Weekly Recap for Tuesday, 28 July 2015 from Progressive Christianity in Gig Harbor, Washington, United StatesDo you understand why there is still rampant racism? Read Deshna Ubeda's article on her thoughts. Thank you for your support and interest!
Last Week At ProgressiveChristianity.org...
We delved into the topics of Racism, Activism, Atonement Theology and Summer.
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Confronting Our Shadow Side
Deshna Ubeda
I truly don't understand racism or violence. But I do understand that the path toward confronting it must begin at the deep levels of vast cultural and socio-political change. When 1% rules the world and owns the media, the government, and the health and energy systems, that leaves a lot of room for angry and disheartened people.
READ ON ...
Confronting Our Shadow Side by Deshna Ubeda
A few months ago, I met with a group of about 12 “Young Leaders in Religion.” I’ll admit, I felt a bit of pride for being labeled as both “young” and a “leader” and I sat, with my chin just slightly raised, around a table of these intelligent, passionate, spiritual, intellectual human beings, feeling like co-conspirators that could change the world for the better if we just put our heads together. I felt confident and equal to those around me, though clearly many of them had higher advanced degrees than I do, as well as more education in our field and certainly many of them had a higher intelligence or creative mind than I do. But I didn’t spend my energy thinking about that nor did I think too much about our ages. I never thought about our economic differences, and not once did I consider myself better or worse than any of them. Why? Because we were part of a team, a gathering of like individuals with a shared interest and a passion for the intelligent and informed perspectives on religion. We were all different, yet all the same in my mind.
As part of our meeting, we went around the table and introduced ourselves and what we were passionate about. There were a few women there that introduced themselves asblack, one of whom also included in her introduction a passion for race equality. When they labeled themselves as black and so clearly emphasized this importance, for a moment I was taken aback. First of all, I hadn’t even thought of it. I quickly looked around the room to see if there were other black people there. There was one other woman, who was obviously not just white European but of some other ethnic descent- maybe Latina, I couldn’t really tell. I wondered for the first time what ethnicities the people at the table were… And then I sat perplexed as to why that was such a prominent part of these women’s introductions. After all, I didn’t say, “Hello my name is Deshna. I am a white woman…” Then I pondered why, in today’s world do we STILL need to be focusing so much attention on race? It caused me a bit of discomfort and I believe it was because all of sudden we weren’t the same anymore and I really didn’t FULLY understand where they were coming from. Were we not on the same team? My human mind, which desires to label, group, and classify, wondered.
Full disclosure: I am a middle class white woman living in a progressive city on the West Coast of the United States. I was raised in a mostly white city, but my parents were always egalitarians. When I was young, my father who was in seminary, took me to the inner city of San Francisco where he worked in a program for low income, mostly black people. I didn’t see them as black back then either- just interesting, kind of different from me people, who spoke slightly different than I did and whose faces intrigued me. My current community is fully inclusive and to be completely frank, I hardly notice someone’s race when meeting them, speaking with them, or working with them. To me – people are simply that –people. I try not to judge, but judgement is a normal part of being human and, I would even say a necessary part of being human, and when I do judge it is based on character not color. Here in the USA we are an incredible rainbow of a melting pot of ethnicities and races…to call someone black or even African American never seems quite right to me. After all, I am not really white, I am peachy-olive. Nor am I European. My mom is more olive, my dad is more peachy. My daughter is a lovely half Latina, half ultra other mix whose color is closer to yellowy-pink. I love all the shades of brown and coffee and tan that exist in our plethora of mixes. But race is simply not at the forefront of my mind. Until recently. I suspect this is how many white, educated people in my generation feel, but obviously, as Roof demonstrated, not all people of my generation are color blind.
To my dismay, there are still a huge proportion of people in our world and in the USA that are straight up racist and our police system – those that are sworn to serve and protect – are full of them, as well as our political leaders, church leaders, and teachers.
How I wish I could extricate their fear which feeds their hate. How I wish I could wrap my arms around them and cool the fire of discomfort and anger. How I wish they were taught in school about the interconnectedness of all beings. How I wish their parents or their pastors taught them to love as Jesus did, recognizing god within all. How I wish the darkness of rage would dissolve once they saw the beautiful faces of the mourning forgive this horrific act. How I wish our world political system didn’t divide the haves from the have nots fueling anger and resentment.
No, I truly don’t understand racism or violence. But I do understand that the path toward confronting it must begin at the deep levels of vast cultural and socio-political change. When 1% rules the world and owns the media, the government, and the health and energy systems, that leaves a lot of room for angry and disheartened people. When people are angry or scared they look toward that which frightens them to place blame. Just as fundamental Christians today are pointing fingers at progressive Christians for the demise of church, racists look toward immigration and people of color for ruining their country, taking their jobs, or creating too much change.
But racism goes even deeper than economic disparity. Structural and institutional racism against blacks has made it very difficult for them to achieve success and to thrive. Our institutions systematically marginalize and put at a disadvantage blacks and many other people of color, while they afford white people an array of social, political and economic advantages.
When I was in New Orleans recently, I was suddenly aware of something that I hadn’t been the many times I had visited before- I was in the South! I was in a city where the amount of black people equals those of European descendants. And you know what? That is exactly one of the reasons why I love New Orleans so much- I just hadn’t thought of it before! I love black southern culture – the music, the art, the gentle and respectful ways, the boisterousness, the laughter, the dancing, the food. I wish we had more of it in the Pacific Northwest. I wish I had more friends who are black so I could understand more deeply what it means to be black in this world today. So that I could more fully understand why they need to claim this title proudly and to continue to work on efforts to bring attention to race and the persistent lack of equality. When I heard about the church shootings in Charleston, I was devastated. It felt like one step forward, two huge jumps back! I simply can not understand this kind of reckless and hateful violence and I was heart broken to think that black people in our country might feel that nothing enough has changed or progressed.
And then they stood and looked the killer in the eyes and forgave him. Holy moly, this took my breath away! Here are real Christians! And then began the wave of information and coverage on racism and its symbols, on our bloodied history and our tangled past which weaves its way into our present.
