DonnieYance.com

August 28, 2023September 12, 2023

The Significance of Optimism, Hope, and Kindness Over Medications

Unlocking Happiness, Cardiovascular Health, and Longevity

God is not found in the soul by adding anything, but by a process of subtraction.
Meister Eckhart, sermon on Romans 8:18

While the United Nations and most scientists consider any age beyond 60 as old age, it’s important to recognize that aging varies for each person. Some individuals may feel elderly and frail at 60, while others are still vibrant and healthy. Numerous factors influence the pace of aging – some accelerate it, while others decelerate it.

The global population of individuals aged 65 and older is increasing at a faster rate compared to other age groups. Based on data from the 2019 Revision of the World Population Prospects, it is projected that by the year 2050, approximately one in six people around the world will be aged 65 or above (16%), which is an increase from the ratio of one in eleven observed in 2019 (9%).^[1]

April 6, 2023April 13, 2023

In Death and Grief We Find Love

Reflections for Easter, Passover, and Spring

By Donnie Yance

Just before Christmas, I lost my youngest sister Gi Gi, to a sudden accident. She was in a coma for several weeks prior to her transition. As my sister hovered between life and death, I found myself in a deep state of grief and reflection. A reflection on birth, life, death, and the embracing of the great mystery. I choose to call the great mystery Love, or, better stated, Agape Love.

December 23, 2022January 27, 2023

Searching for Happiness and Peace

Searching for happiness and peace has to do with our connectedness to ourselves, those around us, and to our universe.

“Many of us feel disconnected by difficult times, longing for ways to awaken God’s love in ourselves and the world,” Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest, has written in his book The Universal Christ, “The reality we face is simple yet difficult—the healing of the world hinges upon honoring the inherent sacredness of the world and everyone in it.”

April 10, 2022May 25, 2022

God as Our Mother

Icon Sophia within the dome of St. Sophia’s Cathedral in Kyiv, Ukraine.

In the Judeo-Christian tradition, we often refer to “Our Father” when speaking of the cosmic, all-encompassing God. Because God is not really man or woman, referring to God as “he” or “she,” when taken out of context, can be controversial.

But if we were to view God as two sides of the same coin, rather than exclusively one or the other, it might be more helpful. I see God as both masculine and feminine, and the feminine, although more hidden perhaps, is the stronger of the two.

I believe what the world needs now is the Divine Wisdom (Feminine) to be made manifest within all of us.

January 31, 2022July 25, 2022

Honoring Two of the Most Important Spiritual Leaders of Our World

With the passing of Thich Nhat Hanh, the Zen Buddhist monk and peace campaigner who brought mindfulness to the West, the world has lost another mentor. Every time we lose someone who helps us live and act in accordance with our highest good, it is a tremendous loss to the world. Martin Luther King. Nelson Mandela. Bishop Desmond Tutu. Thich Nhat Hanh. Orest Bedrij. Although they are no longer on this earthly plane, their inspiration lives on.

Mentors are very important to me. They inspire me to be better in every way. I celebrate their life, I praise their presence and spirit, and I integrate their teachings into the core of my being, so that I can become what God intended me to be.

January 17, 2022April 25, 2022

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Pilgrimage for Freedom

“The glory of God is the communion of all things fully alive”
~ The Irenaeus’s axiom

The Popes and Martin Luther King's dream - Vatican News

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., an American Baptist minister, had a gift for capturing the hearts and minds of people with his homily-like discourses. His speeches—considered some of the most iconic of the 20th century— had a profound effect on the national consciousness.

In his book Strength to Love, published in 1963, King wrote: “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

As individuals, we all have challenges in life. The question is, how will we respond?