Joseph Murphy - Author. Irish born, naturalised American, ordained minister of new thought and divine science 1898 - 1981 I tell you the truth, if someone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Mark 11:23 NETBible I like this scripture because it can be applied not only to faith in human attainment or healing, but also to the reconciliation of people and cultures and the abolition of separatism in religion, which seems to be more in line with who Jesus was as a representative of love and light and any loving God. Joseph Murphy is the author of dozens of intensely wise books, among which my favourite, The Power of Your Subconscious Mind. While I am quoting the bible above, a passage that Murphy liked to quote, believing that it is done to us according to our faith, Joseph Murphy spent much of his life studying eastern religions and quoted freely from the wisdom of many spiritual scriptures. Murphy did not adhere to one particular religion, but amassed knowledge of them all and remained open minded and non-judgemental. Life Murphy was raised a Roman Catholic, joined 'the Jesuits' in his twenties, who are the members of a Roman Catholic offshoot called 'The Society of Jesus' specifically engaged in evangelisation and ministry, and was then ordained in the priesthood. It was the experience of a miraculous healing that toppled Murphy's faith in the Catholic church alone and caused him to emigrate to America where he joined The Church of Divine Science and proceeded to study other religions and cultures in depth, as well as to earn a degree in psychology (in addition to the degree he had already attained in his youth in Chemistry - his profession.) Murphy was a regular speaker at his church, founded and spoke at a number of other large churches, and also hosted a popular radio show for many years, propounding and backing up the premise upon which he based all his talks and books: The Power is within you. Murphy insisted that we are the products of our own beliefs. Though he was highly qualified, scientifically-minded and knowledgable, he used easy to comprehend analogies for the public, such as that we are the captain of our ship, our mind. The captain being the conscious mind issuing orders, via thought, images and feeling, and the workers in the engine-room being the subconscious mind (as well as your environment) obediently accepting and carrying out orders from their station where they have no knowledge of where the ship is on the waters. The captain relies faithfully on their skill, qualifications and trusts in them, he does not try to take the controls from them. In this way when we turn something over to the subconscious mind, ie. by prayer or visualisation, while we proceed to carry out the captain's duties, we must have faith that the subconscious (in connection with the divine) faithfully will operate according to its nature, which is to realise the thoughts and images we feed it. Murphy said, “Your subconscious mind works twenty-four hours per day, pouring all the fruit of your habitual thinking into your lap.” Another analogy that is regularly used and possibly originated with Murphy is that we are gardeners, our thoughts planted consciously or not into our subconscious mind, that which takes up 95% of our mind. Like seeds that are nurtured and nourished, our habitual daily thinking grows into the harvest of health and wealth, or absence of it, that we experience/ reap in the garden of our lives. This has been proven by many scientific researchers in recent days such as Lynne McTaggart and Dr. Joe Dispenza, for example in how the synapses in our brains make physical connections along which neurons, activated by thought, travel, as well as how these biological neurological pathways are strengthened by frequent thought patterns and abolished by refraining from particular thought patterns. Like Murphy I believe that spirituality is a journey of awakening, of re-education, of becoming aware of our conditioning and breaking free of it. Recognising that spirituality consciousness and the pursuit of the divine does not need to be tied to one religion, or need to be sought or acted upon in a way that labels, excludes others, spreads discord or proclaims condemnation. Belief is always an individual experience, knowing there is more out there and wanting to know what it is, accepting ancient wisdom but not creating boundaries to new learning and input. Always remaining open to new possibilities, not demonising or derogating other people groups, but seeking togetherness, inclusivity and unity of all peoples. I am right and you are wrong. This is my belief, that is your belief, thus we are different. Murphy wanted not only to enlighten but to unite the world through his work. There is no call for argument over conflicting beliefs, we are all at different stages of learning and awakening on our own journeys. Life remains a gift. Only the human ego, the erroneous conscious thought, sticks hard and unbendingly to divisive and judgemental opinions. Let there be no comparison, no separation.