So, as tragic as this rash of violence and racism has been, maybe it is turning out to be the light shined upon the darkness that we all need to look at, closely. And to look at that darkness, education needs to change – race issues and history should be a normal part of every public education in this country. Equality, compassion, and reconciliation should be courses in every high school. Additionally, governmental funding of violence- namely war- should be decreased and funding of education should be greatly increased. College should not equal debt or poverty. At the root of violence and racism is a lack of knowing, a lack of education. Lack of understanding leads to fear, fear leads to hate. Hate to violence. When was the last time you really examined public education and the curriculum taught there? When I did, I immediately took our daughter out of public school. (That’s not to say that there aren’t great schools and wonderful caring teachers out there, just that our standard public education is greatly lacking) Church communities should be at the forefront of this movement- just as brave churches and denominations stepped forward on the LGTBQ equal rights, so should they be stepping up speaking out against war and corporate ownership of our world, economic disparities, and racism. To not talk about race actually worsens the problem. It masks racial disparities and hinders social justice.
I learned a lot from this eBulletin and from this moment in history. One thing I learned is that I am part of the problem. I can no longer pretend that racism is a thing of the past. Desegregation was one step forward and electing a black president was another…but they are a few steps in a long line of marches that we all must join in on. Black lives do matter, of course. But it also matters that they are black people. Being black is completely integrated into who they are in this world. It is time for us all to confront the shadow side of being human which is afraid of that which is different and is afraid of losing its place in line. And to do that we need to look at it clearly, rather than turn away from it, pretending it isn’t real. We can then shine the light on it, and overwhelm it with love. We must become more comfortable talking about racism, just as we have with sexism. Personally, I realize that I must begin fighting for equality of all human beings at all levels- race, sex, religion, economic. And next time I meet someone who is black and claims that label as an important part of who they are, I won’t be confused but rather interested in knowing more about what that means to them and how can I help their ever important cause.
Occupy Spirituallity
Have you ever seen anything in your life
more wonderful
than the way the sun,
every evening,
relaxed and easy,
floats toward the horizon
and into the clouds or the hills,
or the rumpled sea,
and is gone--
and how it slides again
out of the blackness,
every morning,
on the other side of the world,
like a red flower
streaming upward on its heavenly oils,
say, on a morning in early summer,
at its perfect imperial distance--
and have you ever felt for anything
such wild love--
do you think there is anywhere, in any language,
a word billowing enough
for the pleasure
that fills you,
as the sun
reaches out,
as it warms you
as you stand there,
empty-handed--
or have you too
turned from this world--
or have you too
gone crazy
for power,
for things?
Mary Oliver"The Sun"
Events and Updates
Releasing the Contemplative in You with Joan Chittister
July 27th through August 21st
Contemporary spirituality includes multiple forms of devotion and meditation. In this e-course, Joan Chittister looks at the most fundamental of them all — reading and writing — and their relationship to the development of the spiritual life.
READ ON ...Releasing the Contemplative in You with Joan Chittister
I truly don't understand racism or violence. But I do understand that the path toward confronting it must begin at the deep levels of vast cultural and socio-political change. When 1% rules the world and owns the media, the government, and the health and energy systems, that leaves a lot of room for angry and disheartened people.
READ ON ...
Confronting Our Shadow Side by Deshna Ubeda
A few months ago, I met with a group of about 12 “Young Leaders in Religion.” I’ll admit, I felt a bit of pride for being labeled as both “young” and a “leader” and I sat, with my chin just slightly raised, around a table of these intelligent, passionate, spiritual, intellectual human beings, feeling like co-conspirators that could change the world for the better if we just put our heads together. I felt confident and equal to those around me, though clearly many of them had higher advanced degrees than I do, as well as more education in our field and certainly many of them had a higher intelligence or creative mind than I do. But I didn’t spend my energy thinking about that nor did I think too much about our ages. I never thought about our economic differences, and not once did I consider myself better or worse than any of them. Why? Because we were part of a team, a gathering of like individuals with a shared interest and a passion for the intelligent and informed perspectives on religion. We were all different, yet all the same in my mind.
As part of our meeting, we went around the table and introduced ourselves and what we were passionate about. There were a few women there that introduced themselves asblack, one of whom also included in her introduction a passion for race equality. When they labeled themselves as black and so clearly emphasized this importance, for a moment I was taken aback. First of all, I hadn’t even thought of it. I quickly looked around the room to see if there were other black people there. There was one other woman, who was obviously not just white European but of some other ethnic descent- maybe Latina, I couldn’t really tell. I wondered for the first time what ethnicities the people at the table were… And then I sat perplexed as to why that was such a prominent part of these women’s introductions. After all, I didn’t say, “Hello my name is Deshna. I am a white woman…” Then I pondered why, in today’s world do we STILL need to be focusing so much attention on race? It caused me a bit of discomfort and I believe it was because all of sudden we weren’t the same anymore and I really didn’t FULLY understand where they were coming from. Were we not on the same team? My human mind, which desires to label, group, and classify, wondered.
Full disclosure: I am a middle class white woman living in a progressive city on the West Coast of the United States. I was raised in a mostly white city, but my parents were always egalitarians. When I was young, my father who was in seminary, took me to the inner city of San Francisco where he worked in a program for low income, mostly black people. I didn’t see them as black back then either- just interesting, kind of different from me people, who spoke slightly different than I did and whose faces intrigued me. My current community is fully inclusive and to be completely frank, I hardly notice someone’s race when meeting them, speaking with them, or working with them. To me – people are simply that –people. I try not to judge, but judgement is a normal part of being human and, I would even say a necessary part of being human, and when I do judge it is based on character not color. Here in the USA we are an incredible rainbow of a melting pot of ethnicities and races…to call someone black or even African American never seems quite right to me. After all, I am not really white, I am peachy-olive. Nor am I European. My mom is more olive, my dad is more peachy. My daughter is a lovely half Latina, half ultra other mix whose color is closer to yellowy-pink. I love all the shades of brown and coffee and tan that exist in our plethora of mixes. But race is simply not at the forefront of my mind. Until recently. I suspect this is how many white, educated people in my generation feel, but obviously, as Roof demonstrated, not all people of my generation are color blind.
