Retreat, Renewal & Rejuvenation RETREAT Why do we go on retreat? Why has withdrawal always been so foundational to spiritual transformation? Retreat (not just physical retreats like this upcoming weekend retreat, but the concept of going inwards) has to do with letting go of all the surface distractions in our lives. It allows the minor irritants and frustrations that create … Read More
An Ecology of Being
When we go on retreat we sink into ourselves, we let go of the outer world and allow ourselves to focus on the dimensions of the deep within. At first it seems only quiet and dark. At first it is challenging to let go of the surface of things. Even if we have retreated many times, for months or even … Read More
The New Evolution * Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo The spiritual man is the sign of this new evolution, this new and higher endeavor of Nature. But this evolution differs from the past process of the evolutionary Energy in two respects: it is conducted by a conscious effort of the human mind, and it is not confined to a conscious progression of the surface nature, but is … Read More
On Good and Evil * Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Contemporary understanding of matter and energy also suggests a new way of thinking about good and evil. Evil in human affairs is analogous to the process of entropy in the material universe. We call evil that which causes pain, suffering, disorder in the psyche or the community. It usually involves taking the course of least resistance, or operating according to … Read More
The Mystical Milieu * Teilhard de Chardin
Teilhard de Chardin The mystical milieu is not a completed one in which beings, once they have succeeded in entering it, remain immobilized. It is a complex element, made up of divinized created being. We cannot give it precisely the name of God; it is his Kingdom. Nor can we say that it is; it is in the process of becoming.” ~Teilhard de Chardin For more inspiration, meditate … Read More
Relatedness * Michael Brierley
Michael Brierley Panentheism is the result of conceiving “being” in terms of relationship or relatedness. This is why process theism is a type of panentheism, for “process” asserts that “entities” are inseparably interrelated, and thus that relationship, rather than substance, is “of the essence.” ~Michael Brierley, from In Whom We Live and Move and Have Our Being: Panentheistic Reflections on God’s Presence in a Scientific World For more inspiration, meditate with the mystics
Tender Elements of the World * Alfred North Whitehead
Alfred North Whitehead There is, however, in the Galilean origin of Christianity yet another suggestion which does not fit very well with any of the three main strands of thought. It does not emphasize the ruling Caesar, or the ruthless moralist, or the unmoved mover. It dwells upon the tender elements in the world, which slowly and in quietness operate by love; and it finds purpose in the present immediacy of a kingdom not of this world. Love neither rules, nor is it unmoved; also it is a little oblivious as to morals. It does not look to the future; for it finds its own reward in the immediate present. ~Alfred North Whitehead For more inspiration, meditate with the mystics