nature and the interconnectedness that is its religion, is also inside us, and naturally our religion too.

95. I enjoyed reading your beautiful blog James, which lays out so clearly the difference between false and true religion. True religion is something we all know in our heart of hearts but many of us did not claim that we were religious because we could see through the falseness of the institutions that imposed religious beliefs on people. The Way of The Livingness is indeed a true religion which I now embrace along with many others who feel the truth and the harmony of living the religious life in a secular world.

96. “Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life forms the basis of a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness.” S.B
    The premise being that we are all equal, and come from a body of Love that knows everything. We don’t have to go to a building every week to show that we are religious, and give our power away to a person preaching about how life should be lived, based on rules and coming from fear. By reconnecting to the love that we are within and expressing who we are from here has been life changing for me. No longer am I trying to be a “good catholic girl”, or living with anxiousness believing that if I do something wrong I will go to hell.

97. ‘We are all the equal Sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.’ This most beautiful fact is innate, in every one of us. And yet how hard do we fight against it? Connecting to my eternal divinity has been the most precious gift that Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine have presented.

98. Reading the points at the beginning of your blog James was so exposing for they reflected much of what I also felt about religion and I realised how much we inherit from our family of origin and if we are ‘good’ we don’t question their choice of beliefs. There is an absolute knowing within about who we are and what is true, but so many do not choose to make this their way. Since I have chosen to live from the truth that resides within my heart I am slowly exposing what the ‘weight of the world’ has imposed on me and a real lightness of being, joy and vitality is becoming my way. True religion is about re-connecting and connection and never does it include any belief, ideal, separative, comparative or competitive behaviours.

99. Thank you James for this very powerful summation of The Way of The Livingness. It is so refreshing to see how you have redeveloped your relationship with religion and now see yourself as religious and you can live that and be a reflection not a preacher.

100. To present this choice to a child is wholly irresponsible, that we have “Heaven, a state of nirvana or bliss to look forward to at the end of your life… if you lived a good life, otherwise you would end up in hell.” I know that ‘hell’ is a very frightening imagining for a child, and therefore the need to be ‘good’ instead is there. This very notion keeps the child aiming for good, rather than expressing their truth, and it robs them (and others) of the truth of God for potentially generations.

101. I never thought that I was religious, until I realised that how can I not be once I began to develop a relationship and deepen the connection with myself, with my body, becoming aware and familiar to my essence, that feeling of me that is not in reaction, but a steadiness and simplicity to life and being in observation and being prepared to see what is actually going on energetically behind the facade of the everyday events and interactions. Instead of being pulled out into the distractions, always remembering I have the choice to ‘re-turn’ and re-connect back to that essence within my body.

102. The church no longer owns the word religion, it has been returned to the people with the teachings of the Ageless Wisdom.

     1. Well said Heather, and the Ageless Wisdom this time around is The Way of The Livingness, which supports everyone equally as a religious student. I know as a truth from my body, I am religious and will be to my last breath.

     2. Well said Heather, I agree. We are all equally religious and no one can take this away from us or come between us and God. The more we claim this the more we will live it.

103. Reading your blog again this morning James I can see more clearly how the organised religions of the world have set themselves up a very good business model – they have become the ‘middle man’ and have created a market out of a need for people who want to find meaning and purpose in their life, but deny their own responsibility and ability to connect directly with God, and the universe.

104. “I grew up thinking that religion was something outside of me, where I had to go to a church or a priest to have access. This meant sitting in a cold church on uncomfortable seats, listening to things that in the main did not make much sense to my life!” This sounds familiar James. I never looked forward to going to church – it was more of an endurance than an enjoyment, and I never came away feeling that I understood anything more about life or myself than I did before I arrived. The complete opposite is true though when I attend an event from Universal Medicine, and I have learnt and understood more of what life is all about in the last 10 years than I have in the previous 46!

105. ‘Does it matter what anyone thinks about me…..?’ So many people want to be liked, affirmed, recognised yet as you write, if we truly live the love we are and I would add appreciate all that we are, then that is the most important thing – reconnecting with our innermost.

     1. Adding appreciating all that we are makes a big difference. Otherwise I find it is easy to build myself up but then when I do not appreciate myself and all that I have I can easily throw it all away.

106. If I read your first list I can see how many of our feelings of not being good enough are seeded in religion. For instance the need to confess our sins makes us feel we are bad, the notion God is outside of us makes us feel less, that you have to prove yourself to get into Heaven makes us forever strive to be better and not appreciate ourselves and so on. Your second list is like the antidote to the first one and is deeply healing to read. When I read that I know that this is true religion. And that living from the tenets of this religion will not create the ill behaviours as describes above but appreciation, love and joy.

     1. The moment we start from anything less than the love that we are we are setting ourselves up to fail and settling for less than love. However, when we start with love then nothing but love will be settled for and so we can return in full to the love that we are, using it as our guide and teacher as opposed to some un-reachable goal or place we get to. Also starting with love we have no end goal as it is forever deepening otherwise I have found we seek a better life but not a true life.

107. It is very freeing to hear people speak about their relationship with divinity. Thank you James.

108. My family were not religious. I was not christened and nothing was forced onto me, but somehow I managed to make it to Sunday school so I experienced what it was like to belong to a church. I could say I went to church but I would never say that I was a christian. There was something about the label that I didn’t like and wasn’t true of me. I could feel the pull towards God but I could also feel my dislike of organised religion, even at that early age.

     1. I felt the same Rebecca – it was a very conflicting feeling I had within – I effectively tried to balance the right and the wrong I felt but ultimately it led me to give up on religion and God and ultimately myself. I have never liked rules or being told what to do and so never liked the way, say the Catholic church which I was brought up with would put forward this dogma and rules that you either followed and obeyed or would go to hell – it made no sense yet was this way or the high way – there was and is no middle ground.

109. I took my Mum to church on Christmas day and they still had the same pews that were there when I was a kid and they could not have been made more uncomfortable if they had nails sticking up through them, and a lot of people still knelt down on equally hard kneeling thingies. When I mentioned to a few people how uncomfortable the seats were it seemed I was the only one who had noticed as the rest of these people just must have been used to them. I couldn’t help thinking that all the money that is passed over during a service maybe some of it could have been spent on a little bit of comfort.

110. Religion has become over time a word associated with faith. But it need not be this way, and it is perhaps time we moved beyond the age old question “does God exist”, to a more appropriate question – is the lack of proof of his existence just because we have been looking in the wrong place?

111. ‘Live your truth, be with you and always know that you are divine’ by Micahel Benhayon. There is so much in this world that can try to put us down this is why religion is so important, for if we don’t develop a relationship with our divinity human life can become very hard to deal with.

     1. That is a great quote, very simple and true and if we all lived it the world sure would be a different place!

112. I used to want to be religious and wished I could be like other people. What I realize now is that I am religious, more so than those I looked up to in the past. I am in daily communion with the magic of God which is so much more true than receiving a piece of bread the catholic church called communion once a week, which I did not get the meaning of; obvious to me now as there is no true meaning. I actually saw through the whole make-believe of the catholic religion but because I was never acknowledged whenever I brought it up, in fact made wrong, I made myself wrong.
     You can imagine the relief I felt when I came across The Way of The Livingness: a true religion, and everything I felt as a child was confirmed.

     1. I know the relief as well – it was as if now suddenly everything I knew growing up and within finally was confirmed and made sense – so I was now no longer the outsider or the reject trying to fit at all costs. The Way of The Livingness honours who you truly are.

113. To accept that true religion is part of our innate nature is for me the beginning of a real, sustainable, understanding, responsible and inspiring relationship with life, humanity and making sense of it all.

     1. Simple words but so true Matilda, and as a humble student of religion as presented by The Way of The Livingness I feel the true divine purpose in your words.

114. To the question in the title ‘am I religious?’ Yes yes yes
     From knowing me and returning to a way of living that supports me to live from my heart, divinity and inline with rhythms and cycles – I absolutely am.

115. We are continually fed lies that keep us away from a truth we all know and have always known deep within. This corruption is at work through the reinterpretation of words so that the true meaning and essence of such words, while still very much alive and accessible, becomes lost to us. For example, the word ‘religion’ as we have come to know it is the complete antithesis of what this word truly means. And so due to the various bastardisations of the true religious teachings, we have come to see religion as something that divides and constricts us due to the strict dogmas that have been put in place and the many wars that have been fought in the name of ‘God’. But God is love, an enormous body of love that forever holds us, no matter the degree to which we shut ourselves off from and withdraw from such love. This love eternally lives within us all, buried beneath the layers of a false way to be, act, think, speak in the sense that we have come to express from everything but the love that we are.

     The true meaning of religion is simply ‘that which reunites human beings with the divinity they already are by essence’ (http://www.unimedliving.com/unimedpedia/word-index/unimedpedia-religion.html) and so therefore any belief, creed, dogma, teaching, modality etc, that does not have this at the core, will only lead us further from the truth of who we are and not back to it.

     1. Thank you, Liane. It is very beautiful and inspiring to see the record put straight.

     2. Liane, great definition that – ‘The true meaning of religion is simply that which reunites human beings with the divinity they already are by essence’. The key word for me is here ‘already are by essence’ and so it is a re-turn rather than going or getting anywhere.

116. This is a wonderful blog that exposes essentially the fact that most religions of modern time are based on a false meaning of love and not a true one at all. It is love live not love intellectualised, which I have come to know is the founding essence of The Way of The Livingness.

     1. There is such a vast difference between living love from my body and from living it from the head. The moment I try to do something from my head it becomes a rigid set of rules with rights and wrongs and so ultimately is a set up to fail. Whereas the moment I just allow myself to be and live the love that I am then life becomes a loving flow which considers everything, naturally so.

117. Wow James, Each and every one of you points really rings true for me, especially the part that we are all sinners and god delivers illness as punishment but if you feel guilty and wretched the church can absolve your sins. Like you, I prefer a true religion that promotes self-responsibility and developing your own relationship with god by seeing god in everyone equally.

118. The stigma around being religious is quite strong. This isn’t surprising given the list of dot points in this blog detailing all the beliefs that come with an organised religion like Catholicism. All of those dot point make us feel unworthy, unclean, not good enough etc. and there is nothing that confirms the love we are as Sons of God. No wonder we react to the word religion. This to me shows how important it is for those who know the true meaning of religion to live and celebrate it, so our false meanings can be undone.

     1. Without people living and showing others what the true meaning of the word religion is then how will other people get to feel it. And this is not done by preaching but rather living and bringing the love that we are in everything that we do. It brings so much more purpose to life and everything that we do.

119. I have read quite a lot of blogs now, where people share their early experiences of religion. The one word that keeps coming up is discrepancies. Surely if religions offered ‘The Truth’ there would be no discrepancies. If they all come from the one source, God, then there should only be one truth and nothing should be unclear or not make sense. It seems the saying ‘there are many pats that lead to God’ has allowed these discrepancies to become the norm rather than bringing us directly back to God.

     1. Well said, Fiona. I knew as a child that it made no sense to have all these discrepancies in religion when at the heart they are all the same, but I did try hard to intellectualise some kind of reason into it as I grew up. Coming across The Way of The Livingness was a point of great sense and home coming for me since it simply represents the truth we all know; a truth that unifies and encompasses all.

120. The difference between your conclusions between organized religion and The Way of The Livingness, is the prior feels conditional and limited, while the latter feels free and expansive. I know which one is my choice.

121. Because religion has been misused it means more of humanity probably denies what they feel to be true inside, as they don’t like what they think is claiming to be religious is. So until this word is embraced and lived in a way that is true religion it seems like the other organised religions claiming to be ‘religious’ will continue. A Way of Living that is True for all can be the only religion otherwise we continue living in the mess and the separation we are currently as a humanity.

122. I remember the first time I claimed that I am religious. It felt amazing.

123. We have all known someone that when life bears down on them, they seek solace in religion. Is it because, it is something that can’t hurt you, unlike the world you are attempting to run away from? Or, could it be we a running away from the real religion that has always resided with us?

124. A Religion of unified Truth, True to its origins and True to God is The Way of The Livingness

125. It really is so utterly beautiful to feel that how we live, move and express is an outward expression of the divinity of God and that we are all held with that same love in every living way. Awesome, thank you James.

126. The fact that we have ‘religions’ that encourage one to be ‘good’, ‘right’ and benevolent, but never of truth exposes how organised religions have been able to manipulate people into believing that living in a certain way will bring them closer to God. And yet, God and Religion is only ever about truth and never about ‘good’ behaviours or ticking boxes to receive a reward at the end of a life of conforming to what has been asked.

127. ‘Access to God or Heaven is not restricted – we simply have to make a choice to connect and live in a way that supports this choice.’ This is so much simpler than the whole hierarchical arrangement of the Catholic church where an ‘infallible’ Pope sits at the head of an array of cardinals, bishops and priests world-wide.

128. How healing it is to rediscover that God is forever with us and never separate, segregated or beyond our reach. Forever he holds us in Love and Grace, awaiting our return.

129. That I love god was the thing I always knew in my heart. That it is important to love myself too was something I was shown in The Way of The Livingness not through preaching but only simply by people living this self love. It is not important what someone is saying it is more important what someone is living in every second – that is what is inspiring – hence The Way of The Livingness.

     1. Me too; I have always known God in my heart, I just got confused when I was told and given all these pictures and ideas about what God is or could be. As you say we can use every word possible but if it is not coming from a quality of livingness then the words do not carry the vibration of God, or love. So what quality are you choosing to live with, in and by? Do we hold this as the greatest value or do we settle for less?

130. It seems to me that we know there is a truth to being religious and yet the false version is everywhere around us – but rather than let it become the barrier to our connection, learn to observe and see the many ways we create that barrier and how it stops all from connecting to the truth. THis is the way we can help each other truly understand our own innate Divine nature.

     1. I agree, we do all know there is a truth to the word religion and perhaps that is why we are drawn to it. The problem is because we are not living religiously ourselves, or in true connection, we then settle for a lesser version, just like most of us have done with love – we say well its not quite love but it is pretty close so it will do – it is this level of tolerance that we need to address so essentially we accept nothing less than the true fullness of love and religion as we know it to be not intellectualise it to be.

131. There are so many contradictory statements in the Christian religion that make things very complex. The true meaning of the word religion “to bind” or bring together, is so simple, it brings us personally into a union of soul and body in the way we live every day. Also, from this soulful living, The Way Of The Livingness, comes a natural and loving bringing together of everyone in equalness, knowing that the one universal truth is Love.

132. Far from what I once thought living a religious life was, with all it’s piousness, rituals and answering to others etc. it is simply living my connection to God through being the love that I am, in my day to day life. This is living a truly religious life.

133. We do have a long way to go to live love en masse but just like Serge Benhayon, and now many others are showing, is just takes one person to live the love they are without trying to convert anyone and people naturally are pulled back to be the love they are – after all we are all love, so it is a natural way to be and live.

134. Thank you for your quote about the Way of The Livingness. It is wonderful to separate true religion from the belief that we are in essence sinners or unworthy in the eyes of God. It is music to my heart when it is confirmed that we are all equal divine Sons of God, that our true essence is that of his and that “honouring the love we are in full and bringing it into full human life” is the foundation of our true expression. This has the hallmarks of a true religion for me and for the first time in ages I joyfully put my hand up as being religious.

135. I am religious by my own choice. I’ve never lived life more than since I’m living The Way of The Livingness. Definitely not perfect and only recently feeling that I understand what love truly is – an energy that is so full of love, understanding, care and space. It is my choice to connect to it or not. Which has greatly to do with how I feel about me, how I am with me, how I treat me. In fact, the religion / the re-connection that I choose to have with myself.

136. It’s quite interesting to observe how we’ve gotten away with so many not loving acts in the name of religion and God. Yet the truth is that life is all about taking responsibility for the Love that we are and live that Love here on earth. This hasn’t been taught by any religion or at any book. It’s been lived by many people, but we’ve lost the true scriptures and books that were carrying the loving truth.

