Join us for our next Movie Watcher’s Group this Sunday, February 24 at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT.   This month’s movie,”The Legend of Bagger Vance”, is about a down-and-out golfer who attempts to recover his game and his life with help from a mystical caddy

This month we have added a new feature, a “playsheet”,  that provides helpful questions designed to facilitate a spirit centered movie watching experience. Remember also that, as we ask for Guidance in all things, it is important to ask for Guidance prior to watching the movie (even if you feel a little silly praying in your living room before the movie begins). You can find the playsheet at this link:  Bagger Vance Playsheet

The movie is available to rent on ITunes, Amazon, YouTube and Vudu. 

This class is 6 weeks long.

Ramana Maharshi was born on December 30, 1879 in a village in Tamil, India. His father died when he was twelve, and he went to live with his uncle. At age 16, he experienced a sudden and extreme fear of death to which he responded by immediately seeking the truth of the Self and became Self-realized. Six weeks later he followed an inner calling and ran away to India’s holy hill, Arunachala, where he remained for the rest of his life. For years he was a silent ascetic. He spent many hours each day deep in samadhi. Years later he emerged from silence to share the wisdom of the True Self with those who came seeking it. Before the end of his life in 1950, thousands of people had come to him from all over the world. Ramana Maharshi became known as one of the greatest saints to have ever graced this planet with Presence.

Join us as we contemplate the teachings of this great sage. We will also read stories about about him told by the people who knew him best.

In this class you will:

1. Consider the legend, the living example and the teachings of a great sage and determine what is most helpful to one’s own spiritual process.

2. Practice self-inquiry in order to distinguish between what is and is not the Self.

3. Practice removing attention from the non-Self and placing it with the Self using a spiritual practice that is most suited for you now.

Class Schedule:

Thursday nights, March 1 – April 5, 2018 from 7:30-9:30pm ET (4:30-6:30pm PT). Homework begins February 23. Facilitator: Rev. Jay McCormick

Specific Information:
Cost is $120.
Textbook needed is The Spiritual Teaching of Ramana Maharshi.
Class is offered in PalTalk. Familiarity with PalTalk is helpful.
Registration closes on February 21.
For more information on this class, click here.

Click to register

Join us for our next Movie Watcher’s Group on Sunday, February 24 at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT.   This month’s movie,”The Legend of Bagger Vance”, is about a down-and-out golfer who attempts to recover his game and his life with help from a mystical caddy

This month we have added a new feature, a “playsheet”,  that provides helpful questions designed to facilitate a spirit centered movie watching experience. Remember also that, as we ask for Guidance in all things, it is important to ask for Guidance prior to watching the movie (even if you feel a little silly praying in your living room before the movie begins). You can find the playsheet at this link:  Bagger Vance Playsheet

The movie is available to rent on ITunes, Amazon, YouTube and Vudu. 

This class is 3 weeks long.

What would happen if you were to allow everything to be exactly as it is? If you gave up the need for control, and instead embraced the whole of your experience in each moment that arose? In the 14 years that he studied Zen, Adyashanti found that most seasoned meditators had used the practice as “an end instead of a means to an end.” What he ultimately realized was that only when you let go of all techniques – even the concept of yourself as a meditator – will you open to the art of True Meditation, dwelling in the natural state.

In this class participants will:

1.   Observe his/her attempts at control within his/her environment and experience, and practice releasing control through letting all things be as they are.

2.   Experiment with meditation and inquiry to discover what results in flashes of realization for him/her.

3.   Look at the difference between the personality and the Self, and realize what blocks him/her from having a fully harmonious relationship with the personality.

Class Schedule:

~ On Thursday evenings, March 1, 8 & 15 from 8-10pm ET (5-7pm PT). Homework begins February 22. Facilitator: Rev. Helen Avery.

Specific Information:
Cost is $60.
Textbook needed is True Meditation by Adyashanti.
Class is offered in PalTalk. Familiarity with PalTalk is helpful.
Registration closes on February 20.
For more information on this class, click here.

Click to register

Join us for our next Movie Watcher’s Group on Sunday, January 28 at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT.   This month’s movie,”Vanilla Sky”, is about a man struggling with defining happiness and ultimately, with distinguishing illusion from reality.

Tom Cruise plays David, who is plagued by dreams. Nightmares, really. He’s not always sure where his nocturnal fantasies end and his day-to-day life begins. Moviegoers will be even less sure than he is. Just when you think you’ve pegged what’s what, Vanilla Sky’s dreamscape takes another turn.

The movie is available to rent on ITunes and Amazon (not Prime) YouTube and Vudu. 

