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    • Can St. Francis of Assisi Save Our Divided World Today?

      Are You Willing to Take Up the Shepherd's Staff -- and Help Spread Love & Peace
       
      By James Twyman
      Set aside your computer for a moment and see if you can guess who wrote these words: "I made a mistake. Without doubt, an oppressed multitude had to be liberated, but our method only provoked further oppression and atrocious massacres. What was really needed...were ten Francis of Assisi's."

      I love asking this question and I'm not surprised when people give credit to revolutionary characters like Gandhi or Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. When I tell them they're wrong their answers become even more interesting - Napoleon, George Washington, etc. "How about John Lennon?" someone recently asked.

      "You're close," I said, "but only because their names sound similar. The answer is Lenin, not Lennon - the architect of the Russian Revolution, Vladimir Lenin."

      Lenin? Is it possible that the communist leader who referred to religion as "medieval mildew" and called the clergy "gendarmes (French policemen) in cassocks" had fallen in love with a twelfth century Italian mystic who gave everything he owned to the poor in order to live the Gospel of Jesus as perfectly as he could? Clearly St. Francis has inspired millions of people for more than eight hundred years, to the point that statues of the saint occupy gardens everywhere you look today, but how did an atheist like Lenin become so enthralled?

      Maybe Lenin has something to teach all of us in this regard. The end of the quote is: "What was really needed in Russia were ten Francis of Assisi's," but we could just as easily substitute that in our own world today - and it would be just as true.

      Does it sound like a ridiculous dream in the world of bullying, fake news and racist attacks? When you know a little about the history of Europe, especially at the time of St. Francis, you realize things weren't that different - the pope was at odds with the Holy Roman Emperor, city states were constantly at war with other city states, and tension between the very rich and the very poor was at an all-time high.

      Which leads to the question Vladimir Lenin seemed to be asking - Are we trying to solve the problems of the world with the same thinking that got us into trouble? If so, maybe ten radical people like St. Francis of Assisi are enough to turn things around.

      Margaret Mead famously said: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." Was Mead's thinking influenced by St. Francis when he wrote: "Pure, holy simplicity confounds all the wisdom of this world?"

      When you examine the current direction of the world -- especially politically -- it's easy to agree that the current wisdom isn't so wise, so maybe thinking outside the box isn't such a bad idea.

      Presidential candidate Marianne Williamson has taken considerable heat for challenging the status quo. She encourages us to "love with conviction" and "wage peace," the same ideas St. Francis would have expressed if he was alive today. But at least she is willing to stand for these ideas on a national stage, inching these concepts forward, planting seeds in the minds of people who may not have viewed the world from this perception.

      So I've decided to throw my hat into the ring, but not as a Presidential candidate. I want to take up the challenge issued by Lenin and become one of the ten St. Francis's needed to turn the world around.

      Here are a few things I'll need to do if I'm to accomplish my goal: Be willing to give everything for love; think less about my own comfort and more about the wellbeing of others; and finally, challenge my own limiting beliefs and be willing to see everyone through the eyes of love. If I can do that, even in some limited way, maybe others will make a similar decision and step forward in their own way. All I need are nine more.

      St. Francis's example directly challenged the powers that ruled Europe eight hundred years ago, and yet his vision is celebrated today. He lived at the end of what we now call the Dark Ages, but he was also one of the inspirations that initiated the Renaissance, an era of great light and creativity.

      Is it possible that hundreds of years from now people will look back at this time in a similar way, calling it another Dark Age? And if they do, will they also celebrate the few dedicated people who stepped forward just as St. Francis did? Are we on the cusp of a New Renaissance?

      James Twyman, bestselling author of Giovanni and the Camino of St. Francis, will bring his stirring new musical on St. Francis Brother Sun, Sister Moon to Broadway on February 20-March 1, 2020. And with the beloved saint as his model-he will travel a continent penniless, on foot and with whatever food, housing and further transportation that God will provide to get him there, presenting the play in 10 cities along the way. Twyman is also the NY Times bestselling author of 15 other books including The Moses Code and Emissary of Light. He has also recorded more than 18 music albums including the Billboard chart bestseller I AM Wishes Fulfilledalong with Dr. Wayne Dyer; as well as produced or directed seven feature films. For more information on Twyman, and the Brother Sun, Sister Moon Musical Tourstops and performances-- and Giovanni and the Camino of St. Francis--visit: www.JimmyTwyman.com

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    • Double Vision: She Feels Pressure from Grandmother in Spirit
      dream-interpretation-2

      I have recurring dreams about my grandmother, who passed away 18 years ago. I will keep having the same dream until I tell someone else about it. For example, if a dream seems to involve my mother, or I just feel like I should tell my mom about it, then when I do so, I’ll stop having it. As long as I resist telling my mother, I keep having the dream. It’s not always my mother I feel I should tell, however – sometimes it’s other members of my family, and some of them are not so open to such matters. Do you think my grandmother is trying to connect with other family members through my dreams? Do spirits do that sort of thing? Is there some way I can explain to her that some family members aren’t really open to these sorts of experiences? I don’t want to let her down, so I often feel torn about what to do. Thanks!