To my dismay, there are still a huge proportion of people in our world and in the USA that are straight up racist and our police system – those that are sworn to serve and protect – are full of them, as well as our political leaders, church leaders, and teachers.
How I wish I could extricate their fear which feeds their hate. How I wish I could wrap my arms around them and cool the fire of discomfort and anger. How I wish they were taught in school about the interconnectedness of all beings. How I wish their parents or their pastors taught them to love as Jesus did, recognizing god within all. How I wish the darkness of rage would dissolve once they saw the beautiful faces of the mourning forgive this horrific act. How I wish our world political system didn’t divide the haves from the have nots fueling anger and resentment.
No, I truly don’t understand racism or violence. But I do understand that the path toward confronting it must begin at the deep levels of vast cultural and socio-political change. When 1% rules the world and owns the media, the government, and the health and energy systems, that leaves a lot of room for angry and disheartened people. When people are angry or scared they look toward that which frightens them to place blame. Just as fundamental Christians today are pointing fingers at progressive Christians for the demise of church, racists look toward immigration and people of color for ruining their country, taking their jobs, or creating too much change.
But racism goes even deeper than economic disparity. Structural and institutional racism against blacks has made it very difficult for them to achieve success and to thrive. Our institutions systematically marginalize and put at a disadvantage blacks and many other people of color, while they afford white people an array of social, political and economic advantages.
When I was in New Orleans recently, I was suddenly aware of something that I hadn’t been the many times I had visited before- I was in the South! I was in a city where the amount of black people equals those of European descendants. And you know what? That is exactly one of the reasons why I love New Orleans so much- I just hadn’t thought of it before! I love black southern culture – the music, the art, the gentle and respectful ways, the boisterousness, the laughter, the dancing, the food. I wish we had more of it in the Pacific Northwest. I wish I had more friends who are black so I could understand more deeply what it means to be black in this world today. So that I could more fully understand why they need to claim this title proudly and to continue to work on efforts to bring attention to race and the persistent lack of equality. When I heard about the church shootings in Charleston, I was devastated. It felt like one step forward, two huge jumps back! I simply can not understand this kind of reckless and hateful violence and I was heart broken to think that black people in our country might feel that nothing enough has changed or progressed.
And then they stood and looked the killer in the eyes and forgave him. Holy moly, this took my breath away! Here are real Christians! And then began the wave of information and coverage on racism and its symbols, on our bloodied history and our tangled past which weaves its way into our present.
So, as tragic as this rash of violence and racism has been, maybe it is turning out to be the light shined upon the darkness that we all need to look at, closely. And to look at that darkness, education needs to change – race issues and history should be a normal part of every public education in this country. Equality, compassion, and reconciliation should be courses in every high school. Additionally, governmental funding of violence- namely war- should be decreased and funding of education should be greatly increased. College should not equal debt or poverty. At the root of violence and racism is a lack of knowing, a lack of education. Lack of understanding leads to fear, fear leads to hate. Hate to violence. When was the last time you really examined public education and the curriculum taught there? When I did, I immediately took our daughter out of public school. (That’s not to say that there aren’t great schools and wonderful caring teachers out there, just that our standard public education is greatly lacking) Church communities should be at the forefront of this movement- just as brave churches and denominations stepped forward on the LGTBQ equal rights, so should they be stepping up speaking out against war and corporate ownership of our world, economic disparities, and racism. To not talk about race actually worsens the problem. It masks racial disparities and hinders social justice.
I learned a lot from this eBulletin and from this moment in history. One thing I learned is that I am part of the problem. I can no longer pretend that racism is a thing of the past. Desegregation was one step forward and electing a black president was another…but they are a few steps in a long line of marches that we all must join in on. Black lives do matter, of course. But it also matters that they are black people. Being black is completely integrated into who they are in this world. It is time for us all to confront the shadow side of being human which is afraid of that which is different and is afraid of losing its place in line. And to do that we need to look at it clearly, rather than turn away from it, pretending it isn’t real. We can then shine the light on it, and overwhelm it with love. We must become more comfortable talking about racism, just as we have with sexism. Personally, I realize that I must begin fighting for equality of all human beings at all levels- race, sex, religion, economic. And next time I meet someone who is black and claims that label as an important part of who they are, I won’t be confused but rather interested in knowing more about what that means to them and how can I help their ever important cause.
Occupy Spirituallity
Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox
This book is a call to action for a new era of spirituality-infused activism ... encouraging us to use our talents in service of compassion and justice and to move beyond our broken systems–economic, political, educational, and religious...
READ ON ...
Occupy Spirituality: A Radical Vision for a New Generation (Sacred Activism) by Adam Bucko, Matthew Fox
Named one of the Fifty Best Spiritual Books of 2013 by SPIRITUALITY & PRACTICE in the JUSTICE category!
The Occupy Wall Street movement and protest movements around the world are evidence of a new era of intergenerational activists seeking deeper spiritual meaning in their quest for peace and justice.
This book is a call to action for a new era of spirituality-infused activism. Authors Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox encourage us to use our talents in service of compassion and justice and to move beyond our broken systems–economic, political, educational, and religious–discovering a spirituality that not only helps us to get along, but also encourages us to reevaluate our traditions, transforming them and in the process building a more sacred and just world.
Incorporating the words of young activist leaders culled from interviews and surveys, the book provides a framework that is deliberately interfaith and speaks to our profound yearning for a life with spiritual purpose and for a better world. Each chapter is construed as a dialogue between Fox, a 72-year-old theologian, and Bucko, a 37-year-old spiritual activist and mentor to homeless youth. As we listen in on these familiar yet profound conversations, we learn about Fox and Bucko’s own spiritual journeys and discover a radical spirituality that is inclusive, democratic, and relevant to the world we live in today.
