Earth Abbey
The ever-vigilant Mike Morrell sent me this link — to Earth Abbey, a British-based community that describes itself as…
… a movement of people helping one another to live more in tune with the earth. We work to promote:
- A rich relational life between human beings
- A compassion toward the earth and its creatures
- A sense of interconnectedness of all life
- Wisdom and justice in relationships
- Human fulfilment and the nurture of the inner life
- A way of living that leaves the earth better than we found it
Our inspiration derives from Jesus of Nazareth whose life and mission was to bring about a peace which embraces all creation. We pursue a life-affirming, creative spirtuality that is open to all. EarthAbbey is more than a website. It is a movement of people and you are invited to join.
Check out their website: it’s gorgeous. Their vision for Christian community is certainly inspiring. If you join the site you become a “novice” and are encouraged to take on practical tasks to deepen your relationship with with earth: grow a plant you’ve never grown before, take a concrete step to make your home more energy efficient, and so forth. In other words, Earth Abbey encourages its members to walk the talk.
Patheos
Once upon a time, I thought Beliefnet would be a revolutionary presence on the web: a forum where real and meaningful interfaith dialogue would occur. Alas, it’s more or less turned into a spiritual lifestyle website, which I’m sure has its uses but to my mind represents a certain measure of unfulfilled potential. But the dream of a truly substantive interreligious forum on the Internet is not dead.
Later this year the Patheos website will be launched. Based on their introductory video, it looks like Patheos will be a truly exciting place to hang out: part interfaith social networking, part Library of Alexandria. I will certainly be involved with Patheos, and I suspect once you watch this video, you’ll want to be too…
Here’s what the Patheos home page says:
Patheos will offer:
- Library and Lenses: We have 100 religious traditions in our on-line library of information, written and organized in a way that makes the information consumable. And a unique series of “lenses” to view this complex world of information in a way that is compelling and intuitive.
- Gateways: We present all of this uniquely constructed content in a set of portals where visitors can explore the views, interpretations, guidance, and materials of the major belief traditions. The Gateways provide opportunities for intra-faith dialogue, and are places where the members of the community can exchange information and experiences with like-minded spiritual travelers.
- Public Square: The Public Square offers real topics that impact real people in their day-to-day lives – from the perspectives of some of today’s most respected thought leaders across every faith tradition.
- A Unique Experience: Visitors seeking inspiration will find pictures, stories, and music from across the world of spirituality. Interactive videos let users see churches, mosques, temples — and understand the services that go on there. A comprehensive on-line directory serves as a resource for those looking to gather at places of worship, as well as popular destinations for spiritual travel and religious retreats. Opportunities exist for visitors to become involved, both online and off, with personally compelling causes.
I’ll see you there!
In Albuquerque
Here is a snapshot of Fran and me standing in front of San Felipe de Neri Church, the oldest Catholic parish church in Albuquerque (and just a short walk from the hotel where the Emerging Church Conference was held). As the church’s website puts it, “For nearly 300 years, San Felipe de Neri Parish has provided a spiritual heart for Albuquerque, New Mexico. That heart is still beating strongly, offering liturgical, pastoral, and educational services to parishioners and visitors. The present church building, constructed in 1793, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.” The picture was taken by a very nice young man named Milton, who was rewarded with a Julian of Norwich Prayer Card for his efforts.
The Emerging Church: Day 3
Well, the first Emerging Church Conference sponsored by the Center for Action and Contemplation is over. And if you weren’t there (or logged in to the webcast), there will probably be another one next April. And in the meantime, DVDs and CDs of this year’s event will be made available soon. (more…)
The Emerging Church: Day 2
I know realize just what the logic was in putting together the Emerging Church Conference Schedule. Day 1, featuring Phyllis Tickle, Brian McLaren and Richard Rohr, was the “Contemplation” day. Today, featuring Alexie Torres-Fleming and Shane Claiborne, complements yesterday by focusing more on “Action.” I felt a little underwhelmed by yesterday’s programming, mainly because I had done my homework and was quite familiar with what all the presenters had to say. Today, however, I got a clear sense of just how powerful this emerging new vision — of what it means to be church — can be. (more…)
The Emerging Church: Day 1
Well, I’ve learned something. Fran and I are not as young as we once were.
We got up our normal time this morning (5 AM Atlanta time = 3 AM Albuquerque time) and got pretty much had our normal morning routine — only at 8:30, instead of leaving for our respective workplaces, we drove off together to catch our outbound flight. Of course, the Atlanta airport is itself a workout, and we probably walked a good two miles (luggage in hand) before we boarded our flight.