137. THere is so much misinformation out in the world about religion it is easy to be crushed, disillusioned and cynical about the whole affair – but what if we understand that none of that is true religion, true religion is our relationship to our Soul and to God, and that we can develop this free of the ideals, beliefs, dogma and control of any organised religion. It is simply our own connection to our Inner heart.. This is something we have all known – so no need to ever react or be let down by anyone or anything, simply a steady unfolding and reconnection back to what we know is the truth for all.

138. What I appreciate with the way of the livingness as a religion, a way to return to God, is the fact that it is all encompassing, it is including everybody, it is not founded on beliefs but on facts and truth and this can be felt in the body. It is not always an easy path, but it is worth it because it is including humanity. Nobody is left out.

139. “…whilst I liked some parts of the teachings…” – that´s the thing, we recognize some parts as being true but at the same time get imposed by man-made ideals, beliefs and downright self-serving lies. No wonder that we feel repelled by institutionalized religions that have deviated away from the original lived real impress left by those who knew religion to be a way of living and not dogma. And that´s key, developing and or returning to BEING religious by one´s own way, in alignment with what one knows to be true inside, in a very practical everyday manner.

140. A beautiful sharing James, I never considered myself a religious person until I discovered The Way of The Livingness, like you I can now claim I am deeply religious person because of my strong connection to this true religion.

141. I now can claim with out a doubt that I am religious, I live this from my body. I have reclaimed the word Religion from being one that I reacted to, felt hurt by and did not trust to what it has always truly meant, a simple practice and relationship with from my innermost, lived through my body.

142. Being controlled is what religion has always felt like for me. ‘I believe and so should you’, where is the ‘I feel’ in that religious rhetoric within empty sermons? When we stop investing in the beliefs of others and feel inside of ourselves for what has never left us, is a homecoming worth the wait no matter how long it takes!

143. It is a massive change and is great that a new word was not made up – otherwise we just let people be off put by something rather than bringing the truth of it. To think or contemplate quite how much war, carnage, greed, abuse etc.. has gone on under the name of religion is shocking and no wonder so many of us get put off by it – yet because they base themselves well initially or partly on the teachings of the true teachers we feel the glimmers of truth and so cling to those instead of seeing that you cannot have one bit without having the whole. I know that was something I struggled with growing up – essentially something is either truth or it is not – there is no middle ground.

     1. I agree Doug and that goes for everything. I find it is so easy to present truth but then try to make it fit in with my life or that of another, that then by watering it down it is no longer truth rather a lesser reinterpreted version. Truth just like love either is 1 billion percent or it is not – we do not like hearing that but it is a reality we live with.

144. It is interesting how much the word religion and notion of being religious is associated with being good and right or wrong. So for me it always kept me in the need to be something rather than simply being myself. As you say it is like a heavy duty whereby you either do what you are told or you will go to hell – a quite extreme punishment but one that many of us fall prey to.

145. People can be surprised when they find out that one is ‘religious’ and has a deeply religious relationship with God, life and everything in it. Especially when it is discovered that you don’t ‘belong’ to a publicly recognised ‘religion’ (such as Catholicism, Islam or Buddhism).
     And this is a great and awesome thing! For it is through the way that one interacts with others that their true religiosity is known – the love and integrity that are lived. It is all too easy to don a religious hat or title, and yet not behave in a way that holds all in His Love, evidenced by the endemic abuse and its cover-up amongst ministers of the catholic church, people in positions of influence in Jewish schools, and so much more…
     It stands every one of us in good stead to always discern another in full and cease kowtowing to those who may claim all the titles and wear all the garb, and yet who do not walk their talk whatsoever.

146. ‘There is no building you can go to, to be closer to God’ this is key, God is with us 24/7, regardless of where we are

147. Your sharing here James about your reclamation of the word religion, and the place of religion at the core of your life, is absolute gold. Religion is connection – with our essential selves and with the All. Anything purporting to be religion, that deems there are some closer to God than others is a falsity, based upon nought but dominion and control.
     To know to the depth of one’s heart and being that all are equal and equally held in His Love, is the greatest restoration of truth that humanity can be given. And yes, it is all there in The Way of The Livingness – a Way that holds no exclusivity whatsoever, and a Way that I know also, to call me from the depth of all that I truly am, to be lived in full.

148. I actually love saying that I am religious, it feels amazing to claim it 🙂

149. Your conclusions about organised religions James are brilliant. I can very much relate to them. There are many more too..
     A tenet of The Way of The Livingness that is a cracker “Access to God or Heaven is not restricted – we simply have to make a choice to connect and live in a way that supports this choice.” It is totally worth being deeply religious ie. the choice to have that relationship where you meet yourself in the love that you know you are.

150. “There is no building you can go to, to be closer to God.”
     This is what l always thought as a child. ‘Why did we have to go to that big, scary building with the dead body hanging from the cross.’ I felt smothered and depressed there. If that was God I wasn’t interested in hanging out with that poor fellow.

151. I remember how I had been so turned off by the religion I was raised in, I could not recognise in it any of what I felt to be true as a child, to the point that Christ to me, was a fictional character. However what I now realise is that when I moved over to the yoga consciousness in reaction to this I still carried with me the indoctrinated beliefs of that religion even though I had decided it was not for me. I found the posture that ‘we are less’, that ‘there is only one chosen son’ still reinforcing yet another story; that ‘enlightenment was only for the few’ – and that I would never get there. It is then very freeing to observe Serge Benhayon, see his religious way, and now be able to claim like you James, that God, is already within me.

152. It is refreshing for me that what The Way of The Livingness offers is a reflection on the way we would, and can right now, be living if we peeled away all the patterns, protections, ideals, images, and the like we have masked our true essence with. How ironic that we have turned this word into yet another image that we think we have to achieve. But there is nothing to strive towards, but the unfolding to our natural expression of love, harmony, joy, wisdom and brotherhood. Everyone is naturally from their inner core the same qualities as God.

153. James, this is a great point you make, and one for us all to reflect on deeply to feel how many areas (words) we actually do this (hold back and not speak up): “I have been almost ashamed or fearful of using the word religion because of its many connotations and so have shied away from using the word in my life. I have even shied away from really opening up about The Way of The Livingness to others, in case they may take it the wrong way. It is crazy in a world where we are led to believe in freedom of speech that I have stopped myself from speaking about the one thing that I hold very dear to my heart.”

154. It is so easy to react to the word Religion because it has so many different interpretations of what it is. The Way of The Livingness is the the only one that I have come across that speaks the truth, the reason why I can claim this is what it represents you can feel the quality of it holding everyone equal, that we are everything and that this Love is an impulse that created us. Here it all makes sense and there is no interpretation only a Livingness that is felt.

155. A beautiful reminder James that all we could ever want is already within us, it is simply a matter of reconnecting to the love we innately are and living and honouring that love in all that we do.

156. “I had stopped fully claiming the relationship with myself, with God and with other people.”
     I can very much relate James and it still is a daily challenge for me to claim this in full.

157. The word ‘religion’ has been so corrupted, polluted, and is loaded with historical violent acts of war, no wonder people say …”I’m not religious…’ who would want to be if that word is associated with the inquisition? But if the true meaning of the word was spoken about more, we would see that it is actually what every single person is looking for… to reconnect, to return, to remember where we come from… Is this deliberate intention or what?!

158. You have given away here James the best little secret for judgement or criticism from another. That is to always back yourself by knowing that what you do is loving and healing anyway and that is what matters most.

159. Fully embracing the word religion and living it means to know that we are one body of people, intimately interconnected parts of the whole. That changes the choices we make, the way we live, the responsibility we are willing to take.

160. ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am.’ This point alone completely wipes out comparison – if we were to dare accept our responsibility in living it.

161. This is really interesting. The idea that we are all sinners has us reaching for something outside of us, whereby we are all that is ever needed and wanted already inside. The sinner-thing, even it is a burden, does discharge us from taking responsibility in life and it holds us back from evolving. If we would take responsibility then we would have to learn out of our way of living, till we mastered life on earth and are able to go on. But the sin does hold us here on earth, dependent on the God who has to rescue us.

162. The church’s authority is a dark power, as opposed to the natural authority that is found within the light of true religion.

163. It is interesting how we all have our own stories about how we have been put off by religion. And it usually is all around what we are meant to or not meant to do and every associated with it. I still find it funny looking back at school at hearing about ecumenicism where by differing churches or religion are meant to come together and I felt yeah finally this is cool – but then underneath it there is generally soo much judgement and condemnation of other religions it is more about tolerance than love. And what I love and know true is that if God is absolute love, something I know he is, then he would never judge anyone rather have utmost understanding for them no matter what.

164. “I began to feel how I had stopped fully claiming the relationship with myself, with God and with other people.”
     It is amazing how the religions of the world do this and the effects of this are tragic and deeply hurt us because we have to cut off from and deny all we know and the love we truly are in our divinity and natural relationship with God. The simplicity of The Way of The Livingness changes everything and allows us the freedom to be who we innately are. No impositions, trying, punishments etc simply living the divine joy we naturally are inside reflecting out to everyone with God, from within us all.

165. When my son was at primary school he attended church services at the end of term. The pulpit in the church was raised up with about ten steps and looked over the congregation. My son came home from a service one day and said he did not want to go back to church again as he could not understand why one person could climb those stairs and stand as if he was closer to God when we are all equally close to God.

     1. It is brilliant children know this innately, so the moment we stop filling them up with untruths they will retain their natural wisdom and connection to God – whoopee, humanity will sing with joy, not to mention the universe.

     2. Supremacy called out – amazing observation by your son Jane.

166. I remember those hard seats and cold churches too James and as a small child complaining to my parents about it being the most uncomfortable place to be.

167. Yes, any dogma that imposes the belief that we are naturally born sinners cannot be true religion, as it is directly and intentionally in opposition to the fact that each and every one of us is innately divine.

168. I love the opportunity to pose this question to myself; to see the processes I have been through to arrive where I am today and to be able to appreciate how religious I am and how my relationship with God is in my every moment, appreciated and honoured or dismissed and over ridden.

169. I love the simplicity of The Way of The Livingness, no doctrine, prayers, rules or regulations to attempt to adhere to or fail miserably at attaining, just me and God and how much I am able to focus on this warm, tender connection that resides in my body throughout the day. Religion is not a set of beliefs to be administered; it’s a quality of movement, a consistent responsibility and an embodied way of living, which unites us all philosophically, scientifically and religiously.

170. Even if I left organized releigions, because it did make no more sense to me I have to constantly remind myself to feel the body and not to be distracted by everything around me or by something I give power away to.

171. “Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am”.
     Growing up with this awareness, support and even encouragement would offer and enable another way of being with everyone.

172. Nobody likes middle men anyways, they always manage to get the message wrong.

     1. Very true, middle men, just like Chinese whispers slighter change and alter the message when they are even a tiny bit invested in what they are saying or selling for that matter. We have everything within, we simply need to surrender to this fact, accept and appreciate it and then we can be the beacon for others not the middle man tryign to push something.

173. I feel you have truly expressed what true Religion is all about. I would agree totally with your interpretation of what The Way of The Livingness is. So many of us had, and still have the negative affects of teachings and experiences from churches that we belonged to in the past.

174. Great blog James, how we can have our own relationship with God without being tied down to any set religion. When I was growing people always ask me what religion you are from because of my skin colour and I would wonder inside why does that matter, I believe in God.

175. Absolutely James, this for me was the biggest shift that turns religion back around “We are returning to the love we are and not going anywhere and so are able to live this love no matter what.”

176. When I grew up religion was a bit of a taboo subject and people were turned off it, but my feeling was that like me, many had that unspoken connection and knowing about God that wasn’t mentioned.

     1. I felt safe when I thought about God, I knew there was more and trusted that I was held by something bigger. The universe fascinated me and I often wondered about life. Like you Rachel, I never shared this knowing as I felt my feelings would be dismissed and what was being taught to me at school didn’t marry up with what I felt inside.

177. Beautifully expressed here James, I can relate to a lot of what you have shared here, what with struggling with the word religion and understanding it. The Way of The Livingness is my religion and I am cool with that now and feel comfortable claiming my religion.

178. Reading your blog makes me stop and consider more deeply what my relationship with religion is. Thank you.

179. For years I puzzled at the way I re-acted to the word ‘religion’ and only quite recently did I realise that I had let go of all preconceptions and that there was nothing wrong with the word – only that it had been bastardised away from it’s true meaning. As I begin to allow more openness in my life and understand what true religion really means I now find I embrace the word in it’s fullness and grace. What could be more beautiful than aligning with God and the Universe?

180. There are an extraordinary number of people who believe in a god for the fear of repercussions of not believing, if he does exist. What we must allow the precipitation of, is the fact that God is known, not believed in.

181. Yes, indeed, James. Religion as you describe it, is so far from the truth as it does not hold us accountable for our own actions and choices as equally divine beings with the God given grace of free will.

182. I agree that so often organised religion and God are considered to be one and the same, but your excellent blog here James has reminded me of something I have always suspected also – that I can have a personal relationship with God without signing up to any organisation.

183. Everyone is religious as everybody relates to oneself, to other people, to life, to nature, to God etc. Whether it is a healthy, true and open relationship depends on the choices we make. Re-ligion means to re-connect, to re-bond. I used to have a strong relationship with sugar, alcohol, late nights and much more. But when I’m honest, this wasn’t a true relationship. It was a very needy one as I needed the sugar (the energy) to ‘wrestle’ myself through life. But nevertheless I was very religious with the 1 1/2 liter of cola every day. We are to find our own religious way with life. Which starts by being honest and getting a sense of who we – truly – are.

184. ‘the most insidious one was actually being repulsed and turned off by the word religion itself’. I can so relate to this James. There has been an embarrassment about calling myself ‘religious’ because of the associations that this word has come to mean. Taking it back to its real meaning of reconnection supports with unpicking all of this. In the original meaning of the word I find myself to be deeply religious and there isn’t an ounce of repulsion just a quiet claiming and inner knowing..

185. The funny thing is that we are all religious about one thing or another, whether it be God, online computer games, drugs, alcohol, shopping. Whatever our chosen subject is, it is evident that religion is an innate part of our beingness. Meeting Serge Benhayon restored my re-alignment to God very clearly and simply and over time all my other favourite religious subjects have just melted away as my living relationship with God’s wisdom and love grows stronger and more beautiful every day.

186. Someone sat next to me at an airport a few years ago and asked me if I was a nun. She sensed a stillness in me that took me by surprise, because I’ve always lived a very buzzy life. Stillness is one of the qualities I am coming to appreciate as it brings a sense of calm to situations that before I’d be excited about and allowed my emotions to totally drain my energy. Stillness feels so beautiful in my body.

187. I was sent to Sunday school and conferred it was just a part of growing up. Religion after that was the occasional death or marriage. Your list of conclusions and hypocrites that I had met pushing religion kept me away. The Way of the Livingness just feels true in all aspects. I am religious, now that the cloud of what is not, is gone!

188. Being religious is our only true way of being, we can´t be but, so better we realize and accept it so that we can actively choose what we are religious about.

189. When I got ill with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome I was told by a baptist minister that I did not deserve to be ill. These words made me feel very uncomfortable because they were words coming from the perspective that I didn’t deserve to get ill but others did! How and why should I get away with what I later found out from attending workshops and presentations by Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine, taking responsibility for the choices I had made up until that point in my life, that by going to chapel gave me this right. We are equally all God’s children and God does not love one child more than another.

190. I can relate to your experience, James. The joy in it is that religion is something else as what I have learned and experienced before. Religion is returning to God and the way of living where I can feel God within myself and this provides the joy in my body which I have known as a child.