Table of Contents
Foreword by Mona Eltahawy
Foreword by Andrew Harvey
Introduction: Invitation to Occupy Your Conscience
1. Is It Time to Replace the God of Religion with the God of Life?
2. Radical Spirituality for a Radical Generation
3. Adam’s Story
4. Matthew’s Story
5. What’s Your Calling? Are You Living in Service of Compassion and Justice?
6. Spiritual Practice: Touch Life and Be Changed by It
7. No Generation Has All the Answers: Elders and Youth Working Together
8. Birthing New Economics, New Communities, and New Monasticism
Conclusion: Occupy Generation and the Practice of Spiritual Democracy
Afterword by Lama Surya Das
Editorial Reviews
“Occupy Spirituality is a powerful, inspiring, and vital call to embodied awareness and enlightened actions. ‘Spiritual democracy,’ as it is called in this book, is necessary … if we are not only to survive as a species on this beautiful, sacred planet, but also to cocreate through our conscious, committed actions a world and planet where all beings thrive together. Thank you Matthew Fox and Adam Bucko for such a wonderful book.”
—Julia Butterfly Hill, environmental activist and author of The Legacy of Luna: The
Story of a Tree, a Woman, and the Struggle to Save the Redwoods
“The dialogue between these two visionary men comes as a fresh, exhilarating wind. It swings wide the doors of our minds and reveals what is surely the most heartening phenomenon of our time. Illumined and honored here are the moral clarity and courage of young activists the world over, as they unmask the deadening abuses of an exhausted civilization. Matthew and Adam help us hear these voices and catch the spiritual power moving through them.”
—Joanna Macy, author of Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in without Going Crazy
“A beautiful book with a simple, clear, and profound message for our time.”[David Korten, board chair, YES! Magazine; author of Agenda for a New Economy]
“A rollicking ride, a pointed and energetic exchange in which love and mutual esteem is evident on every page. …this volume is a heart-felt and potent wake-up call for the churches to re-engage in the radical and revolutionary task that has been theirs from the outset: to produce prophets and mystics for the world.”[National Catholic Reporter]
“In Occupy Spirituality, our friends Adam Bucko and the Rev. Matthew Fox have begun a multigenerational conversation that is becoming critical to accomplishing the kind of change we want to see in spirituality today. Being deeply connected to the two ends of the spectrum of adult life, and looking together at the growing edge of spirituality and modern culture, they are helping all of us to find our way.”[—Netanel Miles-Yepez and Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, coauthors of A Heart Afire: Stories and Teachings of the Early Hasidic Masters
“The monologue of the Religious Right is over. And a new dialogue has begun. This book is a sign of that dialogue. You may not agree with everything on these pages (I didn’t), but you can’t help but be stirred to join the conversation—and to dive into a movement that is reimagining the world. Matthew and Adam refuse to see faith as just a ticket into heaven, and they invite you to join them—and to join God—in bringing heaven down to earth.”
—Shane Claiborne, activist, lover of Jesus, and author of The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical and Red Letter Revolution: What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said?
“Occupy Spirituality brings to the forefront the need for spirituality in our lives and through us in the lives of nations around the world. Materialism and morality, Gandhi said, have an inverse relationship. When one increases the other decreases. The decay in our ‘civilization’ today is caused by material greed. This may just be the blueprint for the survival of humanity. Everyone must read this book.”
—Arun Gandhi, author of Legacy of Love and The Forgotten Woman; President, Gandhi Worldwide Education Institute
“This book gives heartfelt expression to the marriage of inner and outer activism that has the potential to transform our world.”
—Charles Eisenstein, author of Sacred Economics and The Ascent of Humanity
“Occupy Spirituality is a careful, thoughtful, and inspiring reminder that we don’t have to choose between spiritual fulfillment and political engagement. Fox and Bucko’s dialogues enable us to spy the Promised Land of social justice through fresh eyes. This book will challenge your mind, complicate your politics, and re-energize your spirit!”
—Marc Lamont Hill, social critic, activist, and author of Beats, Rhymes, and Classroom Life: Hip-Hop Pedagogy and the Politics of Identity and The Classroom and the Cell: Conversations on Black Life in America
“Thank you, Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox, for nurturing the radical spiritual activism and moral imagination which is growing all our souls and changing our world.”
—Grace Lee Boggs, activist and author of The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century
“One can hope that the next great social transformation will include not just political freedom and social justice, but a transformation of the human soul as well. One can hope that the activists of this era will be spiritual visionaries. One can hope that the contemplatives of this era will speak truth to power and take it to the streets. With this book, Matthew and Adam increase the possibility that it will be so.”[Kabir Helminski, activist and Sufi, author of Living Presence, The Knowing Heart, and Love’s Ripening]
“These fresh and buoyant original voices summon us to radical habit change and life-giving compassion in action guided by wisdom’s insightful eye. That is the mission of bodhisattva leaders and awakeners like Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox, dedicated ‘servant leaders’ who are fomenting a beloved community committed to witnessing and working towards social justice, peace and harmony, and higher consciousness.”[Lama Surya Das, author of Awakening the Buddha Within and Buddha Standard Time]
“Occupy Spirituality powerfully applies the interfaith vision globally known as ‘interspirituality’ to the activist and transformative movement for positive worldwide social change. It is a further step in our planet’s evolution toward a global civilization based on the Heart.”[Kurt Johnson, co-author of The Coming Interspiritual Age]
“The Occupy movement moves us from self-centeredness to other-centeredness. The most courageous act that any of us can do is to dare to care about others. Since our destinies are metaphysical we should start now and Occupy Spirituality. Let this book be our manual.”[Sharon Gannon, co-creator of Jivamukti Yoga, author of Yoga and Vegetarianism: The Diet of Enlightenment
“In Occupy Spirituality, Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox remind us that authentic spirituality is action. Spirituality without engagement is empty. Activism without spiritual roots is dissipative and fragmenting. Spirituality needs to empower and inspire us to action. Sadhna (meditation) and seva (service) are complementary. Spirituality and Action need to reunite. In this time of corporate rule and greed, we need to heed the message of Occupy Spirituality.”[Dr. Vandana Shiva, environmental activist, author of Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability, and Peace, and Soil Not Oil: Environmental Justice in an Age of Climate Crisis]
“Enlightened and resilient social change requires a change in the insight, compassion, and wisdom of individuals—people who occupy their spirituality, live it daily in their work, their families, and their struggles. This amazing and surprising book addresses what it means to live a life of sacred activism amidst the chaos of the 21rst century from the perspectives of a dynamic young activist and a wise elder. Everyone should read it!”[Mirabai Bush, co-author of Compassion in Action and co-founder of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society]
“Occupy Spirituality is a consciousness-raising, prophetic, and bridge-building book… In their quest for peace, justice and freedom these two radicals map out where we have been and what must be done in our times to reunite contemplation and action…”[Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality & Practice]
“I was struck by [the] description of ‘spiritual warriorship.’ This is particularly resonant with Shambhala.”[Amanda Hester, Shambhala Times]
“A fresh breeze for all concerned with conscious, committed action.”[Light of Consciousness]
About the Authors
ADAM BUCKO is cofounder of the Reciprocity Foundation, empowering homeless youth to break the cycle of poverty, and HAB, an interspiritual contemplative fellowship focused on training young people in radical spirituality and sacred activism.