We arrived in Albuquerque at 12:30 PM local time, and caught a taxi to the Hotel Albuquerque in Old Town where the conference is being held. Because the conference is sold out, so too is the hotel — which meant we couldn’t have access to our room until 4 PM. No place to go crash for a mid-afternoon catnap. We grabbed a quick salad in the hotel café and then went into the conference. (more…)
Why the Emerging Church Matters…
I’m writing this while on a Delta jet, flying from Atlanta to Albuquerque. Fran and I are enjoying a rare weekend away from Rhiannon in order to attend the Emerging Church Conference sponsored by the Center for Action and Contemplation. This conference features some of the most dynamics speakers within the Christian community today, including Richard Rohr, Brian McLaren, Shane Claiborne, Phyllis Tickle, and Alexie Torres-Fleming. Organizations like Spiritual Directors’ International and TheOoze.com will have a presence, and I am certainly not the only author who will be in the audience. In fact, Mike Morrell joked to me that he thinks a good 10% of the conference attendees with be publishing professionals – whether bloggers, authors, editors, or marketing folks.
Based on Mike’s guess, that means there will be about 90 of us writerly types there – because the event is sold out, with some 900 persons registered for the conference! How is it that in the middle of a full-blown economic meltdown, almost a thousand folks want to gather in as unlikely a place as New Mexico to worship together and engage in discourse about the future of the Christian faith?
Well, certainly, the dynamite line-up of speakers is a piece of why this event is so huge. I’m not familiar with Torres-Fleming, but each of the other presenters is a significant voice in the ongoing conversation about where the Holy Spirit is collectively leading us. McLaren is known for his visionary exploration of what it means to be a Christian in the postmodern world – with a strong sense of how this impacts questions of social and environmental justice. The homespun Claiborne isn’t quite as heavy on theory as McLaren, but he simply walks the walk, as a community organizer and “good citizen” in a troubled neighborhood in inner-city Philadelphia; his advocacy of being an “ordinary radical” in terms of our walk with Christ has struck a chord among Christians both young and old. It’s my understanding that Torres-Fleming is engaged in similar hands-on ministry in New York. Richard Rohr’s keen understanding of mystical Christianity, grounded both in his life as a Franciscan priest but also in the work he had done in a variety of settings, from male spirituality to the Enneagram, leads to a recognition that Christianity in the future will not be primarily about moral rectitude but rather be an initiation into higher and transformed consciousness – which will in turn empower Christians to engage in the kinds of ministry that Torres-Fleming and Claiborne embody. Finally, Phyllis Tickle is the great storyteller of the bunch, a keen observer of Christian mega-trends who sees the emergence of postmodern Christianity as the most momentous event in church history since the Protestant Reformation.
So what are we all traveling to Albuquerque for? Speaking for myself, I’m thrilled and excited to be part of a conversation that I believe can be transformational for all of us – embracing the deep wisdom of the Christian path, the unique challenges of the post-modern present, and recognizing that our call will come from a place that is neither exclusively Catholic nor exclusively Protestant, neither purely contemplative or purely activist, neither east-coast nor west-coast, neither elitist nor populist, neither rich nor poor. I find it much easier to discern the Holy Spirit’s presence when people who are quite diverse and different come together and engage in meaningful and respectful dialogue. I’m hoping that this is what we’re going to find in Albuquerque. And while I don’t expect the kind of epiphany that made Paul go temporarily blind or caused Constantine to convert, I suspect we’ll all come away from this weekend with a new or renewed sense of our calling. Multiply that by 900, and I think we can count on miracles happening.
I’ll write more later…
The Promises and Charisms of Lay-Cistercians
In May, God willing and with the permission of my community, I will make my first simple promises as a Lay Cistercian. The Lay Cistercians are an association of laymen and laywomen who have chosen to live their vocation as Christians in accordance with the unique charisms of the Cistercian Order, adapted to the circumstances of life “in the world.” Lay Cistercians participate in communities associated with Cistercian monasteries; my Lay Cistercian Community is affiliated with the Trappist Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers, Georgia.
I’ve been in the Lay Cistercian novitiate since Palm Sunday 2007. As my two-year novitiate draws to a close, I am invited to reflect on the following charisms which define Cistercian spirituality:
- Early Rising
- Encountering the Presence of God especially at the Divine Office
- Recitation of the Psalms as song and prayer
- Lectio Divina (“Sacred Reading,” or the meditative, prayerful reading of the Bible or other holy books)
- Contemplative Prayer
- Silence
- Solitude
- Simplicity
- Living by the Work of One’s Hands
- Obedience (for Lay Cistercians, not so much to an abbot as to Christ)
- Stability
- Celibacy (or, for Lay Cistercians, fidelity to one’s state of life)
- Community
- Hospitality to Newcomers
- Conversion of Manners (i.e., ongoing conversion of life)
- Humility
- Patience
- Doing all the above for the Love of Christ
Even for monks, living into the charisms is a process; and certainly this is, if anything, even more true for laypersons who embrace these charisms as guidelines for our own spiritual life.
