The THOMAS Web-Zine
January 2010 Issue 22

Post-Christmas Blues

In the crescendo of activities leading up to Christmas day we can all be so busy trying to meet so many expectations that our emotions become jangled. In this post-holiday period we can only now reflect on the possible feelings of frustration, irritation, and perhaps even anger we saw in others and perhaps ourselves! Frustration about things not meeting our expectations; irritation when others ignore our needs; anger over the lack of control-our helplessness or powerlessness - to change things or people.

These emotions are triggered by our own thoughts. Our mind creates the emotion which then refuels the mind, that in turn cranks-up the emotion; it's an escalating process that can explode. The Emotion has become you; to paraphrase logia #3 (14:15):

  • You are frustrated, and you are the frustration.
  • You are irritated, and you are the irritation.
  • You are angry, and you are the anger.

There are clues however that Jesus had his own frustrations, irritations, and anger:

Logia 31: ../no prophet is accepted in his own village

Logia 38: ../there will be days/when you seek after me/and you will not find me

Logia 51: ../what you expect has come/but you recognize it not.

Logia 52: ../you have abandoned Him who is living before you

Logia 59: ../look upon Him who is living/as long as you live

Logia 91: ../and him who is before you/you have not known/and you know not how to probe this revelation

Logia 92: ../now I desire to tell them/but you do not seek after them

Can you detect an element of despair in these sayings? Jesus clearly felt that his message was not getting across even in some cases to his own disciples. Little was He to know that the foundation was being laid which would grow beyond all possible expectations.

Jesus main Teaching in Thomas is all about overcoming these emotion; these parts of our ahamkara that keep us from the Kingdom. Jesus says "accept" (#36), "it is here and now" (#113), "look inside" (#24), and "become yourself" (#42).

We are fighting what already is, trying to make it what we want it to be. But the world is as it is! Can we accept that? Can we accept whatever comes along and respond if necessary or possible from the Divine Centre, rather than from our emotions.

Can we accept first, then act?

 

© Barry McGibbon & Hugh McGregor Ross