MATTHEW FOX is an internationally acclaimed theologian working in the creation spirituality tradition of Christianity. He is the best-selling author of 30 books, including Original Blessing, A Spirituality Named Compassion, and The Coming of the Cosmic Christ.
Bishop John Shelby Spong Video:
Why Atonement Theology will Kill Christianity
Speaking at Community Christian Church of Springfield, MO, Bishop Spong gave us a taste of sections of his next book which will be on the Gospel of Matthew. In this lecture he is speaking to the need for the modern church to abandon its outdated commitment to belief in substitutionary death/atonement theology.
READ ON ...
Bishop John Shelby Spong: Why Atonement Theology will Kill Christianity by Community Christian Church
Weekly Liturgy
This book is a call to action for a new era of spirituality-infused activism ... encouraging us to use our talents in service of compassion and justice and to move beyond our broken systems–economic, political, educational, and religious...
READ ON ...
Occupy Spirituality: A Radical Vision for a New Generation (Sacred Activism) by Adam Bucko, Matthew Fox
Named one of the Fifty Best Spiritual Books of 2013 by SPIRITUALITY & PRACTICE in the JUSTICE category!
The Occupy Wall Street movement and protest movements around the world are evidence of a new era of intergenerational activists seeking deeper spiritual meaning in their quest for peace and justice.
This book is a call to action for a new era of spirituality-infused activism. Authors Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox encourage us to use our talents in service of compassion and justice and to move beyond our broken systems–economic, political, educational, and religious–discovering a spirituality that not only helps us to get along, but also encourages us to reevaluate our traditions, transforming them and in the process building a more sacred and just world.
Incorporating the words of young activist leaders culled from interviews and surveys, the book provides a framework that is deliberately interfaith and speaks to our profound yearning for a life with spiritual purpose and for a better world. Each chapter is construed as a dialogue between Fox, a 72-year-old theologian, and Bucko, a 37-year-old spiritual activist and mentor to homeless youth. As we listen in on these familiar yet profound conversations, we learn about Fox and Bucko’s own spiritual journeys and discover a radical spirituality that is inclusive, democratic, and relevant to the world we live in today.
Table of Contents
Foreword by Mona Eltahawy
Foreword by Andrew Harvey
Introduction: Invitation to Occupy Your Conscience
1. Is It Time to Replace the God of Religion with the God of Life?
2. Radical Spirituality for a Radical Generation
3. Adam’s Story
4. Matthew’s Story
5. What’s Your Calling? Are You Living in Service of Compassion and Justice?
6. Spiritual Practice: Touch Life and Be Changed by It
7. No Generation Has All the Answers: Elders and Youth Working Together
8. Birthing New Economics, New Communities, and New Monasticism
Conclusion: Occupy Generation and the Practice of Spiritual Democracy
Afterword by Lama Surya Das
Editorial Reviews
“Occupy Spirituality is a powerful, inspiring, and vital call to embodied awareness and enlightened actions. ‘Spiritual democracy,’ as it is called in this book, is necessary … if we are not only to survive as a species on this beautiful, sacred planet, but also to cocreate through our conscious, committed actions a world and planet where all beings thrive together. Thank you Matthew Fox and Adam Bucko for such a wonderful book.”
—Julia Butterfly Hill, environmental activist and author of The Legacy of Luna: The
Story of a Tree, a Woman, and the Struggle to Save the Redwoods
“The dialogue between these two visionary men comes as a fresh, exhilarating wind. It swings wide the doors of our minds and reveals what is surely the most heartening phenomenon of our time. Illumined and honored here are the moral clarity and courage of young activists the world over, as they unmask the deadening abuses of an exhausted civilization. Matthew and Adam help us hear these voices and catch the spiritual power moving through them.”
—Joanna Macy, author of Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in without Going Crazy
“A beautiful book with a simple, clear, and profound message for our time.”[David Korten, board chair, YES! Magazine; author of Agenda for a New Economy]
“A rollicking ride, a pointed and energetic exchange in which love and mutual esteem is evident on every page. …this volume is a heart-felt and potent wake-up call for the churches to re-engage in the radical and revolutionary task that has been theirs from the outset: to produce prophets and mystics for the world.”[National Catholic Reporter]
“In Occupy Spirituality, our friends Adam Bucko and the Rev. Matthew Fox have begun a multigenerational conversation that is becoming critical to accomplishing the kind of change we want to see in spirituality today. Being deeply connected to the two ends of the spectrum of adult life, and looking together at the growing edge of spirituality and modern culture, they are helping all of us to find our way.”[—Netanel Miles-Yepez and Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, coauthors of A Heart Afire: Stories and Teachings of the Early Hasidic Masters
“The monologue of the Religious Right is over. And a new dialogue has begun. This book is a sign of that dialogue. You may not agree with everything on these pages (I didn’t), but you can’t help but be stirred to join the conversation—and to dive into a movement that is reimagining the world. Matthew and Adam refuse to see faith as just a ticket into heaven, and they invite you to join them—and to join God—in bringing heaven down to earth.”