191. All you have shared here James about true religion I completely agree with and also feel.
     ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am.
     We are all the equal Sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.
     There is no building you can go to, to be closer to God.
     We are returning to the love we are and not going anywhere and so are able to live this love no matter what.
     Access to God or Heaven is not restricted – we simply have to make a choice to connect and live in a way that supports this choice.
     We are responsible for all of our choices and what happens to us.
     The doors are always open and no one is ever excluded or judged for their choices.’
     It was the living reflection that I felt from Serge that showed me this. He is the first person this life whom I have come across (and now there are many more) who actually lives religion in his body. And this something that I could not deny when I felt the truth and love in a physical human body. For the first time I saw and felt the kingdom of God within being loved on the outer physical body – emanating it so and honouring that divine love. Today I can communicate it in words but initially when I first felt this truth I just knew it was true because of how I felt within. It matched my inner me. And that is the power of reflection and movement and living our love. It is just felt by others – no need for preaching, or words or a building for worshipping.

192. ‘So at one level I was saying yes to God but at another level, I was denouncing all of the organised religions that I knew.’ I can remember being very angry at organised religions but would never have said I was saying yes to God, though in retrospect I can see that I was. Claiming this really confirms my relationship has never faltered, which may sound crazy given my reactions to what I was seeing that I knew didn’t equate with what I knew was religion, love, God was. I felt so ugly but actually, I was always asking for my relationship with God to stay true despite my acting like a hurt child. I have given myself such a hard time for not being the love that I know I am – reacting, not accepting life etc. -, it’s wonderful to see I never stopped knowing God loves me no matter how much upset I’ve caused. I can look to every part of my life and feel how God has simply observed and held me in that observation. I feel like I can now drop the dramas and allow myself the grace of being.

193. “I have been almost ashamed or fearful of using the word religion because of its many connotations and so have shied away from using the word in my life” – I can say it used to be the same for me too James, and I would stay quiet on the subject if it ever came up, mostly because religion on the news was about warring factions/parts of lands which I got lost in completely understanding the politics of it all…which meant I automatically muted as I could have ‘nothing to say/add with any intelligent oomph’. The true intelligent oomph of religion is plainly understanding the beauty of religion which, and thanks to living The Way of The Livingness, is about regaining oneself back to the divine order of living who we truly are. Nothing to shy away from, mute, or fear about this.

194. God gets the blame for much that doesn’t go our way in life, yet we forget there is free will, and there is a responsibility in what we choose. God is Love and living of love is my Religion.

195. I didn’t grow up in any organised religion but what I could relate to was reacting to the word religion and now turning around and living more of a religious life. I’ve mouthed off a lot about not having anything to do with organised religion and all the problems they cause. I’m constantly relearning the truth of words and looking at what I’m still harbouring about them.

196. Your descriptions of being raised in the Catholic religion echoed mine completely! Amazing how uniform and controlling, global, and ‘organised’ Religion can be, even in the days before modern communication. The Livingness of my connection with God as my religion allows for true expression of God, not a controlled one.

197. So many rules about how to be religious, and we are taught these like an indoctrination as we grow up. Yet when a baby is born it is naturally already religious in the truest sense of the word – its every breath is a connection to its tenderness, its every move is delicate and divine, it knows it is held in more ways than in our arms. And then the outside comes in attempting to change this with rules – saying this and that is religion, and so many of us walk away from what we know is our true connection to a life of rules that tells us we are religious. Now this really does not make sense! And so it lies in our very own hands (and hearts) to re-turn to what we know is our deepest connection to self, no one can do it for us, only we can make the choice to be love again and hence be deeply religious with ourselves and here we can find God.

198. It’s been wonderful for me to realise I too am deeply religious. I lived my life before The Way of The Livingness, in total reaction to the corruption and hypocrisy I so often witnessed in the major religions of the world. I rejected religion and God. But in doing so I hurt myself so deeply that it was a wound that would not heal. Now in claiming that I am religious I have accepted and now embrace myself. There is an ease developing within which comes from being at one with myself and therefore God.

199. It is in the way we live our love from inside out that is religion, it is the power of love and our essence that is for us to claim and live in full.

200. What I find so inspiring about The Way of The Livingness is the equality – we are all equally Sons of God, and the responsibility it brings which is so empowering – to live the love we innately are… so simple and yet so profound and life-changing.

201. This is a great conversation you have started James, to share our experiences around religion and start to dismantle the falseness of organised religion. This supports us reclaim the true meaning of the word and expose all the false and harmful versions of religion.

202. I was asked if I was religious by a friend of my teenage son the other day. She had been brought up in a ‘religious’ sect that her family had escaped from. It was so lovely to say yes, and then clarify what religion meant for me, and her response was how much that made sense.

203. To know that the answers are in us, and that each choice we made that honours this increases our understanding and trust in living this in each and every moment. So what outside confirmation do we need, none, really why would we need to be confirmed in living exactly who we are, thank you for pointing this out.

204. ‘It was something you had to go to on a regular basis. If you did not, you were seen as being bad.’ there is quite a lot of judgmental in organised religions – if you don’t meet the criteria then you can grow up feeling like you have done something bad. This consciousness coupled with the education consciousness really depleted people from knowing who they truly are by reforming them into something that abides by rules. Since I have experienced The Way of The Livingness I have known that the deeper I choose to go with the relationship with myself, I am automatically aligned to God because I can feel it is within.

205. Accepting that the spark of God is within me confirmed that there is no building I need go to, to be closer to God.

206. The word religion has been distorted to a box full of preconceptions, resentments, ideals, beliefs, concepts, etc. Thus saying ‘I am religious’ means something different to everyone and we may not even talk about the same thing. No wonder that we shy back from making such statement or even claiming it for oneself. Or the opposite, we may claim it being convinced that our own faith is the only right one and possibly excluding everyone else. ‘The Way of The Livingness’ is all-encompassing, it is not even a faith one needs to believe in but an active way of living one may choose or not. But even when not choosing it as an active livingness its principles still apply for everyone as they are not a matter of ideals, beliefs or concepts but a reflection of the universal laws that govern all of us equally.

207. Yes, indeed. “Honouring the love you are in full…” is our greatest responsibility, because everyone who is living this love reminds the others that we are so much more than we have allowed ourselves to become, and that there is a glorious state of being awaiting for each and every one of us to return to.

208. You have highlighted the very same questions I always had about organised religion James, especially

     1) You would go to war over your religion
     2) We were told we are all equal, yet those who are not in the religion are perceived as sinners and will go to hell.
     They felt very conflicting statements that simply contradicted each other and do not make any sense.
     The teachings from Serge Benhayon..

     1) We are all the equal Sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.
     2) We are returning to the love we are and not going anywhere and so are able to live this love no matter what.
     These statements feel different and loving to me, there is a deep resonance in my body of the truth of these wise words from the new religion of The Way of The Livingness.

209. One thing is certain when we speak about religion. We are well practiced in reducing something of true love in essence into rules and other categories of right and wrong.

210. The lack of responsibility in believing that god punishes is quite a striking one, for it lets us off the hook when we really should be looking at what we have been living. What a difference it makes when we say in illness, now what has been my choices, have there been things that have contributed to me not being well? There is real honesty in that, and for sure god is with you whatever you choose.

211. We have lived a mockery of who we are for far too long. I feel blessed to have met Serge Benhayon and seen the evidence in front of me that we can indeed live the life that I have always held in my heart as the truth of humanity but had given up on, and that we can live that way today right now in this world regardless of what is going on around us.

     After despairing of the atrocities and hypocricies displayed under the banner of religions for eons, what a surprise and relief to return to the knowing that religion is none of that. Religion is and has been what I have known in my heart all along.

212. “I grew up thinking that religion was something outside of me, where I had to go to a church or a priest to have access.” – such a common belief, that religion is something we believe in rather than it being something that lives in all of us in our connection to ourselves and each other.

213. Religion is reflected in our daily choices when we align to the The Way of The Livingness, no fanfare or special deeds needed only the commitment to living true to ourselves in every moment.

     1. It’s very natural and our true way of being. It’s often the simplicity that we can struggle with as life is so complicated.

214. If we can appreciate that there’s ‘more’ to what we do and make choices knowing that they will have a ripple effect on everyone around us AND possibly much further than we can see, then any activity can connect us to the bigger picture and we need not pray or go to a specific ‘holy’ location.

     1. Absolutely Susie. The All is within the depth of connection we have with ourselves and our movements. When I move with depth of presence in my tenderness, grace and delicateness I feel the grandness of space, the universe, God, the holding of love, the cycles and rhythms we are all part of, that we are all equal and our interconnectedness.

215. Well said Mary, I know what you mean about staying away from church yet something drew me back to the figureheads like Jesus, Siddhartha Gautama etc.. as something about them rang true – it was the words and all the complication around the bible that made no sense – and what true good was achieved by going to mass, and sitting in a cold church – how was that changing the world or helping people? The Way of The Livingness has helped me see that life is not just about me and my self-salvation rather about humanity and being out there with people, not shut off in my cave. It may seem obvious but beforehand I struggled massively just to get through the day.

216. The notion of God punishing his children is not one I can align with. God is love and love does not punish. Love embraces and beholds. What is more, it has never made sense to me that God would create children and give others free-will to then punish them for using his gift. What I do feel is that when we stray from the love we innately are, we feel and experience the tension of our separation from truth, and this feels painful. It is certainly not a punishment though – and when we realise our choice, we are empowered to heal our own pain.

217. “I grew up thinking that religion was something outside of me, where I had to go to a church or a priest to have access.” As a child and around the ages of around 12-14 this is the one thing about religion that made no sense to me. I had an awareness of God everywhere so the question I was asking was ‘why am I any lesser just because I did not go a building once a week to show everyone what I am and be part of ‘the club’ to be accepted.’ This was part of the reason I turned away from what I knew to be true inside and it took many years to return to living this truth. Thank you, James, for expressing what you are quietly and gently claiming for yourself.

     1. And why would anyone logically want to go and sit on a hard seat in a cold building for hours on end each week?! At school I had to go but it never felt like it was something that honoured my body rather a thing we all did because it was the thing to be done and as you say, it meant you belonged to ‘the club’. I remember this at one school where the ‘Catholic boys’ would get to go over to the girls school for mass so we were the envy of the others!

218. James I love the fact that there is not need to pursue or convert people into the way I am choosing to live my life, that I do not need the recognition and acceptance anymore because when you do accept, appreciate and know that we are already Everything then there is no need at all to seek this. I feel old beliefs come up or patterns of wanting this and when it does I just allow myself to see that this is not true and enjoy that I can now see the truth of who I am. Thanks to Universal Medicine I have been supported to connect, feel and appreciate the Ginormous love inside of me and it feels incredible. Claiming this and going against the normal by living this in every moment is The Way of The Livingness.

219. James, this stands out for me, ‘It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me. This has taken off a lot of the strain and pressure of wanting and thinking that I need to get somewhere’. I feel this too. I used to feel a real tension and anxiousness because I was always trying to be a better person and do more so I never felt at ease with simply being myself. This has changed now that I am a student of The Way of The Livingness; I feel like I do not need to try and be something or someone else, there is a confidence and ease with me now that feels lovely and makes life so much more enjoyable and simple.

     1. It is so much simpler the more we let go of trying to be something. I find I can get caught up in trying to make things look good but the moment I do this I am letting go of the connection to and being myself. Naturally when I am myself what I do is awesome so there is no need to try. It is only when I am not claiming the love that I am that in order to make up and fill this lack in myself I then go into the trying and the sense of love and caring I have for people goes out of the window.

220. It is interesting how the Church has commandeered the word Religion and made it into a word that we want to shy away from, yet it is a powerful word that describes our personal relationship with God, and a returning to what we already know.

221. Absolutely – everything that we could ever want (true, absolute love) is already within us.

222. By now knowing the real definition and meaning of religion, what organized religion has become is a circus that has put God in a cage to entertain us for the price of a ticket. Why, when times get hard, do so many run to the shelter of the big top for solace?

223. There was a yearning as a child to know God, to understand and communicate with him and to be reassured by his presence, but being brought up in the Catholic religion I found that instead of feeling closer to God I felt more and more divorced from him. It felt ironic that being linked to the church I couldn’t make any connection to God. Yet, enter The Way of The Livingness and everything changed. My understanding transformed, the simple connection was made, my inner knowing was rekindled and life itself took on a different perspective as I have become more solid in myself through true religion… a reconnection to myself. By this reconnection to myself I have come to know God more and this knowing of God more I have developed more of my true self. I have found the missing link and filled the empty hole that was there.

     1. Rachel I love what you’ve shared here, its the same for me. I felt closer to God outside the church than I did inside the Church. And I was ashamed and would hide away from talking about God for this very reason. Today after embracing True Religion with my connection with God I finally feel free to express and live the innate feeling towards and with God that I had as a child again.

        1. Conventional religion is a manmade doctrine that is devoid of God.

     2. Thank you for sharing and very powerfully said Rachel. It is something we all yearn for and so amazing you can say and claim that you ‘have found the missing link and filled the empty hole that was there.’

224. “You had to prove yourself in order to get to Heaven and that life needed to be hard and arduous.” What a revelation it is meeting Serge Benhayon and The Way of The Livingness, the natural and innate return to our precious and divine natures and how to honour, nurture and cherish our selves once more. Heaven is not a carrot on stick invented by God to keep us ‘good’, but a quality to be embodied and lived every day, a return to who we innately are, no hardship or endurance required.

     1. It is exhausting trying to prove ourselves to anyone let alone God. It is a never ending up hill battle trying to show what we are doing is right, but letting go of and not seeing the importance of the quality in the way we do what we do. The more I take care of myself, the more love and content I feel within myself and naturally the more everything else gets taken care of so I do not need to prove myself to anyone.

225. The simplicity of The Way of The Livingness has been at times the most challenging thing for me to accept, so invested was I in the struggle and complication of the life that I had created. Nowadays it is the simplicity that melts me into surrendering to the fact that all that is required is the acceptance and honouring of the love that I innately am and living that as I go about my days.

     1. I love how you say that; ‘all that is required is the acceptance and honouring of the love that I innately am and living that as I go about my days.’ Yes it so very simple, the mind cannot really fathom or grasp it especially when coming from a state of struggle, but the more we embrace it the more sense is made of life and so it is no longer the struggle it once was.

226. Hell was created by the church to instill fear in its congregation and keep people subservient to its leaders. Never in a zillion years would God send his son to “Hell”

227. The Way of The Livingness has offered me the choice to know myself and to accept my relationship with God, as his equal son. My choice to love that the rhythms that support that and my daily acceptance and expression of that, is my religion.

228. It is an interesting point you make James that people who are naturally very religious are distanced from institutional religion.

     And when they do find the religion that feels right to them they shy away in fear of becoming what they detested for so long.

229. ‘You had Heaven, a state of nirvana or bliss to look forward to at the end of your life…’ I have never really taken much notice of this belief, thinking what a waste life is, but actually, it’s been there in the back of my head in that I have wanted a place of sanctuary, a place where I can completely relax with no issues or worries. Even taking the form of getting to the end of the day and numbing out on food or TV. But what if this sanctuary is a constant within and I can choose to surrender to me all the time? This is what I am learning is actually true.

     1. That is a very good point. I know for me like you have shared there is often a sense of wanting to take time out or me time after doing something – the reward factor comes in. So say we have a great day where everythign flows their can be a wanting to say wow I was awesome and rather than saying so if I can bring and be that what is possible tomorrow we have a tendency to rest on our laurels. It makes no sense that we do not continually strive to be and bring more of the love that we are into this world when it is the very thing we all crave.

230. It is extremely freeing to do away with all the impositions that have been placed on us by the bastardisation of religion. Religion in its institutional guise is anything but freeing, for at its very tenet it holds you as lesser, the sinner that needs retribution within a world that’s held in judgement. Nothing can further from the truth about what religion in its pure untainted form offers us. It is the bridge to our connection back to soul, to the immutable knowing that the kingdom of god is inside you – always.

