Bria Riley – April 2021

The things that I love the most about Joyful Gathering Spiritual Center are:
1. It's diversity and inclusivity-The members are of many different ethnicities, cultures, religious backgrounds, socioeconomic statuses, sexual orientations, etc. There is even a diversity in religious/spiritual practices and beliefs. ALL are truly welcomed, love, and supported for who they are.
2. No "Have-To's"- No one "has to" participate in any activity or ritual or possess any particular belief to be accepted and included in the community. The teachings are mostly universal and are only suggestions to better connect with the Divine within.
3. No politics- None of the ministers, practitioners, or guest speakers ever get political. No one is told how to vote either directly or indirectly. Occasionally, they made allude to current social justice issues.
4. No duality-They do not teach that the Divine is both loving and punishing, that there is some opposing force such as "the devil" that is after our souls, or that there is a bad place that so-called bad people go after death. We believe that the Divine is only loving, the Divine is all there is, and that there can be nothing opposite of the Divine. In fact, what really lured me in was when Rev. Margaret said at my second service, "At Joyful Gathering, we believe that God is Divine Energy, not someone sitting somewhere judging you."
5. Practical Teachings-All of the teachings can be practically applied to one's everyday life and used to change one's life for the better such as "Change your thoughts. Change your life."
6. Teachings from a Variety of Sources-While Ernest Holmes' texts are used at almost every service, we do not stick to one author or book. Rather, a variety of authors and texts are used for their Universal Truths such as the Bible, Jesus, Buddha, Marianne Williamson, Don Miguel Ruiz, Gabrielle Bernstein, Colin Tipping, and many more. There is no one author or book that is viewed as the inerrant word of God.
7. Unconditional Love and Acceptance-In this community, no one ever has to fear not being love or accepted for any reason, even if they may differ from the majority of the community in some way. They respect that people's spiritual paths are varied and value a strong sense of community over any doctrine.
8. Realistic-They are realistic that we are spiritual beings having a human experience; therefore, we may not always get our spiritual practices perfect, have to feel all feelings including anger or sadness, and the reason for a situation is simply unknown at time.
Overall, I love my spiritual community, would recommend it to anyone that I know, and feel blessed that I found this place. They healed my past religious confusion and hurt and showed me that way to my soul and to Love.

Rev. Brenda Schuck – February 2021

When I began attending weekly services at Joyful Gathering, I felt that I had found my home, right away. I had always described myself as a spiritual person though not a religious one, after having “grown up” in the Episcopal Church that I had turned away from in my early adulthood. It was 12-step programs, which I thought were meeting my spiritual needs, that brought to me the realization that I was experiencing a spiritual crisis of sorts.

I quickly discovered Joyful Gathering. Everything I was hearing at that time, completely aligned with all the beliefs that I didn’t even fully realize I had, and I began soaking up everything I could. Initially, I couldn’t get enough, or get it fast enough, and I enrolled in class after class. This unexpectedly, and eventually, led to becoming a practitioner and then, a minister.

Especially Key for Me: (1) The Science of Mind teachings of Ernest Holmes upon which Joyful Gathering is based, have helped me to fully embody the understanding of the mind-body-spirit connection that is the basis of disease. This understanding had begun as a vital part of my own recovery from a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis and RSD that had occurred some years prior to my introduction to the “reality spirituality” of Joyful Gathering. (2) Also, thanks to these teachings, and had it not been for them, I do not know how I would have managed to get through these past few years after losing my son who moved on to a higher plane of consciousness in 2017.

At JGSC We Learn that: “We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” This means that we can, and should, fully embrace all of the messiness of the human experience even when it is ruling our lives and bogging us down (as it often does). It also means that instead of staying stuck in that place and setting up camp, we can choose to turn to the Truth that undergirds all of our perceived reality; that there is only love; and that creating from this awareness, we have access to the power of the Infinite from which we can co-create a life more aligned with our values, our life’s purpose, and our dreams. And know a peace that is beyond all human understanding.