Origins
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Background
For three decades, I’ve been privileged to interview countless individuals who have entrusted me with their personal narratives. The invisible threads connecting us to one another have always captivated my imagination.
My collection of stories began in Glastonbury, England in March 1992 while developing a documentary. This journey was preceded by a transformative visit to Edinburgh, Scotland in November of the previous year—a place that resonated so deeply it felt like returning home.
Something within me had stirred to life.
Upon returning to Los Angeles that December, I realized staying would only lull me back into complacency. Edinburgh was calling me back.
Though uncertain what awaited me there, I felt an irresistible pull toward the unknown.
The documentary itself was secondary—merely a vehicle that would allow me to forge meaningful connections with people throughout my journey.
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Inspiration
In Glastonbury, my journey unfolded organically as each encounter seamlessly led to the next, weaving a tapestry of meaningful connections. I traversed England and Scotland by rail, eventually finding my way to the Findhorn Foundation in northern Scotland, where I would remain for the rest of the year.
At Findhorn, I became a collector of stories. These weren’t formal interviews but rather intimate conversations where friends shared their experiences—many revealing them for the first time. These sacred exchanges became moments of profound self-discovery, with me serving as a witness to their emerging truths.
I observed remarkable transformations occurring as each person unveiled their story—changes visible not only in them but resonating within me as well. Though many of these deeply personal narratives might never appear in my documentary, I came to understand that my role as witness and confidant was itself a precious gift, confirming I was indeed on the right path.
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Wisdom
The Messengers Film reached completion in 1996, offering wisdom that transcends time. Throughout the documentary, each Messenger appears identified by both name and Archetype.
In our search for life’s meaning, complete certainty remains beyond our grasp. I hope these insights inspire your own exploration toward truths that deeply resonate with you.
Our world operates as an intricate, interconnected system where every element influences the whole. This essential understanding forms the foundation for our collective well-being, prosperity, and continued survival.
Wish us luck.
Love, Jack
“What service is, is not finding what needs to be done. Service is finding what fills you up; finding what you would do whether anybody paid you to do it or not. Finding what your heart tells you to do and doing that a hundred percent. No vacations. You don’t need vacations when you’re doing what totally fills you up and turns you on and gives you joy.”
“It’s very difficult for people, to shake them out of their complacency and their material preoccupations. And I think what does that for most people these days is illness. I think it’s the moment when people are sick, whether it’s mentally, emotionally or physically, when they’re at a crossroads, they’re open. It’s like, “Wait a minute. It isn’t working. What I’ve been doing isn’t working. Maybe I should look at some alternatives. Maybe I should take a fresh look at what I’m about. What am I here for? What’s this all about? What’s going on?”
“For thousands of years we have become progressively alienated from the earth and our body. And that means, in psychological terms, we have repressed our primitive, natural self. So that when the first settlers came to America, went to Africa and so on, all they could see were primitive savages. What they were seeing was that part of civilization that had been put down and repressed. And the violent, predatory, destructive part of western man is very easy to see if we look at his history. We are so busy glorifying ourselves that we don’t want to own this rather dark shadow. Unfortunately, therefore we have accumulated many, many generations of repression of this violent and brutal shadow which we choose to project on simpler, less materialistic or technological peoples, the indigenous peoples.”
“It’s simpler to change the universe as long as we don’t separate from the oneness. This is a oneness. We’re all in it together. We are parts of one another. We are parts of a oneness. And if we can get back to remembering this and acting in this as a oneness and to remember that we carry messages to one another and the bad guys are the ones that we are requiring to play very ugly roles for us which are no fun at all. And let’s stop requiring people to do that for us. Really see what parts of you create the bad guys and change them and then you won’t require any bad guys anymore. You won’t have to have those kind of role players. Because all it is is role playing. And who wants to be the bad guy?”
“Service and love are the only two things that actually, right now, have any valid meaning, certainly in my life. It’s about acceptance of service for other people. Service and love and compassion. And maybe that is why we’re having to go through such turmoil before we wake up. We are having to be taken to the edge, to the very edge, of the abyss. To bring the human collective to its knees to begin to ask, for God’s sake what?”
“Be forgiving. Let go of yesterday. These are the things that you do to cooperate with your vision. If we can do that everything else will take care of itself. Your decisions will be made for you. The doors will be opened for you. Because guess what? You’ll be ready to go through those doors.”
“Don’t be afraid. I want to say it to me first... and then to say it to everybody... we need to fall in love with ourselves which means we need to be kind to ourselves, we need to believe in ourselves, we need to honor ourselves. It’s not the easiest thing in the world to do. But I think that’s our task as a planet... to see that we’re not “other”. When we fall in love with ourselves we know we’re everybody else.”
“I don’t think it’s ever going to be where religion gets organized again the way it has been in the past. We’re each going to have our own path and then we’ll share it with each other and say, “Guess what I found on my path today? I got this gem. What did you find on yours?” The discovery and the kind of sharing we can do with each other… because I can’t take your trip and you can’t take mine. But, boy, we can share some of the gems we find on each of our trips and some things you’re going to discover are things that are going to help me on mine, and vice versa”