      – Vickie

      Dreamchaser:

      It is extremely important that you hear this: As long as you tell others about the dream, you are not letting your grandmother down. You have the dream repeatedly until you tell it, and once you do, it stops. That means you have appeased your grandmother.

      This is a very essential lesson for you to learn, Vickie. It is not your responsibility to change what people believe, the way they think, the way they view the spirit world, or how they feel spiritually. It is your responsibility to share your dreams when you feel called to – that’s it.

      It is up to each individual to take messages like this and run with them. Similarly, it is not my job to make a client believe what I say in a reading. It is my job to tell the truth no matter what, and then others have to choose to accept the truth or reject it.

      Yes, Vickie, your grandmother is trying to communicate with you and your other family members through dreams. That is one of the easiest ways for spiritual beings to communicate with us. When we’re dreaming, our logical minds are shut down, and our subconscious minds are working.

      In dreams, spirits can cut past mental blocks to go right to the core of us. We receive a whole lot of our spiritual knowledge and lessons via dreams or while we are asleep. A lot of times, we won’t even remember these dreams on a conscious level. Our souls, however, will remember.

      So your grandmother will send you messages, you will relay them to family members, and then your job is done. You are a conduit between her and the people she loves here on earth. Spiritual beings use any type of communication they can to get their points across to us here. Your grandmother is grateful that you are her “mouthpiece.”

      I think you may be surprised at how much your family members actually listen to you and what you are saying to them. I know that when you first bring it to them, they either seem completely weirded out or get really quiet. You can rest assured, however, that they hear you and think about what you’ve said to them when they are in a quiet place later.

      Do you really believe that if no one listened, your grandmother would continue to speak through your dreams after all this time? Don’t you think she would have found another method of communication? Spirits know the best ways to get their messages across. I can’t stress that enough.

      Your grandmother is using you as a messenger because it’s the most effective way she can communicate with some family members. Please don’t stop passing on her messages – you really are a vital link.

      May you realize how important you are in this world.

      *****

      Astrea:

      No one in your family would dare speak ill of your late grandmother. I believe someone once told you that she was like a “force of nature.” If you dig into the memories older family members have of her, you’ll find a different person from the sweet, kind granny you remember.

      I have a feeling you will find she was a kind, stubborn, dedicated, controlling, aggressive individual. When she wasn’t happy, the family suffered en masse. When she felt neglected, she lashed out and put the person ignoring her wishes right back in line! Now that she’s crossed over, she is trying in her own way to be helpful to the family just like she was helpful when she was alive.

      Your grandmother is positively trying to communicate through you to your other relatives. She wants you to tell family members what you “see” from her in your dreams. She is desperate to communicate with them through you. She feels if she doesn’t “watch” them, they’ll get into trouble. A lot of that happened when she was living, and she isn’t about to let it happen now.

      Because you are the one in the group who is the most receptive to her, you are getting messages for the rest of your family. Even if she tried not to single you out as her favorite, she was close to you in a different way than any of her other children or grandchildren. The two of you “connected” in life, and that connection can never be broken.

      Through you, your grandmother is trying to be something of a spirit guide for your family. You’re the one she feels will know the difference between her actually appearing to you and your imagination. You won’t doubt yourself, and she doesn’t doubt you either. She knows that you will ACCEPT that she is really coming to you and pass on information whether it makes you popular with some people or not. She knows she can count on you.

      Spirit communication can be difficult for people who are accepting of this kind of thing, let alone skeptics! Usually, the more skeptical someone is of help them “from the grave,” the more that person is in need of that help. I know some family members may “look at you funny,” and you feel like you’re really going out on a limb when you tell them about these dreams, but that’s your job for now.

      Even if the rest of the family labels you a total nutcase, you have to tell. If they don’t believe you, so what? You’re not required to make them believe you. Your job is to relay the messages you receive for them in dreams. Once you do that, your obligation to your grandmother is fulfilled, and you can get a decent night’s sleep until the next family issue arises!

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