Giants Great and Small
There is an expectation of sameness in our lives. Tuesdays follow Mondays. The sun will come up tomorrow and the seasons will change. We merrily trek along, never examining the routine until a variation in the pattern occurs. One of the most monumental changes that will disrupt the sameness is a transition, which happens when someone we respected, yet expected to always be there, is no longer with us. It is only then that we take stock of what happened and how they impacted our lives.
At the end of 2013, three such transitions occurred in a short period of time. One was international in scope and two were local. So much has already been written about the death of Nelson Mandela and his role on the global stage, some consider him the last peace-warrior of the 20th century. Everyone who met him said it was a highlight of their lives, some said he was the most important person they had ever encountered. This simple man with enormous vision inspired young people to be better than they thought they could be. By trying to be like him, they achieved more than even they thought possible. He passed the torch of “forgiveness” to the people of South Africa and left them a legacy of tolerance and peaceful activism that is burned into the nation’s psyche. He was a giant on a world stage with a lasting imprint, for he asked that we always look with respect upon each citizen in every nation.
While the two local transitions did not have the global reach of Mandela, both of them touched lives in a small community, leaving indelible imprints on those who knew them. Rev. Duffy Rutledge and Rev. Don Jackson, two long-term spiritual leaders, left the local stage of southwest Florida in late November – one to death the other to retirement. Both were from the theological schools of traditional religions and became pioneers in spirituality far beyond those ideologies. Their life’s journey took them into the world of New Thought – an unorthodox, spiritual philosophy of practitioners like Ernest Holmes and Charles Filmore. Expanding upon these teachings, these “small giants” filled the void for individuals hungering to understand the “truth” of their being that could not be found in the confines and teachings of conventional religions.
Both of these ministers had a great influence. During the course of their ministry, they challenged us to examine the concepts of mind, matter, and thought so we could learn the basis of our reality. They suggested we read and research everything before we judge anything and they demanded that we find the ultimate answers to all questions in the depths of our own self. Reverends Don and Duffy were hard task-masters, speaking loudly and with conviction whenever prodding was necessary. They were outspoken in their beliefs and if you wished to challenge those beliefs you had better been well prepared for the discussion to follow, or they would have tied you up in verbal knots within minutes.
But in the fashion of all great leaders, they ignited something unique within their followers. They made us believe we could go out into the world as they did, in fact they encouraged it mightily. In the case of Rev. Duffy she told us, “Don’t make a home here. Go out and make the world your home.” Rev. Don, when asked by a three-year old boy, “Are you God?” replied in his booming voice, “Yes I am. And so are you! Don’t you ever forget it!” It was a lesson intended for all of us.
They were both near eighty years of age when they left the local stage having served various communities their whole life. When strong powerful leaders say goodbye, there is a void in our hearts for a time. We flounder around wondering what to do. It may take a while but eventually we recognize that their torches were passed to all who studied with them. Now it is OUR turn. Will we carry the torch? Can we raise it as high as they did? The answer is yes because we have been inspired by their life’s work. WE have become their legacy!
So what do we do now? For starters, the first lesson is to keep working at what you love, no matter how old you are. People who enter the ministry will continue to touch lives just as we were taught and those who learned how to think independently will teach others to do the same. Those who counsel others, whether in hospices, schools, jails or homeless centers, do so because Don and Duffy taught them how. Those who summon gatherings do so in the name of a local collective of like-minded souls who share the vision. Their torches are passed to a new ‘soul group.’ I know it will surely light up the world of all the lives they touch, until our own torches are also passed on. What a legacy to inherit!
God speed Madiba and Reverends Don and Duffy! We are what we are because of you!