Watch the movie with Spirit, then come and share your insights with the group.  Guided movie watching allows us to experience our world and practice forgiveness without leaving our living room!  It is recommended you join with Spirit in meditation or prayer prior to viewing the movie and then journal after.  Watch for common themes, for characters you like or don’t like, for situations that seem to cause discomfort or joy.  Contemplate what your reactions to the movie tell you about your beliefs about yourself and the world you live in.  Bring what you learn back to the group and learn from others’ movie watching experience as well.  Enjoy the movies and don’t forget to watch your mind!

Join us in the Awakening Together Sanctuary this coming Sunday, January 28, at 7pm ET for an Awakening Together Minister’s Ordination Ceremony. The following eight members have completed the two-year Minister’s Preparation Program (MPP) and will be ordained Sunday night.

Barbara Cooling
Barbara Deurwaarder
Mary Fonseca
Connie Frazier
Marisol Landin
Meg Reinhart
Gerry Scott
Billy Sintiris

Our Vice President-Minister, Rev. Jacquelyn Eckert, will lead the ordination ceremony. Our President-Minister, Rev. Regina Dawn Akers, will share a special talk for this important occasion.

Please come and welcome our new Awakening Together Ministers!

Awakening from self to Self

The purpose of the spiritual path is to awaken from the false self to the true Self. But what is the false self? What is the true Self? Are there steps one can take that will cause an awakening? What is grace’s role in awakening? Are there more awakenings than one?

At this retreat, I will answer these questions and more. You will leave this retreat with greater clarity about awakening and the milestones along the way. I will also share specific ideas about how to supercharge your awakening process.

Retreat Details:

Retreat Limited to 30 places, Early booking strongly advised.
Limited number of residential places available – 15.
Please advise if you require accommodation as early as possible.
Day rate: €160 for 2 days,
€260 for 5 days
(Fully inclusive of conference costs & meals).

Accommodation is charged at €50 per night extra.
For all enquiries contact Bríd by email: bridcolloton@gmail.com

A deposit of €75 is required to confirm your booking.

Join us starting Tuesday, January 23, from 9-10:30am ET / 6-7:30am PT as Rev. Rebecca Gibson leads a group through the Year One Curriculum of the Consistent Gentle Healing group. The Sanctuary will be opened temporarily for this weekly class that will also be broadcast on our Internet Broadcast aka AT Radio.  This class is for those that missed year one and for those who want to go through it again as a review.

Rev. Jacquelyn Eckert will interview Suse Wicks.

Suse describes her journey:  In 1987 my husband took his life. What followed immediately after were numerous experiences of the deepest love and clarity I had ever known. So profound were these experiences that a love I had never known before filled my daily canvas of life from moment to moment entirely. In an instant I knew there was one God, in an instant I knew there existed pure causeless, joy, love and deep peace regardless of my circumstances and most of all, in an instant I knew it was all deeply within me. So complete was this knowing that I became hell bent on figuring out how to expand this deliciousness of loving life so joyously, despite the shroud of widowhood with two young children. I held onto one truth: if something existed it could expand and grow. Without a shadow of a doubt I knew love, peace and joy existed beyond anything my mind or experiences had ever demonstrated thus what I was experiencing could grow and expand within me. It was also clear that I could not return to the old way of seeing and perceiving, nothing of my past made sense. My life continued for some time between pure happiness and deep suffering. The many glimpses I had of my natural self led me on the spiritual path that ensued for many years, many teachers, many studies only to discover after much exhaustion that what I was looking to expand and grow was always, always right under my nose, even closer, always accessible at any instant. The awakening in knowing that I was not in charge and the fact that there is no separate self led to the melting away of all concepts of identifying myself as a separate self. What remained was the return to all the instances I experienced after my husbands death only this time it was permanent. What I am and who you are, have and always will be life itself, that is the spiritual search we will all come to sooner or later.

The tiniest drop of pure love felt in one’s being is a force powerful enough to abandon all else for the sake of discovering more…. it is the discovery of who you truly are. Suse points the way to discovering who you are through questions, answers and story.”

More about Suse:

Born and raised in New Hartford, New York in a family of fourteen children, seven sisters, six brothers, Suse was fourth in line.

Studies; Kirkland College, majoring in Theater and Dance, Wheelock and Quincy and College’s, Early Education Degree.

Professional Storyteller (this work/process allowed for house cleaning and much Love to unfold)

Maine Guide – guided women trips on the St Croix, Allagash Rivers and Muscongus Bay, Maine

Hospice Volunteer – My sister Jane and Mom’s passing.

Spiritual Studies: Swedenborg, Krishnamurti, A Course in Miracles,Storytelling, Jac O’Keefe

Studied ACIM for over 20 years, Jac, Bentino and Mooji were great guides for deeper clarifications.

Suse offers Self Realization gatherings for those who are truly committed to knowing themselves beyond and out of a separate self knowing.

Suse’s email: susewicks@gmail.com

Suse’s Blog- susewicks.blogspot.com

Awakening from self to Self
3-Day Retreat in Portland, Oregon
July 20-22, 2018

Regina Dawn Akers