     1. I agree Katerina, and it is one of the real joys about what religion offers us. The reconnection and reclaiming of what is already within us – so it is not about any journey to attain knowledge or enlightenment but rather a surrendering to that which we already are.

231. I had no concept of God – the concept made no sense to my mind. I was pretty sure there was a lot more to life than I was aware of but I wasn’t sure at all where all the missing bits were. They didn’t seem to be in religion as that always came with something I didn’t want to be near.

     1. I know what you mean Christoph, I knew there was more but the concept I was presented with of God growing up made no real or practical sense to me. I knew there had to be more to life but no one until I met Serge Benhayon could give me the answers in a practical sense that encapsulated the whole with no hidden or ignored areas.

232. Thank you James! The Way of The Livingness shows us the way and takes the fear out of Religion by handing the responsibility for our evolution back into our own hands. When we see that we are all one and equal Sons of God there is no separation.

233. “Do I shout this from the rooftops? No, for there is no need. Do I need to convert people with my words? No, for they will see the way that I live. Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me” – acceptance of the way we are with ourselves, in connection with humanity as the divine, brings surety and definiteness to life. It is its opposite that brings the reprisal, refute or fear of religion, when true religion itself is the most beautiful thing to have, to hold, and to cherish.

234. Knowing that we already are all that we ever need to be…..as the love that we are is, always has been, and always will be within us, allows us a space in which we can live the truth of this simple but profound truth.

     1. We are Love – is a very simple truth to know and live by and one that will do away with any seeking for a false substitute.

        1. The ‘false substitute’ of love is one people try to make a lot of money out of selling. Churches seem to have the same streak for making money from offering what is innately inside us already.

235. It seems to me that organised religion is actually the antithesis of what religion truly is. Each religion seems to convey some kind of ‘ownership’ with their particular teachings ….. yet, with The Way of The Livingness, it’s very clear that religion is within us all, already, we don’t have to go anywhere, or do anything other than connect with what is already inside us all.

236. Am I religious? Now that I have been able to re-connect with what true religion is, thanks to The Way of The Livingness, I can say, with joy, yes, I am deeply religious. Never before, in this life, have I been remotely close to being able to say those words.

237. Traditional religions draw everything we are to outside of us and this includes our understanding and experience of God. The moment something is believed to be outside of us it ceases to be in our control and opens us to manipulation by other energy. Locating God and the love living in the centre of our being shifts the power and choices we make and brings the absolute responsibility back to us. That centre holds a reflection of God that is common to us all and when we share the terms ‘brotherhood’ and ‘unity’ we are confirming the truth of the connection we all share.

238. There are so many unanswerable questions and discrepancies in mainstream religions. What I love about The Way of The Livingness Religion is that it makes perfect sense and it acknowledges the responsibility we all have for our choices, and no matter the way people choose to live there is no division, for everyone is seen as equal, and all are first known by their true essence, which is love before any of the chosen behaviours that have been taken on. I love your claiming in your final words, James. “Do I need to convert people with my words? No, for they will see the way that I live. Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.”

239. “Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am.” This is such a foundational truth that is to be shared with all equally, if not we will keep living with more of the same outcomes we are experiencing in the world.

     1. Yes, I agree Sandra. Allowing ourselves to feel and claim this truth is an empowering choice that dissolves any form of comparison, jealousy, exclusion, competition and separation, and reconnects us to absolute equality and Oneness.

240. A completely different way to look at life, not from outside in but from inside out. We often look outside to see what to do next in place of connecting deeper within and then allowing life to unfold in front of us. We build an outer life to protect ourselves when all we need do is keep connecting within and unfold this out. The Way of The Livingness doesn’t hold anyone differently, we are all students of it no matter how long you’ve returned to it, no matter what you social status, gender or age we are all equal in being students. This religion has supported me in so many ways and continues to do so.

241. Awesome James. I love the list of tenets, and you’re right….that’s only listing but a few, although some pretty big ones that blow other religions as we know them out of the water. I still shy away from the word religion, purely because of what it means to society today and I don’t want to have anything to do with it, but religion, when described in it’s true sense, means a lot more to me.

242. Thank you James for this beautiful blog on Religion, and I absolutely love this quote you have included: “Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life forms the basis of a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness.” (Serge Benhayon, Esoteric Teachings and Revelations, p 648).

243. In today’s world it is not ‘cool’ to be seen as religious, and the main reason for this is because of the connotations around the word itself. “Religion” as a word has been very much bastardised and now comes with the images of religious fanatics and fanaticism, and it is like you are automatically lumped with all these things if you mention the word religion – not cool at all! But if you were to come back to the true meaning and true purpose of religion, then this changes everything, and in the process opens things up for the world to allow for true change. Sadly as a human race we have the habit of resisting true change, as part of us is uncomfortable with what is asked of us in terms of stepping up to the challenge of growth, and so though true religion is now available to us, we have made it sound un-cool by the virtue of all the other bastardised forms of religion out there, hence stunting our growth or slowing things down further. However, all is not lost, for some have seen the truth and are living it little by little and bringing back the ‘cool’ factor to living religiously with true care and consideration for all because of the All.

     1. There sure is an ‘uncool’ factor associated with the word religion that has put many people off. The rigidity and formality, having to follow a set of rules and dogma, punishable if you do not, instils a sense of fear and uneasiness; well it did for me. Yet there is none of this with The Way of The Livingness, it allows us to be all of who we truly are without any judgement or condemnation and holds us in the love that we are. It is a real gift to be a part of the religion and be given the opportunity to re-imprint what the true meaning of the word is rather than continue to be put off by the many re-interpretations of what religion truly is. Something interesting to see here is how many other words have been changed from their true meaning to suit something we have today?

244. “Illness and disease are punishments from God. This takes away all responsibility for our own actions… leading to us blaming and resenting God and other people.” I am learning that a lot of disease is born from a dis-ease in our body. And like you I had a lot of tension (dis-ease) in my body from resisting God and the organised forms of religions that are presented to us plus quite a few other ways as well (was quite addicted to drama for one!).
     Now that I am connecting to what I know is a true relationship with God, there is much less tension. And I also am choosing to live many of the tenets of The Way of The Livingness, and there is much less tension/dis-ease.
     Also stats shows that around 80% of all diseases is caused by lifestyle. The way we choose to be in this world. When I look at the above, a lot of that is around our own choices. Not from other people. But there is much blame and resenting God and other people when we dont want to take responsibility for our own choices. Great article, thank you James. You give us much to consider.

     1. I have read those statistics as well and the more we accept ‘that around 80% of all diseases is caused by lifestyle’, the more we will choose to take responsibility for the way we live our lives. We cannot simply blame or be afraid of genetics rather can be empowered to know that every choice we make has a consequence on or body whether we want to accept that or not. The key then is what quality of energy am I choosing to live with in each moment?

245. True religion… living the love that we are in all that we do.

246. Before The Way of The Livingness, I too was repulsed by the word religion, and to even say the word God was an uncomfortable effort to squeeze the word out. I thought this was due to all the religious indoctrination that just didnt make sense, and all the non-religious and un-Godly acts we see around us. However once coming to understand what true religion is, and what it truly means to live a religious life, I realised deep down what I actually reacted to was not wanting to take responsibility for the fact that I chose to not live this truly religious way – I chose to walk away from my innate connection to God – a big ouch. The Way of The Livingness supports us to reconnect to who we truly are, to our part in the divine plan and our true relationship with God and with religion… a truly joy-full way to live.

247. The way you describe your relationship with the word religion is very common for many people. That a word that describes re-connecting to our true Divine inner selves should be bastardised in this way is pure evil. I use the word evil in its true energetic meaning as presented in Unimedpedia Evil: http://www.unimedliving.com/unimedpedia/word-index/unimedpedia-evil.html

248. Thank you James. I, too, was educated in the catholic faith and the impact of it can still be felt. The Way of The Livingness is now my religion and I can say that am a deeply deeply religious person as I now know that God doesn’t judge or engender fear.

249. Religion at school, and after, for me inside did not feel right. I did not feel met and it never told me who I was. Universal Medicine did right from the insert. I am a Son of God equal to the spark of God and all others, my brothers.

250. “It is crazy in a world where we are led to believe in freedom of speech that I have stopped myself from speaking about the one thing that I hold very dear to my heart.” James, it is a blessing you are speaking up and confirming who we are. I will, and am rejoicing in that!

     1. That’s great Rik and thank you. The more we can see and live the truth we know the more we will connect to and return to living the love we know, which itself is the religious aspect, even though our mind, at least mine, almost instantly thinks of church when the word religion is mentioned!

251. Knowing we are all equal Sons of God is a learning that can be developed throughout a lifetime. The gift of this understanding knows no end.

     1. I agree and it takes the whole notion of life being about self away and brings a whole new purpose, the divine purpose and plan that we are here to not be here. And that the way forward, the only way, is to return to the love we are, that we were all birthed from this love and so do not need to attain anything rather surrender to it.

252. I have always been curious about God, going through phases of kneeling by my bed and praying, having conversations in my head with him in church. I shied away from the term religious as I didn’t like what I saw of it. I thank the teachings of Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon for helping reconnect to the purity of what I knew to be true as child and know I can say I am deeply religious, not perfect but committed to developing and evolving that union with myself.

     1. That is something I love about The Way of The Livingness is that there is no perfection and we are not asked or expected to be perfect – the pressure this takes off is huge and allows us all to be ourselves, to make mistakes and to learn from them rather than being afraid to do anything in case it is wrong!

253. “…but I did not believe in God in the way we are taught through the varying religions…” As a child there is a natural connection to love, an ease, a flow, and simplicity but this is challenged and in conflict with what we are taught about religion at school which assumes doctrines and rules.

     1. We all know God and love yet because we are taught it is something different and something outside of ourselves we slowly give up on what we know to be true so we fit in. For me this left me with a constant uneasiness and trying to fit in – never feeling content or satisfied with life until I met Serge Benhayon.

254. Religion has been made into a very complicated, inconsistent and separating force by many organised institutions. Serge Benhayon has restored the true meaning of this word for me, bringing it back to the quality of connection we live in our daily life and in all our relationships and this is to me is an essential part of medicine.

     1. And what could be greater than ‘the quality of connection we live in our daily life and in all our relationships’. I know for me nothing physical in this world compares to my connection to myself and with others.

255. The biggest horror for me is when extremists claim to be part of a religion and kill their brothers in the name of that religion. Each prophet who became the figurehead of any of the world religions would not have taught that – the bible clearly says Thou Shalt Not Kill – but it seems to me that the Catholic Church invented exceptions, e.g. they were allowed to torture and kill ‘heretics’ i.e. anyone who didn’t agree with them. History is full of bloodshed because people didn’t agree. So, institutionalised religion to date has not worked. The Way of The Livingness is all about brotherhood and living in harmony with each other, not imposing in any way – that’s very different from the abusive behaviour, such as paedophilia and war you see in some institutionalised religions.

     1. I agree Carmel and this is one of the reasons I turned away from religion because I could not understand nor comprehend the bloodshed and the lies that went on by saying it was in the name of God – which felt extremely disrespectful, not true and like a get out clause and an excuse to pretty much do whatever you wanted and get away with it.

256. ‘Illness and disease are punishments from God. This takes away all responsibility for our own actions… leading to us blaming and resenting God and other people.’ – Yes indeed, it is easy to see where our irresponsibility for our lives and actions and the need to blame others really stems from.

     1. And the crazy thing is when we blame others nothing changes, I find I just get caught up even more in the whirlwind of emotions and end up worse off than I was before. However, the moment I stop and see my part in what has happened everything becomes much clearer and also makes so much more sense.

257. “It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me. This has taken off a lot of the strain and pressure of wanting and thinking that I need to get somewhere and then, only then, can I let go and be myself.”
     I can whole heartedly concur James, when for so many years I had thought that what makes a confident, successful individual is our determination, our ambition and achievements – a constant striving to better myself. The Way of The Livingness is arriving home to finally give oneself permission to honestly know and appreciate oneself.

258. What an absolute relief it is to find the true meaning of the word religion? We are all born religious as we are all born feeling connected to ourselves and the All it is only when we start to look outside of ourselves for approval that the slippery slide away from our inner essence happens. Organised religions and true religion are worlds apart as one is based on fear and the other love.

     1. Relief is a good word here Kathleen in that I feel we are all induced to live with an enforced tension in our bodies because of the massively bastardised but widely accepted forms of religion that permeate almost all of society. As you say, we all innately are truly religious and have a true understanding of our relationship with God. However, we live amongst a very different form of religion – so whilst we are naturally drawn to it because we are innately religious, it in fact causes us immense tension and complication because it is so far from the absolute truth. It is a classic example of the expression “square peg, round hole” and millions of us spend our whole lives persisting in trying to make the two fit.

     2. I agree Kathleen, ‘it is only when we start to look outside of ourselves for approval that the slippery slide away from our inner essence happens’ the more we can embrace the love we are, and confirm and appreciate this fact the less desire we will seek outside of ourselves.

259. ‘listening to things that in the main did not make much sense to my life!’ I have never articulated it like this before, but that’s just it….None of what was being taught or told has any relevance to my life, no wonder I was so shut down to learning any more about religions.

     1. For me if something does not have purpose I can, and do easily switch off. The Way of The Livingness makes sense to every part of my life and to every cell in my body. It is not something I have to attain or get to rather something I can live now as it is a re-igniting and re-learning of what I already know.

260. It’s so prominent that when we see ourselves as separate from other because of something we believe, than this is leading to an in cohesive way of being which has separation between people and how can a God be known if all of his Sons do not see themselves equally?

261. ‘Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.’ You have provided here the counter for self doubt – to live and know ourselves by the love we are.

     1. And what better counter could there be. I know for me the more content I am within myself the less it matters what anybody else says or does. It only matters or gets to me when I have invested in a certain outcome or picture about the way I want or need things to look or be like.

262. You are stating the obvious here when it comes to the role of confessions in the catholic faith: “It also implies you can get away with anything so long as you confess it afterwards.” That makes me wonder whether that implies to priests who sexually abuse their charges as well? Judging from what has been revealed in the US, Ireland and Australia of late, it very much looks like it.

     1. Yes, I was listening to a discussion on the radio the other day and this was being questioned. The priest being interviewed actually agreed that if another priest had ‘confessed’ in the ‘sacrament’ of confession, he would not be able to report that incident to the police. However if the same disclosure was made in conversation on the street, that was somehow different and could then be reported. That is truly disturbing.

     2. I know for me it has contributed me to thinking that I can get away with pretty much anything so long as I then pay my dues or say I am sorry (essentially confessing to it) and then somehow everything will magically be ok. But that is not love. Love asks you to be love and so it would not be loving to let you do literally anything with no consequences. Here love is not being critical or judgmental as we can think, but rather giving us the opportunity to take full responsibility for our choices. And this is one of the greatest gifts we can give another, the space to choose love.

263. Thanks James for pointing out so succinctly the main tenets of Catholicism/Christianity. It is so abundantly clear how they promote such lack of personal responsibility, empowerment and self worth on a world-wide scale! Wow to see through all of this is such a blessing in giving oneself the permission to trust the innate wisdom and knowing of what true religion is.

     1. It sure is a blessing Michelle and that was only a few of the tenants – for me what never made any sense was how firstly God would judge us and secondly how someone would then take away our ‘sins’ if we confessed and said a few hail Mary’s it made no sense whatsoever and only further imbued my lack of responsibility!

264. There was one point in my life where I would tell people that I was agnostic, even though if I was honest I always innately new there was a God, but the religions that I had encountered growing up and learning some historical facts about what religions have done to humanity and being in my head most of the time really put me off. That was until coming across Serge Benhayon and The Way of The Livingness that made sense of everything specially the word religion.

     1. The fact that The Way of The Livingness makes sense of everything one of the things that got me to say yes to it. There was so much I liked in the bible and so many tenants from the great teachers the religions I looked into had but they were all interwoven with things that did not make sense to me and so I either had to accept it all or reject it all.

