And as we have our discussion — I don’t look upon it as an interview — I use my very active imagination to go to the spaces and experiences that they are describing. Sometimes I get so into their heads that I finish their sentences. And it is almost always a very beautiful space.

And so while I was raised Catholic, I can appreciated the similarities and the differences of the world’s religions. While they have their own unique expression and historical context, there is often much intersectionality among the world’s religions, an intersectionality of faith, wisdom and hope and the raising up of humankind from its amebic beginnings when the only thing that mattered instinctually was self-survival in a very narrow sense. Each of them lift up humankind from the depths of our earthly, barbaric origins.

And while what I will describe runs as a current of values through all of our faiths and values, I am going to talk about it within the context of Christmas for that is what I was raised up in.

I look upon the birth of Jesus as a pivotal historic and spiritual moment in human history, just as the birth of Abraham, Mohammed, Krishna, Buddha and others have been. It is the teachings of Jesus as found in The New Testament that speak not only to Heaven, but also how to live while one is on this earth. The teachings raise us above our amebic origins to rise above that which only guarantees our self-survival, to a quality of life and existence on this earth that hadn’t been found in too many spaces, an ability to follow our souls and to embrace humankind and the humanity of each other no matter what we look like on the outside. It lets us know how we can live in peace and have a more enriching community of people, embracing their differences while also celebrating our oneness. It leads us to a world beyond our well-worn lives where there is always something to learn and ways to grow. And as Jesus said, ‘You need to be like one of these to enter the kingdom of God,’ referring to children. The world is always a place filled with wonderment, a place of exploration and fulfillment. It is always important to preserve that child within us that is always so eager to learn. No one is omniscient and so there is always something to learn and room for growth within.

There is a saying that you have to live like the world that you want it to be. And so while I have taken hits like everyone else in this world, I have always tried to live a life of acceptance, of wonder and curiosity and belief in the goodness of humankind. We all have the capacity within us for good and evil — the spiritual soul and the amoeba — and so I have always tried with varying degrees of success, to bring the goodness out of people, to make them feel good about themselves and the world around them.

I have to admit that I get worn down by the ways of this world. With the focus on individualism and violence and the vilification of people who aren’t like them I sometimes feel lost in this world. You can have doubts and wonder if maybe you were just a fool while the selfish and the self-absorbed seem to make headway in this world while you are perhaps left behind.

But instead of giving into that and all of the mental, emotional and physical violence, you have to turn within you and without you to once again become in tune with the values and principles that guide you to that higher ground.

And that is what Christmas — for me — and the other religious and spiritual holidays are all about, to reconnect with that inner, spiritual self so that you can once again rise above the Way of the World.

I was at the PAMANA, Filipino American Christmas celebration last week and ran into people I hadn’t seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic. And I enjoyed the dancing, festivities and laughter. And Jun Gonzalez, the president of PAMANA, said to me, ‘Jon, you are part of the family.’ And I must have had a dismissive look on my face and so he said to me as our eyes were locked, ‘You are part of the family.’ It was a indescribably uplifting feeling.

Ada Deer, who shepherded the movement to have the Menominee Nation’s treaty rights restored in the early 1970s, and I talk on the phone from time to time. And if I ever need a lift in spirit, I can call Ada because she and I have the same sense of humor and we can spend an hour on the phone laughing in between more serious thoughts.

And then last Saturday, I went to SS Morris Community AME Church’s Holiday Bazaar where artisans were selling all sorts of arts and crafts that would make wonderful holiday gifts. And everyone was saying hello and giving hugs, many of whom I haven’t seen since before the pandemic. Again, I felt a part of the family. And it was an indescribable feeling, a sense of connectedness that I was blessed to enjoy and experience. It was a positive transcendence of our “amoeba” selves into the spiritual, connected family of God.

And so I must thank God this holiday season that while many people believe in diversity and inclusion, by the grace of God, I have come to experience it and know it. While I am the first to admit that I am not an expert on equity, diversity and inclusion, I praise the Lord because I have experienced and felt it.

And I celebrate the birth of Jesus this December 25^th whose teachings and love have raised this every day Joe to spiritual heights that he could have never dreamt of. I have been blessed. And I hope that all of you are blessed this holiday season. There is so much wonderment in the world and good people and things to learn, truly gifts from God, the Creator!

I hope this has made sense because I just wrote and wrote and wrote. But somewhere in my ramblings is my Holiday wish to you: Love one another for there is a lot there to love. Happy Holidays!