Provincial Master's Message

Beloved Sisters and Brothers,

It is the time of COVID. It is the time of restricted life. It is the time of life turned upside down.

I know that each of you have your own trials, your own limitations, your own suffering during this period. I wish to talk about my personal journey even though it may be mild compared to so many.

I confess that I am not weathering this time well. I know I have a lot to be thankful for, being retired, owning my own home, having a wife I can talk to and be inspired by, someone to hug and have physical contact with – yes, I’m aware others must be suffering so much more. But this doesn’t stop the feeling of deprivation. I feel I’m under “house arrest.” I can’t go all the places I used to go to, I can’t have all the little rewards I used to give myself like going to a movie or seeing a play, or even having a nice dinner at a good restaurant.

I find that I tend to “wallow” in my misery. There is an attraction to feeling down that makes me want to stay there and to lament my poor state. I have felt this many times in my life and am familiar with my tendency to not want to get out of my despair. It’s easier to flounder in my “woe is me” than to try to fix it.

But then I remember basic psychology and the mystical principles that I have been trying to internalize for decades. I know I can choose to mentally dwell on the positive rather than the negative. I can choose to stop “wallowing” in the mire of troubles and concerns and start “looking toward the light.” I like to use the term “look to my source.” I can start being aware of all the positive energy, all the “love” that is engulfing our very being, being sent from the Creator and the Cosmic Masters. I can close my eyes and tune into these energies and actually feel the all-embracing positive energy radiating throughout the universe and in my being.

So in troubled times I, and you, have a choice. We can dwell on all the bad things happening and go to the “woe is me” place in our minds, or we can refuse to go to this dark place – we can “look to our Creator” and experience the wholeness of the universe and the wonder and beauty of all of creation that is so much more than our little problems. I’m going try to do this more during these hard times and I encourage you to do the same.

May you ever dwell in the Eternal Light of Divine Wisdom!

David Schloegel, S.I., F.R.C.

Provincial Master

Traditional Martinist Order