265. Knowing religion is just me in life and waking up every day and making a commitment to be true and loving makes life beautifully simple. Religion has become so complicated, when its beauty is really in its simplicity, it’s every day about, you and me.

     1. Great point Meg, simplicity is a great key to the truth of a situation. The more complicated the more the truth is concealed.

        1. That’s a great way too look at it, perhaps that is why religion has become so complicated (you need to pray here and remember these commandments, and wear this or that) because all of this obscures how simple the truth is: that religion is just you and the way you live everyday.

     2. Well said Meg, when we look at religion like this it makes so much sense and everybody can relate to it. I feel that complication comes in when we try to own something and put our mark on it. But how can we own something which is God given and available to all of us? I love how you say, ‘waking up every day and making a commitment to be true and loving makes life beautifully simple’. It sure does and brings a real purpose and meaning to life.

266. “It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me.” – so very simple James.

267. When someone asks me if I am religious I have to ask what they mean by that and usually it is whether I belong to an organisation, with God as its unseen leader. It is very interesting to open up discussions around this because most of us have opted for being spiritual if we could not find a religious organisation that suited us. Discovering the original meaning of the word to describe an activity of connecting makes it easier to understand what religion is truly about and how it has made some sideways moves away from this and has also been impregnated with ideals and beliefs to suit different agendas.

     1. That is true. With ‘spiritual’ it feels like anything goes and that never seemed right either.

        1. I agree and the rebound is the ‘spiritual’ life, whilst I turned to it as well it always felt rather aloof and not a part of the reality we live in – it was as if it was something you went to do to escape the tension you felt rather than something you did to support you to be all that you are in the world. Looking back it also feels like a reason to not commit to life in full.

268. It’s incredible how most of the world belongs to one religion or another, and so many wars are triggered by differences in religion, yet when it comes to mentioning the word in conversation we falter and do not like to admit that we are ‘religious’. It seems that on a grand scale religion is acceptable, but on a personal level it is considered taboo.

     1. It is fascinating and something I have noticed in the last 10-20 years is how many more people are are saying they are atheist or something else along those lines so are renouncing religion. I know, say with the Catholic religion, whilst atrocities were carried out in its name they were usually hidden or masked as being good and therefore acceptable, a necessary evil, whereas things like the pedophilia cannot be ignored or simply accepted as something which has been or was needed. The more things like this get exposed the more people will see the taint and ill that many of the so-called religions have held over us.

269. Beautifully expressed James and a joy to read the sharing of true Religion Love God and oneself as one from within us all. Very simple and pure divinity with nothing laced and imposed.

270. There is indeed a strong belief that in order to be close to God, we have to be in some way special, or at least a ‘member’ of a religious group. The Way of The Livingness is the antithesis if this, in that everyone is equal and no one has to belong to anything to know God. We are all sons of God and all have the potential to have a relationship with him if we choose, regardless of our race, colour, nationality, wealth, gender, age or anything else for that matter.

     1. Spot on Sandra – we do not have to belong to a select group or be a member of religious group or a follower of a particular affiliation in order to live in a way that allows God into our lives and allows us to treat us all as equals. It is as simple as recognising that we are all Sons of God and simply making a choice to live as such, no need for a building, a congregation, meetings, confessions etc.

        1. Yes Henrietta, by simply being aware of what is going on around us everyday, we will see that God is with us in every detail. When we can appreciate and understand this, the absurdity of having magnificent and lavish buildings in which to worship him becomes very apparent.

        2. I agree and what stands out is that The Way of The Livingness does not concern itself with how many ‘members’ it has because it knows and treats everyone as the same. It does not say you have to attend anything either, but rather presents a way of living that we all know and gives us the choices to live this love. It recognises that because of the way we have allowed things to be the world it is not set up for us to be love and so offers the support and guidance to re-connect, be out in the world and live the love we are wherever we are and wherever we go.

     2. Sandra, yes indeed there are so many strong beliefs around who can get close to God and who can’t. It seems to be almost an unspoken rule that men can get closer to God than women. I would also add that it is assumed by the majority that God is male, we refer to God as a ‘father’ we refer to ‘his’ house, all of our references to God are masculine, which may have something to do with our bent thinking that men can get closer to her than women.

        1. That is an interesting point Alexis, we do all have the notion of God being male. Just like we tend to see each other as male or female negating the fact that we are all the same underneath the layers we put on. We have simply chosen to be male or female as an expression.

271. ‘Do I need to convert people with my words? No, for they will see the way that I live.’ – beautifully said. Living the love that you are each and every day is more powerful than any words. People are often not ready to hear words and they can choose to shut down, however, we are all always receiving energy and when we meet someone who is living life from their essence, it feels amazing. It stops you in your tracks and you know you’re experiencing something special, it feels so different, magnetic. Being around them pulls you to connect with your own essence, and so starts the journey of re-connecting back to who you truly are.

     1. I love being around and with people who are simply living the love that they are without trying to convert you and make you into anything other than yourself. It is like they see through all the rubbish that is around you and meet you in your essence, the love that you are. And because they can feel this they do not need you to be because you are it – the choice is then yours to re-connect to it or not.This feeling of space you are left with huge and is something we can also offer others if we choose to live the truth and love that we know and I know from my perspective this is one of the greatest gifts anyone has ever given me.

272. This is such an interesting and different way of looking at religion; instead of making your relationship to religion about visiting a specific building regularly, doing tasks that make you closer to God or seeking forgiveness for your ill choices, what truly makes you feel connected to the fact that there is more to life than what we temporally see down here and the Universal quality you’ve talked about in your blog, is looking at the each moment and appreciating that you can live that quality in everything you do.

     1. Again the simplicity of true religion is incredibly beautiful, ‘looking at the each moment and appreciating that you can live that (Universal) quality in everything you do’.

     2. And the more we ‘live that quality in everything you do’ the more we get to appreciate the depths of love that is with us and has always been, we have just chosen not to connect to it. I love how The Way of The Livingness encompasses all of life and does not isolate it into areas because we can then learn that what we do in one place or moment directly affects the next and so on. This learning of consequences has been huge for me because I have always felt I can get away with things that I know are not loving because it is behind closed doors or no one can see, but then what quality do I then take with me. Seeing life as all one and the same is a real game changer and brings a whole new perspective to life.

273. There is such a feel of control with organised religion, ‘in order to be closer to God you needed to be a monk or a priest’ or show up to church each week to hear a sermon from someone who was ‘closer’ to God …… this is the complete opposite to The Way of The Livingness where the door is always open to anyone and everyone, to come and go as they wish. It will always be that way as we are all God’s children, equally so. Whatever our current beliefs may be, we will always have a place with God, whether we ever choose to claim it, or not.

     1. It is very reassuring knowing that ‘Whatever our current beliefs may be, we will always have a place with God, whether we ever choose to claim it, or not.’ It takes away all the trying to be better and the endless trying to be good or to prove ourselves that so many of us get caught up in.

274. For any person or religion to make you believe you have to “prove yourself in order to get to Heaven” is the antithesis of love. To ‘try’ to be something you have come to imagine you are not – while all along you hold an essence that is, and will forever BE divine, is to be led away from truth, love, joy, and the stillness of God that is naturally, and rightly ours to come back to. No need for trying.

     1. I agree there is no need for trying whatsoever. I find the moment I am trying it is because I am trying to live up to a picture, an image, an ideal of what I want life to look like – which is essentially very controlling and makes me very streamlined focused on that end result rather than appreciating everything that is around me and knowing that as long as I am living with the quality of love I know now, then whatever is before me will be taken care of.

        1. Yes James, I’ve come to feel that when I ‘try’ I have chosen to put the picture before truth.

        2. Trying is effectively saying I need this otherwise it won’t work. Whereas when we just do what needs to be done without having a picture of how we want or need it to be then more often than not the outcome is far more than we could have imagined and if it is not then I do not get crushed by it not looking as good as I wanted it to and so can appreciate it for what it is rather than wanting or needing it to be more or any different.

275. ‘The doors are always open and no one is ever excluded or judged for their choices.’ My experience of organised religion is not this, I have been to church once independently and felt guilt for my choices which meant that I never went back.

     1. It is the complete lack of judgement that sets The Way of The Livingness apart from pretty much anything else I have come across – the fact that it holds us all as the love that we are is very special.

276. Beautiful James, ‘Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.’ I remember I used to be so concerned what others thought of me – always trying to impress and wanting recognition. Now I feel steady and love myself I have much less need for this outer recognition, this makes me feel at ease in my body and with how I am, which feels very lovely compared to the constant tension and trying with which I used to live with.

     1. That is lovely to hear Rebecca – it is amazing how much pressure we put on ourselves to perform for others and somehow live up to a fictional ideal we have about the way things should be rather than stopping to appreciate everything that we do have. I have found that if I do not appreciate myself, others, and what I have then I very easily become complacent with it and do not value or cherish it, myself or those around me, meaning we all lose out.

277. The premise that ‘you have sinned and are already bad’ is something that was instilled deeply in me as a child through religious practices and expressions. Today I feel very deeply that the opposite is true and that the origin of my and everyones being is in fact Divine not sinful. If we are created by God that it makes much more sense that we are ‘originally Divine’ not originally sinful.

     1. Hear hear Richard – we sure are all ‘originally Divine’, saying anything less or other does not make any sense. The key here is to know this fact and then we can see and understand how far we have strayed from the love we know and so re-turn to it rather than feel we need to attain anything.

278. It’s interesting that when I read the title of this blog how I instantly feel a knowing inside saying ‘yes, deeply so’ as opposed to the feeling I would have felt before I had been inspired to reconnect to my essence and reacquaint myself with this as a way of life, by Serge Benhayon and the amazing people I have met through Universal Medicine.

     1. Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon have also completely changed my view on the word religion – I knew the word deep within always felt true but nothing ever matched up to this quality I felt and so I rejected it and challenged everything that was before me rather than fully embracing the love I am and the love that has always been on offer.

279. This is an awesome post – very relatable on a personal level and especially cool to read about how you break down what true religion is. For many people religion is a dirty word as they too feel the separative and guilt-inducing tenets. But to understand the true definition, that religion is a relationship with oneself, changes things and offers us the chance to embrace the word.

     1. Thanks Nick – it was very revealing to write and expose how caught up I have been with religion and how much I have held back fully embracing the truth in fear I may be ridiculed. It is crazy but shows how awesome religion must be if there has been so much said against it and bastardised in its name.

280. Attending Universal Medicine presentations by Serge Benhayon, have made sense of the truth of God and Religion. The re-alignment with that which is already known within – no 3rd party is needed.

     1. Indeed no 3rd party is known – it is however magical when we then share the love we know within with another and then another etc.. until such a time when everyone has access and is living the love we all know deep within.

281. An absolutely brilliant blog. Thank you James. I will read it again very soon.

282. James, I can not explain enough how much I relate to your sharing – it’s very similar to my experience. For me, The Way of The Livingness is all I am deep within where my soul and God reside. This unlike organised religions is deepened the more I choose to surrender and deepen my relationship with myself and God. We have indeed, as a world, been sold one massive lie about God being something outside or something we need to better ourself for or visit a building for, when in fact, the kingdom is within each one of us if we do choose to live by the loving quality.

     1. The beautiful thing with The Way of The Livingness is that the choice is always ours, we can take it or leave it, go as far as we wan,t or delve in fully – and there is never any judgment, rather an understanding and unconditional love and support, with full acceptance at all times.

283. This takes away individual responsibility and in this whole belief/ideal I, feel the imposition of the importance of what we ‘do’, rather than first and foremost who we are. Personally, this has led me to find safety in the outer world, around me (which is a form of constant control), rather than finding it inside by allowing myself to feel the stillness of God inside of me. If I feel this stillness, I feel complete. There’s an enormous allowance and understanding for both myself and for the world. As if in accepting this sacred stillness lies the key to stop the inner-war. Literally, I turn the key – make the choice – to connect with this stillness, I feel the precious love and the war is gone. Not all the tensions within my body, but a definite surrender to me. Thank you, James, for sharing all your experiences and revelations. Very dear to me. I feel the innocence, tenderness, and strength.

     1. Thank you as well Floris, as you say it is important we bring the emphasis back to who we are rather than what we do, only then will we find true contentment that is within – there is nothing I have found from the outside that comes close and believe me I have tried and explored loads of different options!

284. If you put your two lists on a balancing scale, the results would be the would be the same as measuring darkness and light. I know what I feel is true and as you have said James, this is more than enough confirmation for me!

     1. There is way more than enough confirmation for me too, what it does show is how entrenched and insidious the ideals and beliefs surrounding what religion truly is are because otherwise we would instantly reject what we have been told and live the truth we know.

285. To truly love and honour oneself as a son of God is the most natural thing in the world once we discard all the beliefs and ideals we have accumulated throughout life which lead to us feeling unworthy.

286. “I grew up thinking that religion was something outside of me, where I had to go to a church or a priest to have access.” This is such a common experience of religion and consequently it is no wonder that so many people are either alienated from God or are dependent upon another to tell me them what is true or not rather than determining that for themselves. The religion of The Way of The Livingness is the complete opposite of this. Its core tenent is that one is to discern for oneself what is true or not and it supports one in how to achieve this self-reliance. By discerning truth for oneself so one develops a personal relationship with God and not through the interpretations of an intermediary.

     1. Well said jstewart, “one is to discern for oneself what is true or not and it supports one in how to achieve this self-reliance”. And the more we discern and feel for ourselves the more we are shown and given and thus the more everything makes sense. For me, this also means the more responsibility I have to take for my actions because I can no longer blame anybody or anything outside of me for anything that has happened.

287. When you say – placing God out of personal reach – these are such simple words but they have a far reaching effect, because how insidious to have severed this connection we all have with the One Divine Source that tells us who we are and where we have come from and where we are returning to.

     1. I agree they do have a far reaching effect as they attempt, and in many cases succeed, in cutting off our connection to and with God. For me it made me challenge and test God along with other people to see if they really did love me. I.e I have wanted proof rather than accepting the love that has been on offer.

288. Your blog James brings back memories of sitting in cold churches feeling very bored, the only highlight was being able to sing “Morning has broken”. Yes some of our places of worship are very grand, but I have to ask myself the question, do they really nurture and cherish us as the naturally divine, joyful and tender beings we are?

     1. I know for me the churches never really did ‘nurture and cherish us as the naturally divine, joyful and tender beings we are?’ For me it feels like somehow it is about us learning to suffer rather than embracing the love we are. It is like by going we are paying our penance and so it should not be all cushy – but then somehow the priest has all the regalia. It is fascinating how we have made ourselves think that the way to repent our sins etc.. is to suffer rather than to simply accept our choices and return back to the love we are. After all what good are we to the world if we are bashing ourselves?

289. We are all religious all of the time, it’s actually who we are.

290. I agree James, I find myself avoiding the word religion at times, depending who I am talking to, as it brings up so many connotations and assumptions. I feel very clear with the word myself these days and the fact I am deeply religious. Expressing the fact is important too… as I also carried a great deal around the word until it was reflected differently to me too.

291. I agree, by far the worst evil that has occurred around religion in the way in which organized religion has completely turned people off religion to such a degree that most people would be loathe to declare that they are religious. This was the same for me. To get through it I needed to come to a true understand of what religion actually was and once I know it was about relationships, that is my relation with God, myself, other people and my environment then it was much easier to be able to say that I am very religious and that my whole life is really one religious experience.

     1. It is interesting how one of the most sacred words to the way we live our lives is rejected by so many not because of the truth of the word but the way it has been interpreted. When we find the truth and it is presented to us we are then cautious and sometimes reject it outright just in case it bares any resemblance to what we have been presented to us in the past, so rather than giving something a go we say a blanket no to it.

292. What is truly embodied and felt is simply beautiful—for no words speak truth that is lived with more substance, and religion is simply our consistent lived movements of what is truth and love.

