"What each must seek in his life....is something out of his own unique potentiality for experience, something that never has been and never could have been experienced by anyone else."

Joseph Campbell  

Greetings to you on this beautiful day! We have so many exciting things going on in our community at this time. It is my joy to share them with you today.

This is a big week for me. As most of you have heard, I will be ordained this coming Sunday at 5:00 p.m. at Meditation Mount. For those of you who don't know what ordination is, I would describe it as a rite of passage. For me, it has been a rite of passage from one state of being to another. It is the conferring upon a candidate of ministerial authority (i.e., we've been through the fire and made it....smile). Anyway, it is a special and sacred experience for the one being ordained, and I suspect, given the amazing people who will be present on Sunday for this occasion, it will be a sacred experience for all of us.

My spiritual understanding has deepened since I began my ministry here in Ojai. I'm glad for the period of time (our teaching requires two years) that must pass before ordination. I'm grateful and thankful for all my experiences here in Ojai, the good ones and even the challenging ones, which probably helped me grow the most.

In peace and love,        

Ordination

My ordination will be this Sunday, June 24, 5:00 p.m. at Meditation Mount, 10340 Reeves Road, Ojai, Ca 93023. The ordaining minister is Rev. Michael Beckwith. The evening includes wonderful music and a light buffet supper. Parking and seating are limited, so carpool if possible.

Special Sunday Service at the Symphony of Life

This Sunday morning at our 10:30 service, Ray Davis will be joining us, playing some of his fabulous music. I will be offering a baptism of the Spirit to each congregant who so chooses to receive it. This rite of spiritual baptism is a realization of the Loving Presence and Infinite Power of the Spirit within us.

In presenting yourself for this baptism, you will be acknowledging that you are connected to and immersed in the Spirit, that in the Spirit you live and move and have your being, and that you will conduct your life in harmony with the truth of that awareness.  

Parents who are interested in a christening or dedication for their children will also have the chance to participate in a short ceremony which will be facilitated by Rev. Marilyn Miller.

Visioning Celebration on Sunday, July 1, 2012

I am calling anyone and everyone interested in tapping into God's idea of spiritual community in Ojai to join us for a visioning celebration on Sunday, July 1, 2012, at 10:30 a.m. at the Ojai Woman's Club, 441 E. Ojai Avenue. Food will be served. The visioning will be preceded by a Meditation at 10:00 a.m. All of this will take place during our regular service hours.

There will also be a free one-hour prosperity workshop "Prosper Now" thereafter from 12:15 - 1:15 p.m. The workshop will explore simple prosperity tools you can use daily to put the Law of Attraction in motion for you.

New Prosperity Class Being Offered

The 8-week prosperity class, "The Five Gifts of Prosperity" begins on July 12, 7:00 - 9:30 p.m. The class will explore proven prosperity tools in a powerful support group dedicated to improving your ability to attract the abundant life. "If you participate fully in this program, it is guaranteed to work." The books The Five Gifts and the Science of Getting Rich are required course materials. Call Rev. Marilyn Miller at (805) 640-0498 for more information and to enroll. Rev. Marilyn Miller, Career Counselor & Seminar Leader, has been teaching prosperity programs for twenty years. She has helped many individuals to expand their wealth consciousness by using their creativity to increase income.  

Father's Day Lunch Bunch

This past Sunday, in honor of Father's Day, we turned the service over to our Dads. Steve Weed delivered the opening prayer and led us in reading our Statement of Belief. Bob Quinn gave us the announcements.   Robert MacNeal did a wonderful job with our reading of the day, and Rev. Will led the affirmations and delivered a great sermon. Todd Chandler welcomed the children, and Rick Ricksen offered our closing prayer. Afterward, we all went to lunch at Eggs & Potatoes where we continued our Father's Day celebration (see the photo below).

New Community Events Coordinator

We have a new Community Events Coordinator and that is Donna Elam. Donna is a perfect choice for that role as she has a great personality for the job. We are looking forward to some exciting events for the summer.

Free Spiritual Cinema Night

On Friday, June 29, we will be screening our next free spiritual cinema, Seven Years in Tibet, an adventure story based on the life of Austrian mountain climber Heinrich Harrer (played by Brad Pitt) who is part of a Nazi team's effort to scale Nanga Parbat in British India. The team members are arrested and incarcerated in a British POW camp in India. Harrer escapes with a companion, Peter Aufschnaiter (David Thewlis), and the two make their way to the holy city of Lhasa, Tibet. The peaceful Tibetans take them in and they begin their introduction to the ways and teaching of Buddhism.

Doors open at 6:30 and the movie begins promptly at 7:00 p.m. Although the event is free, donations are gratefully accepted and go to Casa de la Luna Retreat, whose state-of-the-art multimedia studio is ideally suited to these and other gatherings. Casa de la Luna is located at 710 S. La Luna Avenue in Ojai. There is parking on the property.

Concert under the Stars and Silent Auction

On Sunday, July 22, the Symphony of Life is putting on another one of its great musical events at The Ojai Retreat. It is a "Concert under the Stars," featuring Cardinali & Company. There will be a Silent Auction and light supper in the Waterfall Garden from 5:30-6:30 p.m. (no host bar), and the concert begins at 6:30 on the Shangri-la Terrace. The Silent Auction features 50 amazing gifts and services, including one week in a Hawaiian condo. Tickets are $20 in advance; $25 at the door and can be purchased online at www.solsc.org or in person at the Symphony of Life Spiritual Center, Contempo Hair Salon, or Soul Centered, a metaphysical shoppe, all located here in Ojai.

Cardinali & Company is a versatile and creative combo that surprises their audiences with the variety of genres they bring to their performances. From beautiful ballads, folk and rock Americana to blues and swingin' jazz, they draw on an extensive song list of original compositions as well as classic favorites and not so familiar covers. Band members for the night include Don Cardinali, lead singer Patricia Cardinali, Jimmy Calire, Randy Tico, and Dave Stewart.

Volunteer of the Month

We are happy to announce that our Volunteer of the Month for the month of June is Diane Besocke. Diane is one of our prayer warriors, and she has consistently held a high positive energetic vibration for our center each and every Sunday. We are so grateful for her dedicated service to the Symphony of Life. Thank you Diane!

Creative Adventures Program

Working with our children this past Sunday were Rev. Marilyn Miller, Todd Chandler and Chris Prideaux. We welcome children 3-11 years of age to enjoy prayer, story telling, visual arts projects and/or music and movement. Our program is enriching and appropriate for young people regardless of their religious backgrounds.  

If you would like to assist with our children's program, please call Rev. Marilyn Miller, (805) 640-0498.

Open Invitation  

This is an invitation to singers and musicians out there who would like to perform at the Symphony of Life.  Contact Rev. Karen, (805) 640-3743, or Patricia Cardinali, (805) 646-2098, if you are interested.

New YouTube Video 

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