—Shane Claiborne, activist, lover of Jesus, and author of The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical and Red Letter Revolution: What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said?
“Occupy Spirituality brings to the forefront the need for spirituality in our lives and through us in the lives of nations around the world. Materialism and morality, Gandhi said, have an inverse relationship. When one increases the other decreases. The decay in our ‘civilization’ today is caused by material greed. This may just be the blueprint for the survival of humanity. Everyone must read this book.”
—Arun Gandhi, author of Legacy of Love and The Forgotten Woman; President, Gandhi Worldwide Education Institute
“This book gives heartfelt expression to the marriage of inner and outer activism that has the potential to transform our world.”
—Charles Eisenstein, author of Sacred Economics and The Ascent of Humanity
“Occupy Spirituality is a careful, thoughtful, and inspiring reminder that we don’t have to choose between spiritual fulfillment and political engagement. Fox and Bucko’s dialogues enable us to spy the Promised Land of social justice through fresh eyes. This book will challenge your mind, complicate your politics, and re-energize your spirit!”
—Marc Lamont Hill, social critic, activist, and author of Beats, Rhymes, and Classroom Life: Hip-Hop Pedagogy and the Politics of Identity and The Classroom and the Cell: Conversations on Black Life in America
“Thank you, Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox, for nurturing the radical spiritual activism and moral imagination which is growing all our souls and changing our world.”
—Grace Lee Boggs, activist and author of The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century
“One can hope that the next great social transformation will include not just political freedom and social justice, but a transformation of the human soul as well. One can hope that the activists of this era will be spiritual visionaries. One can hope that the contemplatives of this era will speak truth to power and take it to the streets. With this book, Matthew and Adam increase the possibility that it will be so.”[Kabir Helminski, activist and Sufi, author of Living Presence, The Knowing Heart, and Love’s Ripening]
“These fresh and buoyant original voices summon us to radical habit change and life-giving compassion in action guided by wisdom’s insightful eye. That is the mission of bodhisattva leaders and awakeners like Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox, dedicated ‘servant leaders’ who are fomenting a beloved community committed to witnessing and working towards social justice, peace and harmony, and higher consciousness.”[Lama Surya Das, author of Awakening the Buddha Within and Buddha Standard Time]
“Occupy Spirituality powerfully applies the interfaith vision globally known as ‘interspirituality’ to the activist and transformative movement for positive worldwide social change. It is a further step in our planet’s evolution toward a global civilization based on the Heart.”[Kurt Johnson, co-author of The Coming Interspiritual Age]
“The Occupy movement moves us from self-centeredness to other-centeredness. The most courageous act that any of us can do is to dare to care about others. Since our destinies are metaphysical we should start now and Occupy Spirituality. Let this book be our manual.”[Sharon Gannon, co-creator of Jivamukti Yoga, author of Yoga and Vegetarianism: The Diet of Enlightenment
“In Occupy Spirituality, Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox remind us that authentic spirituality is action. Spirituality without engagement is empty. Activism without spiritual roots is dissipative and fragmenting. Spirituality needs to empower and inspire us to action. Sadhna (meditation) and seva (service) are complementary. Spirituality and Action need to reunite. In this time of corporate rule and greed, we need to heed the message of Occupy Spirituality.”[Dr. Vandana Shiva, environmental activist, author of Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability, and Peace, and Soil Not Oil: Environmental Justice in an Age of Climate Crisis]
“Enlightened and resilient social change requires a change in the insight, compassion, and wisdom of individuals—people who occupy their spirituality, live it daily in their work, their families, and their struggles. This amazing and surprising book addresses what it means to live a life of sacred activism amidst the chaos of the 21rst century from the perspectives of a dynamic young activist and a wise elder. Everyone should read it!”[Mirabai Bush, co-author of Compassion in Action and co-founder of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society]
“Occupy Spirituality is a consciousness-raising, prophetic, and bridge-building book… In their quest for peace, justice and freedom these two radicals map out where we have been and what must be done in our times to reunite contemplation and action…”[Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality & Practice]
“I was struck by [the] description of ‘spiritual warriorship.’ This is particularly resonant with Shambhala.”[Amanda Hester, Shambhala Times]
“A fresh breeze for all concerned with conscious, committed action.”[Light of Consciousness]
About the Authors
ADAM BUCKO is cofounder of the Reciprocity Foundation, empowering homeless youth to break the cycle of poverty, and HAB, an interspiritual contemplative fellowship focused on training young people in radical spirituality and sacred activism.
MATTHEW FOX is an internationally acclaimed theologian working in the creation spirituality tradition of Christianity. He is the best-selling author of 30 books, including Original Blessing, A Spirituality Named Compassion, and The Coming of the Cosmic Christ.
Bishop John Shelby Spong Video:
Why Atonement Theology will Kill Christianity
Speaking at Community Christian Church of Springfield, MO, Bishop Spong gave us a taste of sections of his next book which will be on the Gospel of Matthew. In this lecture he is speaking to the need for the modern church to abandon its outdated commitment to belief in substitutionary death/atonement theology.
READ ON ...
Bishop John Shelby Spong: Why Atonement Theology will Kill Christianity by Community Christian Church
Speaking at Community Christian Church of Springfield, MO, Bishop Spong gave us a taste of sections of his next book which will be on the Gospel of Matthew. In this lecture he is speaking to the need for the modern church to abandon its outdated commitment to belief in substitutionary death/atonement theology.
Weekly Liturgy
Week of: July 12, 2015
Summer
Summer… memories of long, lazy days and the delicious feeling of having time for whatever comes along.
READ ON ...