     1. Our lived substance communicates far more than our words do. More and more I am beginning to see and feel the power of this communication our being, our Livingness and our movements offer.

        1. I have found words which are not lived actually put people off and never come out how they are intended. When the words are lived there is no trying and you just present what is there to be presented irrespective of the result for that will always be taken care of no matter what it looks like.

293. Great post James, from young and as raised by the catholic faith, I always connected with the rituals, music and incense of the church, its ‘mystique’ and the notion of holiness or sacredness as in, I knew of the importance of God and the divine.. but, as you share, the feeling and sense of it was very much ‘out there’ to ‘aspire towards’, reserved for a few, and certainly not myself who would be left in awe of such exalted ‘holy’ people who were this. The Way of The Livingness has its own rituals, order and ceremony that support the way we are with and treat ourselves – in the knowing of the equalness that we are with God, and to all others; that we are all one; inter-connected. It is this universality that today resonates deeply within me, to make me fall easily in-love with this true religion and way of truly living/being in the world.

     1. Beautifully expressed Zofia – there is so much about The Way of The Livingness which supports ‘the way we are with and treat ourselves’ – it is exquisite. Something interesting is I have found things I thought were good for me I now can see how harming they actually are. For me it is a constant refining of the love that I am, which is forever deepening and offering me more ways to simple surrender to the love I am.

294. “It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me.” What I love about this is the not needing to perform or to act in a certain way, instead, expressing yourself as who you are and communicating what it is your feeling so all is understood.

     1. We already come equipped with the All inside. This should be taught to us from young, to every child, letting them know and feel they are already everything, and love, God, and soul are within all equally – not in a cold building where you need to kneel on hard wood.

     2. This one point would eradicate all self worth issues in the world if every one of us knew this and were supported to live in connection with this kingdom within.

     3. It is such a great feeling not needing to act or perform in any way. I know as soon as I try to perform I get anxious and then things inevitably go wrong! Whereas when I am me I am simply me and I know I then present what I know – and who doesn’t love that?

295. Your blog is so honest and relatable James, thank you for presenting this. Initially, the thought of being in a religion felt very uncomfortable for me too because my understanding of the word religion was tainted with what I have witnessed in organised religions. I am working on letting go of worrying about what people think or how they are going to react, and basically not shy away from claiming that I am religious. I am choosing to live The Way of The Livingness as my true religion, embracing everything that feels absolutely true to the core and I am totally inspired to continue on my path in re-connecting to God and humanity.

     1. Thank you Chan, that is great to hear how you are embracing religion more and more. Something I have found interesting is that I generally only am worried about what people may say or think when I know the choices I have been making are not loving, whereas when I am living the love I know it really does not matter how anyone is because I know the love and quality of my being is stronger than anything that can come at me.

296. I didn’t realise that illness and disease were considered to be a punishment from God in some religions, which as you say James takes away from any sort of responsibility.

     1. It takes away all sense of responsibility – so often do we blame God or someone or something outside of us for what has gone wrong. Take say babies being born with defects – it makes no sense to say that it is a punishment from God as some religions have you believe – the problem with things like this is how it instills the notion of how bad we are rather than seeing and learning the lesson that is put before us – a lesson not to test us but rather to help us return to the love that we all are.

297. I like the way you say this James, that so often religious teaching has “put God out of personal reach.” When I connected back to the knowing that God was at my innermost (very personal indeed) and I’d shed the images and stories that I’d grown up with about God, I felt a certainty of his reality that no other religion had connected me to.

     1. It is this realness with God that for me shattered the beliefs I had I was taught about God being somehow outside of me or in a church etc..

298. I really get that ‘they may take it the wrong way’ thing. But the thing is The Way of The Livingness as its name says is about a lived way, and even thought the word ‘religion’ got completely bastardised over the years, it is reintroducing the truth of what that word represents – and for me, when I get that ‘they may take it the wrong way’ it feels like I have clocked somehow that I am not walking the talk.

     1. Well said, I completely agree – so often we can claim to speak the truth but if our body does not carry the truth of the words we express then the other person does not get the truth – for words alone are but a mere secondary element to the energy and quality we express with.

299. I can relate to every word written here James. So much to reclaim back into our everyday.

300. What a contradiction it is. We go out looking for confirmation and approval in the surrounding crowd, when all the time it lives inside of us, waiting. And when we reconnect to this inner truth it makes it clear everything is interlinked in the whole universe. So this is the twist: we go inside to come back to know everything that is. Thank you James for joining the dots.

     1. I love how you say, ‘we go inside to come back to know everything that is’ – it blows me away that everything is already within I just have to choose to connect to it. It blows me away because I have always known this just arrogantly and stubbornly chosen to ignore this fact and looked to the outer and then blamed the outer for not delivering what I know to be true! Crazy really how caught up we can become when we lose sight of the love that we are.

301. “Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life forms the basis of a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness.” … Amen to that!

     1. Yes agreed Michael… I love the way this has been expressed too… ‘a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness’! The fact it represents a ‘living way’ is the key that differentiates it from all other organised religions, and that this is based firstly on an inner connection to God and divinity. Without this, no ‘living way’ can exist. And that is completely personal, reliant on no other person, monument, doctrine, dictate or so-called higher power.

302. So well presented James, a lot to consider and some things to renounce is what I feel coming up after reading your amazing blog. Life for me has become one of learning so that I will not react to life but instead be open to evolution so that my way is learning to respond to life’s situations in a much more loving way. In this approach I am feeling my Livingness is a loving commitment to me to be responsible for my own evolution.

     1. Beautiful Greg and thank you for sharing. ‘Life for me has become one of learning’, the more we see it this way the more we will embrace what is before us rather than fearing it or reacting to it. After all otherwise nothing would change if we were not presented with moments of evolution, and by evolution I mean opportunities to live and thus express more of the love that we are.

        1. I feel we are sharing the same principle James, of being a forever student, who claims what life presents as a teaching to surrender to? In surrendering in no way do I feel we give away our power but claim the humble, tender and delicate man who knows that being divine to the best of our ability brings a responsibility as part of my Livingness.

        2. We sure are Greg and wow the power is surrender is huge. Yet the power is not imposing in any way rather a solidness and contentment that is felt in the body and then going out from there. So you start complete with the love that you are rather than going out to attain anything. And because the more we surrender the more we see each other as equal loving beings the more humble we also allow ourselves to become.

        3. Relearning to be humble, meek and modest all of which bring a gentleness that forever deepens into love so that being humble is ordinary or is so normal because it has become a natural way of being. This I feel is a key as it becomes part of The Livingness, which opens us to evolution because as you have shared James there is no imposition when we humbly surrender to love.

        4. It is this lack of imposition which I have found has supported me the most because it has allowed me to be and come to the realisations myself. The moment someone tells me to do something it usually comes with a need for me to change and feels imposing, whereas when someone holds me in the love that I am and, it does not need words, it allows me to come back to myself rather than keeping me stuck in the energy of essentially being a ‘screw up’.

        5. So true James imposition has the exact opposite of humbleness and just last night in discussion about a Universal Medicine retreat I felt the depth of true humbleness that I could go to deepen by feeling the reflection of the master of humility Serge Benhayon.

        6. The reflection we get from Serge Benhayon is enormous yet he is not in anyway making himself out to be better than anybody else far from it he is saying you are just like me, just have not made the same choices that I have but the moment you start making these choices to love and nothing but love then you will be like me, and have access to everything that I do. Serge have take humbleness to a whole new level.

        7. On a humble reflection on choosing, once we have chosen to align and that has been made there is no longer a choice, because as we align to the divine will of God it is our will that aligns us to divinity.

        8. My mind still grapples with this wanting to make or think it is a choice. However, I know when I simply walk with myself I feel my body realign and naturally the universe is with me. So it is not me saying I want to connect to the universe rather moving in a way that is in line with the universe and naturally it is with me.

        9. So it is movement that dictates our awareness and aligns us, well before we feel there is a choice, and because expression is everything and expression is a movement then our movements are everything? And as Vicky has shared about true religion “I love the tenets you have written about The Way of The Livingness especially this one ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am’ for this is so true.” So it must be up to us to move in a way so that our awareness is on our Livingness as you have shared James, “when I simply walk with myself I feel my body realign and naturally the universe is with me.”

        10. Indeed ‘our movements are everything’. I find I can be having pretty crazy thoughts and then change the way I am walking simply by bringing my focus to every step, or even simply adjusting my sitting position and it is like the thoughts are somehow magically not there anymore. What it is showing me more and more is that we are like radio stations and tune into whatever frequency by the way we are living and so the moment we choose to live loving them we start to tune into that frequency.

        11. So true James, our thoughts are even movements that are created by the way we live. Then it is up to each individual to be aware of each thought, and where they come from, so that our Livingness can evolve. Otherwise we become puppets to a way of living, that refuses to consider that we are vessels for what ever energy we allow to run our bodies, or as you have stated we can return to our true “evolution, and by evolution I mean opportunities to live and thus express more of the love that we are.

        12. I am fascinated how the way we walk affects the way we think and the thoughts we have. It shows that we really are purely aerials/receivers for energy.

     2. And vice versa, as we think then that is how we walk, as it could not be any other way!

303. I have also had an aversion to the word religion and still feel I have not fully claimed this and the truth of it. I love the tenets you have written about The Way of The Livingness especially this one ‘Everything is within me, no one is greater or more special than I am’ for this is so true. And I have also learnt a new word … tenet!

     1. Me too because it takes away the need and the drive to try to be something or attain something. I know for me the way to claim the truth of the word religion is to live and breathe it with every breath, and the more I do this the more I see how deeply supported we all are to re-turn back to and re-connect to the love that we are.

304. The key words for me in the quote from Serge Benhayon is that The Way of The Livingness is a religious way, not a religion. There’s a big difference there. It speaks of the personal claiming and living of religion rather than the institutionalised, organised, hierarchical – and fundamentally disempowering – religions we see operating in their various forms today. In a religious way, there can be no investment.

     1. I agree, ‘The Way of The Livingness is a religious way, not a religion’ which is a massive difference. And the dedication is to ourselves, to our evolution, to God and this encompasses being towards everybody else as well. If we do not 1st have this dedication towards our own connection then we cannot truly support another and their is no blind following or faith needed as everything can and is felt within, the choice is then ours what we do with it.

305. I attended church as a child and reading this reflection by James takes me back to those times in church, where as an energetic young boy I was asked to sit still and listen to messages that I knew were not true. God is not in a church, god is all around us, in every space and within our own bodies. How different religion is when we come to accept that.

     1. God sure is all around us and with us – the more we connect to this fact the more we will see and appreciate the love and support that is and has always been on offer.

306. “You had to renounce your sins and somehow they would be taken away at confession.” Yesterday I heard on the radio that if someone confesses in the confessional box that they have been engaging in child sexual abuse, then the priest is not mandated to report it. If the confession happens on the steps of the church yes, but not in the confessional box. There should be no section of the church that is above the law. Child sex abuse – or any form of abuse – needs to be called out and reported immediately.

     1. I fully agree, ‘There should be no section of the church that is above the law. Child sex abuse – or any form of abuse – needs to be called out and reported immediately.’ To think that this is acceptable in any way shows how lost and far away from love we as a society really are.

307. I also was raised under the catholic faith and have recently come to realise how damaging this has been taking on all sorts of beliefs that kept me stuck in my life always thinking I was never good enough and that I did not deserve love…..that I was not worthy to receive God’s love – how insane is that! Thankfully I also found The Way of The Livingness presented by Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine and have since shed many layers of these old, outdated beliefs which leaves me with a deeper connection to my body and to my Soul.

     1. I agree, ‘thinking I was never good enough and that I did not deserve love’, is something that runs deep within the Catholic faith – at least that has been my experience. The killer here is that when love, absolute love, is presented to you, you then approach it with caution and not an openness – so it has to prove itself somehow to you and you, well I have, tried to find any and every flaw in it just in case it is masquerading as love when it is not.

308. Until I read this I hadn’t appreciated how much I have bought into only certain people can have a connection with God and that it has something to do with devotion at the expense of living a usual life. So exclusive to a nun or monk’s lifestyle. So because I am deeply religious -as we all are deep within – I thought the way to God was being by myself and keeping apart from people. I hadn’t understood God is expressed through people too – including myself. I can let go of any aloofness I may have and fully be with people.

     1. That’s great Karin – it is amazing how much The Way of The Livingness has essentially given us permission to simply be the love that we are without thinking we need to be or do anything other than the love that we naturally are.

309. Thankyou James, I can very much relate to the discrepancies you listed in organised religion, as I have always known innately that God is love so how could any of those ideas have come from God? The simplicity of The Way of The Livingness is summed up beautifully in the quote from Serge ““Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life….”

     1. It is these discrepancies that would ring the alarm bells yet because they were inter-woven with the truth I would get drawn back in and so dismiss what I thought about the discrepancies. Something I have learnt and really knew all along is that everything is everything and so even if something is very close to the truth if it is not 100% truth it is not truth.

310. This is a great article James, I too grew up with the same beliefs of which many didn’t make sense to me. The fact that no religion ‘owns’ God is huge. That we all, every person has a connection to God feels so true to me- there is no special group or privileged people- we all know love and it is just a choice as to how much of this we live and express out.

     1. ‘The fact that no religion ‘owns’ God is huge.’ There is so many differing versions of God’s or what people call religion it has and does cut people off from one another which makes no sense when you go back and study the very people the religions are supposedly based on.

311. Very beautifully said James, thank you. I too am deeply religious. Isn’t it a peculiar world where as you say we feel to hide or need to “admit” the one thing most dear to our heart. Some people also hold back expressing how much they LOVE as if that too is something embarrassing to admit.

     1. I agree it makes me question intelligence and what we deem it to be. And yes I know what you mean about love for me I have held back how much I deeply love and it hurts my body when I do so – yet it is something I still do. It is amazing how much emphasis on life we can place of what others think or feel about us rather than just saying here I am take me or leave it does not matter either way.

        1. Yes and the crazy thing is that we are all doing the same thing!

        2. ps: and then I met one man (Serge Benhayon) who fully expresses love to everyone and as a consequence my whole life changed as it has for thousands of others – imagine if more people fully expressed the love we all are 🙂

        3. pps: I am using the word Love in its true energetic meaning as shared here http://www.unimedliving.com/unimedpedia/word-index/unimedpedia-love.html on Unimedpedia Love

        4. It is fascinating how far we have strayed from the true meaning of love and how we have settled for less. We all deeply crave love but most of us have been hoodwinked thinking it is something we attain or find outside of ourselves rather than within.

312. James, I have also been ‘fearful of using the word religion because of its many connotations and shied away from really opening up about The Way of The Livingness to others, in case they may take it the wrong way…’ I can really relate to what you share. I am also deeply religious, but it is a very quiet relationship as I re-learn to come back to and express the love that I am and the love that I am from.

     1. It is interesting how so many of us have been hurt by the word religion that know even though we know its truth we slowly take steps to embrace it in full rather than saying yes its me through and through. But also knowing it is not about words or talking to people about it because other people feel the way we are living without us even opening our mouths – this is something I need to keep reminding myself that words are secondary to the quality of my body.

313. Great blog James. I have also shied away from using the word religion, but as I come closer to understanding its true meaning it is a word that I am less afraid of using. If I let my divinity shine out of my eyes when I use it then people can absolutely feel and understand what I mean.

     1. Beautifully said Rebecca – it is the expression of this lived Way that emanates through our being, in the way we move, the quality of how we speak and meet people with our eyes.

        1. And no words will ever match what the body can express and show others, how could we capture the Universe in words yet when we are truly living love then our eyes cannot but hide this fact.

314. So very true, no need to convert or to shout about it – simply live it. There is no us and them, there is no sinner or saint. The Way of The Livingness has equality, choice and responsibility at its core and is, for me, a religion that is incredibly practical for daily living.

