Not Peace - But a Sword

"I have not come to bring peace but a sword." [Matthew 10:34] The sword, of course, does not symbolize war, but inner conflict and spiritual turmoil. This sword came into my life around the age of eleven. Have you ever had a spiritual experience? How would you describe that experience or, more importantly, explain its meaning? Most spiritual experiences are so hopelessly unique that, should we gather the courage to share them with another, we quickly discover our one commonality to be that, from that moment forward, our lives have been irreparably altered. Oneness - by whatever name we call it - is an elusive goal. At first, it is fleeting, ephemeral. It comes upon us in the most unexpected moments and then it's gone. But, once experienced it cannot be forgotten. It burns in our hearts and awakens within us a hunger and a desire to make it our own. "Not Peace - but a Sword" is an allegorical account of the author's quest for this oneness. Undertaking this journey, we quickly learn that our first steps towards freedom are not upon paths of peace and flowers. We find ourselves hurled into immediate, gut-wrenching conflict - conflict between our awakened spiritual identity and the material/birth personality.