Summer
Week of July 12, 2015
Summer… memories of long, lazy days and the delicious feeling of having time for whatever comes along. Following the creek, playing in the sprinkler, making lemonade and drinking it in the shade of an old tree… the effortless freedom and spontaneity of a childhood summer afternoon is as close as some of us may ever get to “being in the now.”
Worship Materials: Summer
From the Seasoned Celebration collection by William Wallace
THEME Time of fulfillment / Time of decision
THOUGHTS FOR REFLECTION
The flowering of summer is only eclipsed by the flowering of the human spirit.
Flowering has no permanency – only the process remains. Indeed the flowering only exists for the continuation of the process.
The time for completion is also the time for disengagement and for formulating the next project.
In the world of flowers, spring and summer are the times of the commencement of the next generation.
It is humbling to realize that the primary purpose of color and scent in flowers is to attract insects so that the process of pollination can be accomplished rather than to bring delight to human beings. Maybe the original purpose is not so important as the manner in which we relate to the current reality. Don’t worry about how things came to be – just make the best use of what is.
Most Western gardens are created to be a thing of beauty – something to delight the eye of the beholder. Some Eastern gardens are there primarily to assist the viewer’s spiritual pilgrimage – something to enrich the spirit of the beholder. Could we not have a combination of both?
To work with the earth is to work with God.
Just as there is nothing automatic about the growth of flowers (it all depends on the quality of the soil, the amount of moisture, the absence of strong wind, the control of weeds etc) so our spiritual life does not automatically progress from great moments of awareness unless there is tender caring, wise planning and the allocation of sufficient quality time and thought to its concerns.
Deeper than the beauty of the flowers lies the mystery of the flowering.
PRAYER
O noontide God, flowing between the pain of birth and the grief of letting go, help us to use our times of fulfillment to your glory and the well-being of all your creation.
HYMNS
The Season of life’s flowering.
http://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
Everything has its own season.
http://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
God molds the shapes of life.)
http://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
Christmas bathed in sunlight.
www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/aotearoahymns
Christmas in the Summer.
Singing the Sacred Vol 2 2014 World Library Publications
POEM / REFLECTION
SUMMER
I rejoice in Summer’s
flower and fragrance,
light and laughter,
aura and incandescence.
I celebrate warmed bodies and moist love,
petalled abundance and rainbow blossoms,
life teeming and torpid.
If only time could stand still in an eternal Summer.
But that would be to murder the season
as surely as the death of mounted butterflies;
for the wonder is in the dancing of the cycle
not the stopping of the clock,
and deeper than the beauty of the flowers
lies the mystery of the flowering.
FOCUS FOR ACTION
Summer is the noon tide of the year. In our lives the time of the height of success is also a noontide – a high noon – a time to emotionally prepare for retirement, a time to prepare for handing over to someone else, a time to take a back seat, a time to consider what we should be handing over to the next generation just as the flowering is the time of ensuring the continuation of the species.
Applying some of the principles of community development to the focus of our lives, we might well ask:
Did what I/we achieved benefit others most or myself/ourselves most?
Did it empower the people at work, the people in my family and especially the children or did it keep them in a dependency relationship?
Do the people I live with, work with, have a better understanding of the processes of society and have they become potential agents of change because of their contact with me?
3. How easy will it be for me to let go without becoming either a bitter or an interfering old person – interfering at work, at home, at church in the community groups I belong to and perhaps worst of all interfering in the affairs of my children although they are now adults.
Text and image © William Livingstone Wallace but available for free use.
The Upper Lake by Alice Smith
I walk along the wooded path
that leads to a sacred spot
flooded with the past,
drenched in the present,
and spilling over into the future.
The surface ripples with reflections
reminding me that what I see
mixes memory with reality.
The lake lined with evergreens
is dotted with demise
of ancient hemlocks older than I.
Death makes me want to cry
when I see the naked limbs
stranded in the sky.
But when I bow my head
and see the barren branches
mirrored in the water,
the blight is blurred
and death is beautifully blended in.
I don’t know what I was looking for
when I came to the lake today,
yet I always find something
floating up and sinking in.
This fluid piece of peace
is one of those thin places
that feels like multiple spaces
spliced together with mystery
and pointing to eternity.
Summer
Summer… memories of long, lazy days and the delicious feeling of having time for whatever comes along.
READ ON ...
Summer
Week of July 12, 2015
Summer… memories of long, lazy days and the delicious feeling of having time for whatever comes along. Following the creek, playing in the sprinkler, making lemonade and drinking it in the shade of an old tree… the effortless freedom and spontaneity of a childhood summer afternoon is as close as some of us may ever get to “being in the now.”
Worship Materials: Summer
From the Seasoned Celebration collection by William Wallace
THEME Time of fulfillment / Time of decision
THOUGHTS FOR REFLECTION
The flowering of summer is only eclipsed by the flowering of the human spirit.
Flowering has no permanency – only the process remains. Indeed the flowering only exists for the continuation of the process.
The time for completion is also the time for disengagement and for formulating the next project.
In the world of flowers, spring and summer are the times of the commencement of the next generation.
It is humbling to realize that the primary purpose of color and scent in flowers is to attract insects so that the process of pollination can be accomplished rather than to bring delight to human beings. Maybe the original purpose is not so important as the manner in which we relate to the current reality. Don’t worry about how things came to be – just make the best use of what is.
Most Western gardens are created to be a thing of beauty – something to delight the eye of the beholder. Some Eastern gardens are there primarily to assist the viewer’s spiritual pilgrimage – something to enrich the spirit of the beholder. Could we not have a combination of both?
To work with the earth is to work with God.
Just as there is nothing automatic about the growth of flowers (it all depends on the quality of the soil, the amount of moisture, the absence of strong wind, the control of weeds etc) so our spiritual life does not automatically progress from great moments of awareness unless there is tender caring, wise planning and the allocation of sufficient quality time and thought to its concerns.
Deeper than the beauty of the flowers lies the mystery of the flowering.
PRAYER
O noontide God, flowing between the pain of birth and the grief of letting go, help us to use our times of fulfillment to your glory and the well-being of all your creation.