     1. The fact that the Way of The Livingness is very practical for every day is something I love about it and what makes complete sense to me. After all what good is it to feel amazing yourself if you are, say stuck away in a cave or not seeing anyone or sharing your love with others, after all that changes nothing. I have found someone can say something to me a million times but unless they are actually living it their words do not really mean much or hold any truth.

315. I too was challenged by The Way Of The Livingness being a religion as first. It took a lot for me to see that religion was possible away from what it has become today. Thank you for layout out here what religion is in the the sense and how it is about the connection we have to the all that is already there. This really supports me to see that true religion is a natural
     Part of life.

316. “The Way of The Livingness’ is a way of living for all equally. If All religions had equality as their foundation humanity wouldn’t have an issue with the word religion, nor would there be any of the harming behavior that is done in the name of religion.

     1. Great point Sandra, having a foundation of truth is key, if that is not there, it doesn’t matter how honourable or good the doctrines or dictates of a religion are, how closely they resemble the highest ideals of living, they will not be of a one-unifying truth, and hence not true religion that holds all equally.

        1. And the foundation of truth, being truth is all encompassing. Most religions I have found have elements of truth but are not wholly truth, even something that is a minute smidgen away from truth is not truth. We are like canaries for truth and can smell any deviation from it and so one of the most deceiving ways is to be presented with something very close to truth so we then mistrust it and hence reject it.

        2. Great point James, it is not only dis-unifying to have part-truth as the foundation of a religion, but because we all know it, we turn away from ‘religion’ assuming all are the same. While most are, in my experience, it did leave me quite uncomfortable with The Way of The Livingness when I was first introduced to it. Not because I couldn’t feel that it was true, that was the easy part, but I knew what others would assume as soon as the word religion was used.

        3. It is almost worse using the religion in a bastardised context because we can all feel and know its truth when it is used. I know for me, when words which started out to mean something deeply sacred to me, which now have been completely changed to pretty much mean the opposite, are the ones which have gotten me to react most to them and caused the most confusion for me. It was the duality of the word and the use of it when I was growing up which confused me and led me to shy away from using the word religion at all costs.

        4. Very true James, I don’t recall ever having a clear sense of the true meaning of religion, so you did very well to have a sense of that prior to seeing the bastardised versions. It was always associated with the organised versions for me, all of which felt wrong. So when I first heard it referred to by Serge Benhayon, I contracted away from the word. And once I could let go all my associations, I still had reservations for its use because I could feel how much others reacted to it.

        5. It is amazing quite how many people, well most of us, have reacted and still react to the word religion. It is one of the very things we hold true yet because of the way it has been used we do not want to associate ourselves with all the atrocities. Take the pedophilia which is now being exposed – no one would want anything to do with that and because it is put under the umbrella of religious people doing it we think we may also be cast under the same umbrella. The other thing it shows is how far off the ‘religions’ are to have allowed pedophilia in the first place – and even more subtly for the members to be enacting it out shows how deeply lost and contracted they are because no loving being would ever carry out an act like that unless they were hurt and withdrawn, and then we are capable of anything.

        6. Yes exactly, people should have left the church in hoards for exactly that reason… and yet they haven’t. Many have for a variety of reasons, but few would say it is directly due to the clear and obvious corruption and lack of truth or true foundation apparent within it.

317. James, you right very strongly and very claimed. I could feel how I too had the same experience as you when I was growing up in that I knew that there is a God and also could feel truth in what was taught about Him in many religions. But I also was confused if not very hurt that none of the feelings of God I felt were confirmed to be true. This is a greater evil than war or murder for it is deeply insidious and shuts us down from seeking the true meaning of what words like religion truly mean.

     1. There is so much evil in bastardisation of words as it does just what is intended to do by putting us completely off the true meaning of them. So for a word to have been bastardised so much means the truth of the word and its meaning must be very powerful otherwise nothing would be achieved by completely altering the words. To understand that religion is simply to re-connect and to re-ingite the flame within shows that it is not something new rather a re-doing and a re-learning and it is something we all have which is very special to connect to.

        1. And if this is the case James which in fact it is, the most evilest act is bastardisation of words. The danger of physical life is that almost anything can be made a reality whether it is truth or not so if a word like religion is bastardised the consequence is a whole society living and believing in a lie.

        2. That’s a very interesting point Joshua as literally ‘almost anything can be made a reality whether it is truth or not’. And then somehow the more people believe in the reality we have created the more we accept it as being normal when in many cases it may be far away from the love that we are.

318. Beautiful James. A beautiful blog about true expression of religion in its original way.

319. I feel the same way James. Before The Way of The Livingness I would put myself in the ‘No religion’ box, but as this religion shares the word and act of being religious is very simple. A connection with a greater level/plane of life beyond the physicality but interwoven within it and thus accessible in everyday human life by how we live. At first I really used to struggle to claim or express my religious ways in life but now if they ask I have a greater ease in sharing and saying ‘Yes I am religious’.

320. ‘This led to a feeling of always trying to do the right and best thing whilst not wanting to own up to or admit mistakes.’ This has been huge for me, never understood where it came from until someone pointed this out in another blog I’ve read. I have been a very good girl raised in the Catholic tradition, perfect in my behaviour but not true at all and now with The Way of The Livingness more and more I can see mistakes for what they are, always something to learn from.

     1. The trying to be good is massive I think for all of us. As soon as I would make mistakes or bad choices I would immediately beat myself up and be my absolute worst critic. Whereas learning that whatever we are presented with we have an opportunity to learn from is huge and has helped largely to stop me reacting to everything.

321. ‘When I came across The Way of The Livingness I found it very hard to accept the fact that it was about a religious way of life, and that I already am a deeply religious person.’ – I can very much relate to this, the word religion at this point was a red flag for me and just the word made me feel awkward and tense. Having learnt what true religion is about, simply a re-connection with my Soul, I too know that I am a deeply religious person.

322. ‘It is also very freeing to claim that everything I could ever want is already within me.’ – James, I could not agree more. This alone is life changing.

     1. It is a very simple statement yet a life changing one for so many of us. I know most of my life prior to The Way of The Livingness I was searching for something, to attain truth or love yet never fully let myself feel that I had everything I could ever want within. I knew a lot as a child and could a lot feel but never felt that was enough as people always wanted more from me or for me to do something rather than simply be me – so I tried to be someone hence morphing into whatever I felt was needed to get by thus letting go of my connection within.

323. “…if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me…” Simple, beautiful and absolutely true.

     1. Something I know is as soon as I look to others to confirm myself or say something good about me I am playing the waiting game and then whether the words come or not they never satisfy me. Someone can say I love you and absolutely mean it but unless you have been living love then the words will pass through you so won’t be fully appreciated or heard. We can be our worst critics and enemies yet at the same time we can also be our best most supportive friend – after all we live with ourselves 24/7!

324. Wow, you break open the can of worms for me of what all happens in current religions that do not make sense to me but in a strange way hold me back from claiming I am naturally religious. You say: “It is crazy in a world where we are led to believe in freedom of speech that I have stopped myself from speaking about the one thing that I hold very dear to my heart.” and I can relate to that, there is freedom of speech but there is not freedom of not receiving judgement or harassment for our choices – in other words respect. Which can make it more understandable why we sometimes feel like we are not free to ‘speak’ what we feel. Yet it is no excuse to not express as you so beautifully said in the end of your blog.

     1. It is something that still baffles me: ‘there is freedom of speech but there is not freedom of not receiving judgement or harassment for our choices’. After all when we choose true love we are not choosing to harm ourselves yet because it brings up all our unloving and irresponsible choices it can often at times seem like a struggle because it is calling us to be all of the love that we are. And the same goes for those around us the more love we are living the more they too are called to live the love they also naturally are. So when we feel another judging us for our choices they really are simply judging the irresponsible and unloving choices they have made – I know for myself others can say things to me but if I am living love myself then they are simply words whereas when I know my choices have not been truly loving then the words get to me, not because of them but because I know I have not been living my truth.

325. “I have been almost ashamed or fearful of using the word religion because of its many connotations and so have shied away from using the word in my life.” thats exactly been my experience growing up and something that today I feel I can let go of as I start to embrace true religion.

326. Equality is essential in order to experience everything relationships can and do deliver, not only to ourselves but for others also.

     1. Equality sure is an essential ingredient the moment we hold another or anything else as greater than ourselves we make ourselves lesser – yet the moment we hold ourselves equal then we become it – the choice is then what we choose to live and accept in our lives.

327. James this is simply stunning. Such clarity, such conviction, such insight and so much truth. Just loved it.

328. We should challenge the construct of what religion means. For too long it has been seen as something dogmatic and something that requires faith. A better relationship with religion is one that is based on observation, and not just theosophical pondering, but contemplation of the nature of God based on how one lives life. In other word, if God truly exists, and we are in fact his creation so to speak, then his essence should be able to be felt. That brings me to The Way of The Livingness, the underlying principle of which is essentially learning to live in such a way, that enables one to feel the emanation of God. In time, one discovers that there is a certain quality of living that allows that to occur, just as there is a certain way to live that dims our awareness of the fact.

     1. Well said Adam – the more we can live in observation to life the more we can appreciate what religion truly is about and then we can choose this quality or a lesser quality with the choice always being ours.

329. I feel each day the deep truth that religion offers, in the true sense of the word. The amazing choice to daily live my love through connection to my body, that naturally flows on to living my love in the presence of others. I am deeply religious and I love that this is so.

330. Oh I love this quote – “Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life forms the basis of a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness.” It says so much, but the main thing is that it is a way of living that has love at its core.

331. When I chat with people about religion there is always quite a lot of ambivalence, as well as the staunch believers and the fervent atheists. I always find it a fascinating subject to discuss. My experience of religion has many similarities to yours James. I too have discovered that The Way of The Livingness is the only religion that has ever made sense to me, and I have embraced the fact that actually I have always been a deeply religious person.

332. I remember someone once saying to me people very close to me would go to hell, because they had not asked Jesus into their life, every single cell of my body knew this was absolute rubbish and was the final straw for me. I had been attending church with this person, but it felt very controlling and not a joyful way to live, a way of living set out by rules, do this, don’t do that, you can’t do this, or you are sinning etc. I never went back to church again. It was such a freedom in my body and life. But never did I once stop talking to God.

     1. Something I found was the whole right and wrong did not ring true to me – because right is only right when everybody is considered and treated equally it is not simply about following a rule book. I also find it extremely disempowering when someone tells me what to do and whilst I may do it, it is a completely different feeling to when I have felt it and decided to do it. It is a bit like deciding not to do something because I know it is not good for me – I can either do it because someone said and then possibly resent not doing or trying it and then either do it at a later date or something else, or I can feel that it is not going to support me and then that is an end to that.

333. I grew up being told that I needed to go to church to pray to God and that I needed to go often. Now, since coming across The Way of The Livingness I realize the only place I need to go to connect with God is within me.

     1. So very true it made no sense to me that you were closer to God in a church as growing up I could feel him all around me. What I did find is that they way I was taught about religion and God made me challenge him and his love – because I knew his love but so much of what I was told was counter to the love I knew within – even though at the time I would not have described it quite like that.

334. ‘Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.’ …. very well said, James. I feel exactly the same way. I love the points you raise about organised religion, and am so thankful that I have at last made sense of why I have always believed in God, but not organised religion as it had been presented to me, as it was not true.

     1. It is such a massive relief to fully understand all the feelings I had growing up about God as well but ones which contradicted what I felt from religions or the church. To actually say yes to God and start to embrace his love in full is something I even now hold back with but the more I do it the more love there is.

335. Thanks James, beautiful presentation of The Way of The Livingness and appreciating the grace with which you claim what you know to be the truth without any needs or impositions on others to recognise or agree with you.

336. The process that you went through James certainly resonates with me. I saw being part of a religion as a duty, no questions asked, until it became clear how divisive the accepted religions are and how they are run for power and control. This made no sense because all people, no matter where they come from, are all the same and in some way or another speak to the same God. So, whilst I remained religious, as I understood the term, I left religion alone and for a long period loved the freedom of not being answerable to a Church, even though I continued to feel guilty about not attending. Inevitably I became closed to looking at other religions and it took me a long time to accept that The Way of The Livingness could be a religion because it didn’t fit the stereotype. Interesting how we take so long to see what is just in front of us.

     1. So true Michael, I to have found life very easy when I pull the wool over my eyes, or turn a blind eye to not feel the true wealth of what life is truly like being a student of The Way of The Livingness. As I start to claim that I am a religious man so I can fully claim The Way of The Livingness as a way of life so that life will become somewhat more responsible in the way I approach everything.

     2. It is interesting and then when it is right there in front of us we often do not see or hesitantly see it but do not fully embrace just in case it is not true.

337. Thank you, James. I too turned my back on organised religion, particularly Catholicism as this was the one familiar to me. What I didn’t realise though was even though I turned my back on it, the energy was still playing out through me. For instance, I continued to carry guilt, shame and feelings of never being good enough. Such emotions played out in a myriad of ways, some of which I still catch myself returning to. It is only through being a student of the Way of the Livingness that I have begun to let go the insidious hold that Catholicism has had over me and returned to the truth that each one of us is an equal Son of God.

     1. It is amazing how many subtle and hidden things we still carry from our past. It may seem easy to say oh well that happened in the past but if we have not fully let it go then it is still with us today. It does take a huge bout of honesty but slowly as we deepen our love what is not love comes up to the surface, as if it is being pushed out to make room for more love.

338. “everything I could ever want is already within me.” – this sentence includes it both: liberation and responsibility. there is nothing outside of me that there is to reach to fulfil me or make me happy. It is all already there, inside of me. But I have to live it, bring it (who I truly am) into life on earth. That’s the thing! I am (as we all are) in truth not from this planet and not human being in essence. But to be able to go back I, and we, have to master this life on earth because it is our schoolroom, a given from God to support us on our way.

     1. Well said, ‘we have to master this life on earth because it is our schoolroom’ – the more we live that this is just a place to learn to develop and deepen and live the love we are, the more we will see there is no perfection and also quite how much love and support is truly on offer.

339. Thank you James for sharing your struggle with religion and all the connotations of the word which I can really relate to having always known that there was a God but being so turned off by what was on offer that I completely rejected the word itself. I love the simplicity of this quote and the possibility on offer to all to live in a way that allows for a re-connection to the true meaning of religion “Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life forms the basis of a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness.”

340. You have written this so brilliantly clearly James, it makes complete sense to me. I always knew deep within there was so much that did not make sense with the way I was taught religion and I studied it at school to try and find a religion that I could feel truly worked. It took much longer than that to find it because I was always looking for something from outside me. Once we look inside, we find it was there all the time, that deep knowing we are all equal sons of God.

     1. I agree Gill, I too have felt a deep knowing that God is not outside of us but within all of us equally.

     2. So much in this world is geared at getting us to look outside of ourselves yet the crazy thing is we are born with the knowing that everything is within, we have the sense as children that God is with us yet somehow let this go to please others and those around us. It does not make any sense yet it shows how caught up in the game of pleasing others and being accepted we have gotten into – for a game it is and the moment we drop it we are back with the love we are. It is exhausting keeping playing the game yet is something we find hard not to.

341. ‘That in order to be closer to God you needed to be a monk or a priest. This put God out of personal reach.’ I had not really thought about the way organised religion makes God inaccessible, there is a false barrier in place which takes away the possibility of a direct relationship with God. Many of us felt a strong connection to God as children and yet the message from organised religion is that this relationship is something that needs to be earned.

342. I too have shared these issues in how I have perceived religion and therefore my expectation that others will perceive it in the same way, Learning and coming to know the truth of religion in The Way of The Livingness is so different that it dismantles all of those pre-conceived falsehoods around what religion is to leave a Living Way that is true religion and that takes account of everything equally. Science, Love and God all have a new meaning which in truth is ancient.

