Religious traditions are needed to focus more on the Earth than on themselves.

I'm convinced that the world has seen enough of religious traditions that focus on themselves and their own particular slant on Divinity. Instead, it is time for them to see themselves as unique filters onto the beauty of the world. In other words, if we are a Christian, we are not meant primarily to make Christ the object of our attention. Rather, our task is to look AT THE WORLD through Christ's eyes. If we are a Buddhist, we are not meant to turn our attention primarily on the Buddha, but to see THE WORLD through his unique gaze. And it is the same with every other religious tradition. What is needed first and foremost in our time is for each of us to embody the awe-filled gaze of the Divine on Wild Nature. For an appreciation and celebration of this amazing Earth - in union with the best that human culture has to offer - is the primary reason why we've been placed here on this particular planet. This appreciation is also the primary reason why GOD continues to exist as self-emptying love and bliss.

Photo: Ice on the Loch, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO, January 31, 2015