The actual promises of a Lay Cistercian include:
- Daily Eucharist, when possible
- Liturgy of the Hours
- Lectio Divina
- Devotion to the Blessed Mother
- Regular Participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation
- Embracing of Silence and Solitude
- Regular attendance at the monthly Lay Cistercian gathering days
- Attendance at the Lay Cistercian Annual Retreat, if possible
- Acceptance of the Rule of Benedict as guide for living the Gospel
Obviously, there is much overlap between the promises and the charisms. But even though there are only nine promises, they look pretty overwhelming. The Lay Cistercian community acknowledges that everyone will live into these promises in a different way. For some people, daily Eucharist and Lectio Divina are easy, while embracing silence and solitude is a challenge; for others, it’s the other way around. I am woefully imperfect at each of these, but for now the key factor is that I have accepted each of these promises as an important principle for my spiritual life — even if at the present such principles are largely unrealized.
One of the questions I have been asked to reflect on as I discern whether or not the request permission to make my simple vows is this: “What changes in my life have I noticed since becoming a novice Lay Cistercian?” In other words, what difference has it made for me to participate in the Lay Cistercian community and way of life over the last two years? I can’t say that being a Lay Cistercian novice has made me more disciplined, or more committed to the Daily Office, or more holy in any kind of measurable way. But what it has done has been to make me more attentive: attentive to the sheer grace found in silence and solitude; attentive to the simple joys that can arise from participation in the Liturgy; attentive to the down-to-earth blessings that are available to me (and everyone) when I embrace such counter-cultural values as humility, patience, simplicity, and stability. Lay Cistercian spirituality is not glamorous or “sexy,” but it is deeply nourishing and quietly satisfying in the subtle ways it helps me to be more mindful of God’s loving presence in my life.
Assuming that both I and the community discern that I am to make my promises in May, it will be a time-specific commitment: I’ll promise to live the life of a Lay Cistercian for one year. I’ll need to do that at least three times before making the solemn promises that will make me a Lay Cistercian for life. During that at least three year period, I will continue to study, under the guidance of both monks and my elders in the Lay Cistercian community. With God’s help, I can grow not only in my experience of what it means to be a Lay Cistercian, but — most important of all — in my experience of what it means to be a Christian.
My friends, please pray for me. Thank you.
He Met the Walrus
In 1969, a young teenager named Jerry Levitan sneaked into John Lennon’s hotel room, with a reel-to-reel tape recorder. He interviewed Lennon for about five minutes, and now that recording has been set to a most Beatle-esque animation. It’s way cool, and what’s probably most wonderful of all are Lennon’s insightful comments about the meaning of music, peace and nonviolence, why violent revolutions always fail, the truth about human nature, and why he was having a hard time gaining entry into the USA.
It really brings home to me what a horrible loss we all suffered on 12/8/80.
A Vegan Christian Website and Blog
I have just learned about a website and blog of a vegan Christian who recognizes a link between her faith and her diet:
All Things New: A Christian Conversation on Food
The Emerging Church Conference Webcast
If you can’t make it to Albuquerque this weekend to attend the Emerging Church Conference with Richard Rohr, Phyllis Tickle, Shane Claiborne, Brian McLaren, and Alexie Torres-Fleming, you can still get the experience. The key speakers and panel discussions from the conference are going to be available via a live streaming webcast (and archived for thirty days, which frees you from having to be glued to your monitor the entire weekend). Cost to receive the webcast is only $50 — less than a third of the conference registration — and includes PDFs of all the conference materials and access to the post-conference website. It’s a bargain!
Click here to sign up for the “Emerging Church” conference Webcast.
Registration now open for “Introduction to World Mysticism”
I’ll be teaching my class on World Mysticism through the Emory University Center for Lifelong Learning again, on Wednesday evenings July 22 through August 12. It’s a fun class — a whirlwind tour through some of the most luminous spiritual writings from around the world.
For more information or to register, click here: http://cll.emory.edu/classes.cfm?cla=-2016892019&pt=3
The Future of Food
Watch this video. It may seem like an odd video to appear on a website devoted to mysticism, but think for a minute about the parable of the sower… and then compare it to what’s going on in our world today.
www.christianmysticism.com
I have registered www.christianmysticism.com to be the website for the new book.
For now I’ve set up a placeholder page that basically says, “This is the future home of The Big Book of Christian Mysticism.”
Eventually I may try to make that site a resource center on Christian mysticism, sort of an extension to the book. But it might just be a “Hey, buy this book” site. Haven’t thought that far ahead, and I need to finish writing the book first.
But for now, the domain name is mine, so anything is possible. Go ahead and bookmark it!
