Reverend Judith Elia
The Reverend Judith Elia is an ordained Unity Minister who has served congregations in FL, MD, CO, IN, and MO. She has organized conferences and events internationally for World Peace, Holistic Medicine, and the Spiritual Unity of the World’s Religions. Prior to Ministry she was a family therapist, Clinical Director of the Child Protection Team, a community college and business college Professor of Psychology, and Supervisor of the Fitness and Wellness Program at the Five Star Spa at Palm Aire. From a young age her fascination with the soul of psychology led her to train extensively with both Erik Erikson and Virginia Satir. She graduated from Ithaca College (B.A.) with honors in Psychology in 1978, and the University of Rhode Island (M.S.) in Human Development, Counseling and Family Studies in 1983. She completed her post-master’s degree supervision for licensure at the Center for Pastoral Counseling in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. She did additional graduate work (2006-2007) in World Wisdom traditions at Naropa University in Boulder, CO. It has been her great good fortune to study with and serve spiritual masters of great depth and understanding from India, Cambodia, and China for over thirty years. Rev. Elia is the co-producer of the “Heart of Peace: Music and Meditation” CD with NPR Jazz Artist Stefan Scaggiari and Megon McDonough. She has been the Spiritual Leader of Unity Church for Creative Living since March 1, 2007.
This is Just the Beginning By Rev. Judith Elia
Happy New Year! I think it is significant that this year we usher in the Chinese Year of the Tiger on February 14, 2010, St. Valentine’s Day. The sages say: “Embrace Tiger, Return to Mountain”. In other words, connect with your inner strength and acknowledge your inner yearnings, while keeping your feet on the ground. Perhaps our quest this year as a species is inherent in the message of the Valentine’s Day story.
Legend tells that Saint Valentine was a priest who was imprisoned unjustly. He befriended the kind daughter of the King when she visited him in prison. They often talked for many hours about spiritual teachings. He sent her a love note on the day he died signed “Your Valentine”. They were soul friends as well as pen pals. They inspired one another and held each other up during tumultuous times.
What if we were to know that we would soon be gone from this incarnation? Would each day become more alive for us? Would we savor every moment and send out more love notes? None of us are going to live forever. Our time is limited on our beautiful Planet Earth. This that we call “our life” is but a brief moment. If your entire lifetime flashed before your eyes right NOW, how would you feel?
An African proverb says, “Live each day as if you were a dying Father looking into the eyes of his only son”. Life lived with the awareness of what really matters becomes so sweet and simple. Love matters. Being a beacon of Light matters. Holding each others hands and making each other’s lives a little bit easier matters. Being a good friend, taking time to listen and choosing to let someone else have the parking space are important and meaningful actions. Letting a hurried Mom go in front of you in the check- out line is a simple gesture that can generate an abundance of goodness in the world.
It has been three years since I first came here for an interview in January of 2007. It has been an amazing journey that has stretched the edge of my spiritual envelope. I cannot thank you enough. We have grown together in our capacity to give, forgive, love and care for one another. I have been transformed, humbled, brought to my knees, resurrected, and redeemed more than a few times.
Sometimes it’s overwhelming when we are swimming upstream in uncharted waters. Yet it oftentimes feels miraculous looking into your love lit eyes after Monday night meditation or on Sunday mornings. It is never dull, always changing and unpredictable being together in CommUnity. I hope you will continue to forgive me when I do not know the skillful means to assist our individual or collective needs. I am grateful for your loving kindness and generosity.
I want to thank each one of you, and especially our Board of Trustees, for giving me so many opportunities to learn to be a better person. You have made me grow up in so many ways. You have been my greatest teachers. In the words of Ruth St. Denis, “I stand willingly in the way of storms that all my dead leaves may swirl away and be lost.” I am grateful for all of it. In the Schoolroom of My Life, Unity Church for Creative Living is a precious treasure.
In mid-February I will be returning to Findhorn to attend: “Building the EcoVillage from the Inside Out”, a month-long training in Scotland. During that time you will have the great good fortune of meeting some exceptional Unity Ministers and Guest Speakers. I will look forward to seeing you and sharing with you my new discoveries in God’s Garden of Life upon my return in Mid-march.
