Weekly Newsletter: Trusting

​     A key element in overcoming religious abuse of any kind is trust. Also, in our efforts to help others who have been injured, we must be trustworthy. Perhaps the most important element in this issue is to develop the ability to trust ourselves. This may be simple for some, but for those who have put their trust in a religious institution or a religious individual, only to have their trust abused, this can be a major hurdle.
     Even though it might have been someone else who abused our trust, our confidence in our ability to trust our own judgment, our own discernment, and our own intuition can come into doubt. How can we trust our judgment when we were burned so badly in the past? Some practical advice comes to mind.
     We learn from our mistakes—or at least we hope to—and we try to discern what part we may have played in allowing the hurts or abuses to happen. If we placed all our trust in one specific organization or leader, we may want to rethink that strategy and have more than one method of spiritual growth. We also consider whether or not we have come to the point in our paths where we can walk alone—at least for a time—in order to develop a more personal relationship with The Divine. It doesn’t mean the path has to be lonely or that we will always walk in solitude. People will cross our path and we may choose to walk side by side for a time. Let us recall the wisdom of Stone One that asserts that we are responsible for our own spiritual path.