HYMNS
The Season of life’s flowering.
http://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
Everything has its own season.
http://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
God molds the shapes of life.)
http://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
Christmas bathed in sunlight.
www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/aotearoahymns
Christmas in the Summer.
Singing the Sacred Vol 2 2014 World Library Publications
POEM / REFLECTION
SUMMER
I rejoice in Summer’s
flower and fragrance,
light and laughter,
aura and incandescence.
I celebrate warmed bodies and moist love,
petalled abundance and rainbow blossoms,
life teeming and torpid.
If only time could stand still in an eternal Summer.
But that would be to murder the season
as surely as the death of mounted butterflies;
for the wonder is in the dancing of the cycle
not the stopping of the clock,
and deeper than the beauty of the flowers
lies the mystery of the flowering.
FOCUS FOR ACTION
Summer is the noon tide of the year. In our lives the time of the height of success is also a noontide – a high noon – a time to emotionally prepare for retirement, a time to prepare for handing over to someone else, a time to take a back seat, a time to consider what we should be handing over to the next generation just as the flowering is the time of ensuring the continuation of the species.
Applying some of the principles of community development to the focus of our lives, we might well ask:
Did what I/we achieved benefit others most or myself/ourselves most?
Did it empower the people at work, the people in my family and especially the children or did it keep them in a dependency relationship?
Do the people I live with, work with, have a better understanding of the processes of society and have they become potential agents of change because of their contact with me?
3. How easy will it be for me to let go without becoming either a bitter or an interfering old person – interfering at work, at home, at church in the community groups I belong to and perhaps worst of all interfering in the affairs of my children although they are now adults.
Text and image © William Livingstone Wallace but available for free use.
The Upper Lake by Alice Smith
I walk along the wooded path
that leads to a sacred spot
flooded with the past,
drenched in the present,
and spilling over into the future.
The surface ripples with reflections
reminding me that what I see
mixes memory with reality.
The lake lined with evergreens
is dotted with demise
of ancient hemlocks older than I.
Death makes me want to cry
when I see the naked limbs
stranded in the sky.
But when I bow my head
and see the barren branches
mirrored in the water,
the blight is blurred
and death is beautifully blended in.
I don’t know what I was looking for
when I came to the lake today,
yet I always find something
floating up and sinking in.
This fluid piece of peace
is one of those thin places
that feels like multiple spaces
spliced together with mystery
and pointing to eternity.
more wonderful
than the way the sun,
every evening,
relaxed and easy,
floats toward the horizon
and into the clouds or the hills,
or the rumpled sea,
and is gone--
and how it slides again
out of the blackness,
every morning,
on the other side of the world,
like a red flower
streaming upward on its heavenly oils,
say, on a morning in early summer,
at its perfect imperial distance--
and have you ever felt for anything
such wild love--
do you think there is anywhere, in any language,
a word billowing enough
for the pleasure
that fills you,
as the sun
reaches out,
as it warms you
as you stand there,
empty-handed--
or have you too
turned from this world--
or have you too
gone crazy
for power,
for things?
Mary Oliver"The Sun"
Events and Updates
Releasing the Contemplative in You with Joan Chittister
July 27th through August 21st
Contemporary spirituality includes multiple forms of devotion and meditation. In this e-course, Joan Chittister looks at the most fundamental of them all — reading and writing — and their relationship to the development of the spiritual life.
READ ON ...Releasing the Contemplative in You with Joan Chittister
Contemporary spirituality includes multiple forms of devotion and meditation. In this e-course, Joan Chittister looks at the most fundamental of them all — reading and writing — and their relationship to the development of the spiritual life.
“Contemplation is coming to see the world as God sees the world, of learning to put on the mind of Christ,” explains Sr. Joan. “That takes a stripping away of old thoughts, the old assumptions, the old world view. For me, reading and writing is a necessary part of that exchange.”
For this exclusive one-month online retreat, delivered via email on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Sr. Joan looks at how reading can be a starting point for a spiritual journey and writing can be a further expression of it.
“Contemplation is coming to see the world as God sees the world, of learning to put on the mind of Christ,” explains Sr. Joan. “That takes a stripping away of old thoughts, the old assumptions, the old world view. For me, reading and writing is a necessary part of that exchange.”
For this exclusive one-month online retreat, delivered via email on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Sr. Joan looks at how reading can be a starting point for a spiritual journey and writing can be a further expression of it.
On Mondays and Fridays, you will receive short videos in which Sr. Joan examines poetry, the personal reflection, and journaling as special avenues for the growth of the soul. She will also share her own journey as a writer and be available to answer questions for you.
On Wednesdays, you will receive a brief literature selection to reflect upon and be given optional writing prompts to pursue.
In our online Practice Circle, a forum open 24/7, you will be invited to share your questions and insights as well as short excerpts from your own work.
We invite you to release the contemplative in you through this combination of spiritual wisdom and practice.
Images
Start: July 27, 2015
End: August 21, 2015
Location: Online Course
Registration: $49.95
Contact: Mary Ann Brussat
Organization: Spirituality & Practice
Website: http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/ecourses/course/view/10149/releasing-the-contemplative-in-you/key/tcpc
Email: brussat@spiritualityandpractice.com
Telephone: 212-691-5240
View all upcoming events here!
News
Job Listings
Facebook
Twitter
Website
Email
YouTube
Our mailing address is:
ProgressiveChristianity.org
4810 Point Fosdick Drive NW#80
We invite you to release the contemplative in you through this combination of spiritual wisdom and practice.
Images
Start: July 27, 2015
End: August 21, 2015
Location: Online Course
Registration: $49.95
Contact: Mary Ann Brussat
Organization: Spirituality & Practice
Website: http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/ecourses/course/view/10149/releasing-the-contemplative-in-you/key/tcpc
Email: brussat@spiritualityandpractice.com
Telephone: 212-691-5240
News
Job Listings
FacebookTwitterWebsiteEmailYouTubeOur mailing address is:
ProgressiveChristianity.org
4810 Point Fosdick Drive NW#80
Gig Harbor, Washington 98335 United States
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