     1. Michael, I agree it is seeing all parts of life as equally important, we cannot separate or isolate one area over another – just like the inter-connectivity of Science, Love, and God – you cannot just take a piece and ignore the rest. And when you bring them altogether suddenly everything in life makes sense, at least it does for me!

343. This deeply humble piece of writing about religion is representative of all people world-wide who also feel a deeply sacred connection with God – regardless of the religion they are a part of.

344. I understand that, according to the Catholic Church, being a priest or monk is a sign that you are closer to God. If this is true, how do we explain the fact that this organisation has become a true ‘multinational’ of sexual abuse? Is this a sign of the fact that its shepherds are close to God? Or, is it just a sign that they are not? If the latter, what does it tell us regarding them as a collective? Or are there simply a few ‘black sheep’ here and there? If that is the chosen answer, it is interesting that shepherds turning into sheep. Another miracle… perhaps.

     1. One of the things I find interesting is how you can supposedly get away with things in the name of religion – to suit what we want. Yet sooner or later as has happened with the church and sexual abuse it will get exposed and unearthed and simply makes a mockery of the whole institution. For me what it also shows is how devoid of true love the monks or priests would have to have been to sexually abuse another – which is indicative of the religion itself, after all, if it was truly loving then the thought would not have even crossed their minds let alone been acted upon.

345. I too love the simplicity of the religion of ‘The Way of The Livingness’ James, because there is no great show, or prophesising about how great it is. It is simply a choice to live a way of life that deeply supports and cares for ourselves and in turn others, and in doing so builds a curiosity in others to be inspired to do the same.

346. If I was asked the question “Am I religious?” and “Do I believe in God” for most of my life I would have said no. But even in saying no I knew it was not true. I was saying no to the way Religion and God have come to be presented in the world but deep within I have always known God and am religious – the words just didn’t match what I felt.

347. An honest and very real account of your experiences and understanding of religion James and a great sharing supporting others to realise the knowing of God we all have inside us whatever else is projected on to us. To be able to say one is deeply religious in the true sense by the way we live is so beautiful and so confirming of all we are and The Way of The Livingness is the most treasured gift we have in this world as is Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine for making this accessible to us all. Thank you.

     1. I agree, I am also very thankful to Serge Benhayon for re-instigating what I have always known within, yet could never quite muster up the strength within to stand up for. The Way of The Livingness is not new rather it is ageless and as such, for me anyway, feels like a re-awakening of what I already know and hold dear to be true. And the more I claim and live this the more everything in life makes sense.

348. I had the opportunity yesterday to express openly to a stranger who asked if I was religious, and probably the first time in my life I was able to. The Way of The Livingness has made us, the world, the Universe and God all make sense as it is true and not full of man’s theories and interpretations.

     1. That is soo cool and a blessing for the person you spoke to I am sure. It is hard to have a conversation with people about religion without either someone trying to make a point or the other person switching off. So beautiful you could share openly what religion is for you.

349. This is a deeply inspiring and very relatable blog. Thank you James.

350. I would say there are very dark forces that make us think that religion as we currently know it is the way. The point is that, yes, in many cases as in child abuse it’s obvious the darkness displayed but the more insidious practices are the ones we marvel at and think it’s bringing good to the people when it’s not. As you say here James, you go to church but you can clearly feel there is no love there, no warmth, no comfy seats (!). Why are the seats in church so hard and uncomfortable? Anyways, as a child we know all of this but as we grow up we think that doing the going-to-church-every-now-and-then thing is in some way connecting us to God, but I would say it’s doing the complete opposite because we think that is where God is when it’s not at all. God is already within. Before going to church have a listen within and you might feel his presence.

351. Beautiful James, I love what you are sharing here, the tenets of The Way of The Livingness feel absolutely true, this stands out for me, ‘There is no building you can go to, to be closer to God.’ This exposes all of the churches and false religions that say we are closer to God in a church, I never felt this was true when I went into a church as they always felt very dark and cold and unloving, I never found that I felt connected to God in a church, I only ever felt uncomfortable and that it did not feel right.

     1. Something I have found is that unless you build your own body of love within then nowhere you go to, no one you can be with will ever bring you a sense of contentment with your own body. So yes places may be lovely to go to but ultimately we live with ourselves 24/7 so if our body is not love then what it is? Now that’s a scary thought!

352. This blog is touching me deeply. I can feel how I read the words, yet not fully allowing myself to feel. What I am noticing is how I struggle giving myself permission to simply just feel and express how life is for me. From simply me being me. I’ve got a very old pattern of being ‘busy’ with the people around me, rather than being attentive to myself. I am deeply religious too, always connecting to people’s essence of love, yet calling this ‘Religion’ – which it is – is something causing me a block in my throat. There’s a strong tendency of denying what I (!!) feel and just keep on going – ignoring what I feel. Feeling all this makes me feel how I’d actually love to build the religion with myself. And how amazing it would be to simply give myself permission to choose my choices within my life, including how much I care about people and how I love to care for them. Thank you, James.

     1. Thank you for sharing Floris, I know exactly what you mean about the block – I get it as well – it is like I want to express all this amazingness but then find myself holding back just in case which is crazy. What I find fascinating is how so many words have been changed that we are now afraid to use them and so by not using them or holding that part of ourselves back we are essentially limiting ourselves and not allowing all of us out – after all any block of holding back means we cannot be showing all of us.

353. I remember if I heard the word religion I would switch off because it would remind me of the Church and the indoctrinations that accompany the word. The word has been so mis-used and so bastardised that I would never have called myself a religious person 10 years ago even though I knew that God existed. Your blog has stirred something in me James with your words “So yes, I can not only claim that I am religious, I can in fact state that I am deeply religious” I can feel a holding back in claiming this for myself in full even though I know I am deeply religious because the word feels like it still belongs to the church and that I would have to justify why I am religious. Something for me to ponder on and go deeper with, thank you James.

     1. Me too Alison it is amazing how much the word and notion of being religious brings up. What it shows me is how much I have brought into the ideals and beliefs growing up about the way things are and how they are meant to be rather than staying with what I know and feel is true. When we trace back the words religion can simply mean to reconnect so to associate with any organisation above our connection to ourselves does not make any sense yet is something many of us have gotten caught into doing.

354. Thanks for this sharing, James, you now have me considering honesty, and how I am with it. I grew up within catholicism and have now left it, and I am honest in admitting when I do things which are less than loving, but what of that next level of honesty, where I take responsibility for the choices I made and support myself to make new ones. You see I’ve just seen another old thread from the irresponsibility I lived with being catholic where I did what I liked and then ‘confessed’ and was ‘forgiven’, yet I never went deeper to consider what I was choosing and the impact of it. So my honesty now is honest yes and an amazing start but I can feel to take it deeper otherwise I continue an old imprint of how I’ve been irresponsible in the past and one I no loner want to do.

     1. Monica, it is amazing how much we think we can get away with things and then confess them or say we are sorry – I know for me as well it has been very ingrained. It is very sneaky as well – I see it as effectively saying I can abuse you and then say I am sorry so all is forgiven but what about the consequences and the harm I have caused in the process. Learning what consequences truly are has helped me to take more responsibility for my life and my choices/actions.

355. So beautifully put James, “if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.” True religion is not a club or institution we belong to, but a constant choice to re-align to and express our innately divine, loving natures in every moment of the day. This makes for a very real life, not one lived in some kind of holy euphoria, but a very honest, hard working, simple life. The Way of The Livingness asks us to be honest, truthful, harmonious and appreciative. It draws us out of ourselves and back into humanity and genuine brotherhood, brings us face-to-face with our immense responsibilities and deep integrity and in doing so we evolve back to the awesome divine beings we immutably are.

     1. The fact that The Way of The Livingness; ‘draws us out of ourselves and back into humanity and genuine brotherhood, brings us face-to-face with our immense responsibilities and deep integrity and in doing so we evolve back to the awesome divine beings we immutably are’, shows how truly universal it is. For me it has gradually eroded all sense of thinking I need to achieve material greatness and recognition in this life. It has asked me to say yes in full to what is on offer and by that not just sit back and let things happen rather get involved, be active with work etc.. I used to have a massive arrogance around work thinking some jobs or in fact most jobs were beneath me but have appreciated that even the simplest of tasks such as sweeping the floor can be of great service and when truly appreciated is equally rewarding and felt in my body.

356. “Does it matter what anybody else thinks about me? No, for if I am living the love that I am then this is more than enough confirmation for me.” This is true freedom. Not worrying about whether other people like you or not – remaining true to who you – we – are – is truly awesome.

     1. It is truly awesome and the more I live and accept the fact that I am already everything the less I think about what others are thinking about me. I used to always analyse situations and try to fit in, now more and more I am just allowing myself to say what I want to and not simply go along with the crowd.

357. It is very true what you say, James, about the reluctance of using the words ‘religion’ and ‘being religious’ because of all the connotations and associations with them. However, The Way of The Livingness, as you present, refutes all those associations and connotations and brings the true meaning back to religion. With the present state of the world it is what humanity is craving, even if they do not know it.

358. This is a beautiful blog and one I shall return to because your list of the tenets of The Way of The Livingness is lovely, In your words I can feel the freedom to connect and express: ‘Access to God or Heaven is not restricted – we simply have to make a choice to connect and live in a way that supports this choice.’

     1. The more I sit with the tenets of The Way of the Livingness the more my body says yes to them. The fact that in each and every moment we have a choice to connect with and access Heaven brings a whole new meaning to life – no longer is it purely about achieving things on this plane of existence rather it is about bringing the love and truth that we all know and feel deep within – after all what other purpose is there to life – surely it cannot simply be to just get a job, have a family, pay the bills, go on holiday, etc..?!

359. I identified with your article and can feel how contracted my experience of religion has previously been in my life until I discovered ‘The Way of The Livingness’. I feel that my religious experience previously, even with my total commitment, was incomplete, restrained, separate, inconsistent, It always felt unattainable, as there was always comparison, more to do and to change. Most of which was being told to me from an outside source in whom I had to place my trust.

     However, I now feel joyful and have much vitality to embrace the love that I am, and that I have always felt was within me. “Honouring the love you are in full and bringing that into full human life, forms the basis of a new worldly religious way known as The Way of The Livingness.”

     ‘We are all the equal Sons of God and are born with a knowing of this fact.’ I am responsible for reflecting this truth in how I live each moment, as my choices can harm or heal myself and others. It is glorious to feel our potential to be all the love that we are if we choose to connect with the stillness inside us.

     1. Janice what a lovely sharing, for me the big change as you have identified has been knowing that everything is already within me, it has taken away a lot of the pressure, strain and drive of trying to attain something which led me to give up thinking it was impossible! Bring on the truth, love and gloriousness that we all naturally are.

360. Thank you James, what you say resonates very much with me. All the organised religions confine you to accepting a certain set of beliefs and dogma that are controlling. The Way of The Livingness sets you free to be who you are in your inner connection to yourself, God and everyone through Divine love that is the essence of us all.

     1. It is this freedom in knowing that we have a choice and nothing has ever happened to us by accident or chance. It means we have to take responsibility for our choices and actions but it also means we can play victim or wallow in our sorrows, for that really does not achieve anything and just seeks to blame others. So The Way of The Livingness is deeply empowering and asks you to simply claim what you know is true within and not believe anything, rather feel it and live it and everything then takes care of itself.

361. James, you express a relationship with religion many will identify with: discomfort, mistrust, repulsion. It’s a great shame that the word and practice of conventional religion has been debased to the extent it no longer has any true meaning and alienates many many people. The Way of The Livingness is like a homecoming, true religion stripped back to its essence, ourselves, God and love

     1. The great thing is that by now claiming and re-claiming the word religion back people will get to sense and feel the difference and so will no longer be held by the shackles we once associated it to be. And that simply comes from us living the love we know, just like the sages of the past (and present) did and do rather than feeling we need to preach or convert anyone – after all we all are love within and so can at anytime re-connect to and live the love we are in full.

362. Being someone who loves simplicity, I love the simple fact that ‘The Way of The Livingness’ is all about being love not seeking love. Having spent many years seeking love out there in the world, I find that the ‘livingness’ of love is in my heart and has been there all along. This is the heart of true religion for me and the truth of the words ‘The Kingdom of Love is within you’ – and it surely is – within each and every one of us equally. No need to look out there into the world and spend endless lives trying to find it. We are the love we are seeking and so there is no need to seek, but a choice to go within and reconnect to all that we already are.

     1. Prior to The Way of The Livingness I too had sought numerous spiritual pursuits in the attempt to make sense of this world – some had a few answers but none of it put together made sense and none of it actually asked me to take responsibility for myself and my choices. The Way of The Livingness leaves no stone unturned yet it does this without complication, no smoke and mirrors, just simply presenting the way it is. And one of the many things I am constantly blown away by is how practical it is and applicable to daily life so you do not need to go off to a cave for 10 years or anything like that, rather it is about living the love when you are doing whatever needs to be done!

363. What a powerful claiming of your love and the affirmation that you, myself and many others are now living.

364. Beautifully and simply stated James. Love is who we are and while there are no bells or whistles when we return to this love, there is a seemingly unfathomable joy that can only be fathomed when we begin to live this love whole-heartedly from the inside-out and give up the chase that has us seeking outside of this realm.

365. I am learning that to be religious is a life long commitment.
     It is the ability to also commit to reading events, people and environments for more than they appear to the eye.

     Seeing life more than a 3-dimensional game that plays out that we have little control over.

     It is a constantly opening to what is possible and what we have denied ourselves for so very long.

     1. I agree, Luke, Religion is not something you just do on a Sunday or whenever it is, it is in every single moment and the more we embrace it the more we see it has to offer us and humanity equally. It really is a life and a game changer.

366. It is sad that so much harm has been done under the under the name of religion, so much manipulation of life especially. Religion or to be religious is simply living in connection and in relationship to the love we are and with blogs like yours James speaking of what is true, hopefully many will return to its true livingness and may the true availability of it be known.

     1. Many people will return to living the truth they know deep within. I knew this growing up and felt it strongly inside, it was just not until I met Serge Benhayon that I finally found someone who was living what they were saying and who I would call was deeply religious yet extraordinarily ordinary! The choice has been ours over the years and centuries to allow religion to get to where is it today – it’s not a battle against it rather now we have the opportunity to live what we know is true and just like Serge Benhayon has shown people notice a difference and without thinking begin to deepen their connection within themselves and that is the magic of true religion; it is something we all know within us so only needs to be reactivated rather than attained.

367. Reading through your list of “conclusions about organised religion” James has got me wondering why anyone would want to go near any of them in the first place. I can certainly say yes to all of them which of course lead me as far away as possible from religion as I knew it, for a very long time. But then in stark contrast your list of tenets of The Way of The Livingness stops me gently in my tracks with every single part of me asking for more; this is the religion I now claim as mine, a true religion that has restored my trust in myself, God and humanity.

368. We are religious beings and in a way we all know this fact, that there is more to us than only this physical life here on earth. We all know the sayings such as ‘there is more to it than meets the eye’ and ‘there are more things in heaven and earth’ we use regularly that explain to us that there is a knowing in us, only not a vivid understanding because we have walked away from it and abandoned the true meaning of the word religion.

     1. There sure is far more than meets the eye and far more than purely physicality. The more I embrace this fact the more I have begun to truly understand life and why things happen the way they do. There really are no mysteries when we allow ourselves to be open to sensing what is all around us, it is only when we need our eyes to confirm something that the mysteries abound.

369. Beautifully said James. You put things into words that I didn’t even know I felt but now they have been named I feel much clearer about my own relationship with religion.

     1. I find that there are so many hidden layers and beliefs which I had held onto that I did not consider I had because I felt they were normal. I got soo caught up in the being good and nice growing up I thought it was how I needed to be so stopped expressing what I knew was true. And when I look back now I see a big part of this came from the religious upbringing at school, fearing about going to hell and sinning rather than just embracing and living the love that I am.

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