On this Christmas season, it’s good to carry extra alive the mystic—that’s the lover—in all of us. In addition to the non secular warrior or prophet. Jesus was each absolutely and he known as all of us to our christ-like (or buddha-like or image-of-God-like) potentialities.
As we shared in yesterday’s DM, his “Our Father” prayer was actually—primarily based on the Aramaic translation–that we carry heaven to earth by the work of our “fiery hearts and prepared fingers.” Mentioned he,
O Birther! Father-Mom of the Cosmos,
you create all that strikes
in gentle…
Create your reign of unity now—
by our fiery hearts
and wiling fingers.
How are we doing? How fiery are our hearts and the way prepared are our fingers at the moment in historical past when Mom Earth is struggling so critically and when Father Sky is being newly appreciated because of Webb Telescope and so many different scientific discoveries of how we—the solar, moon, earth, her creatures and Homo sapiens arrived?
How does the Good Information of our existence and its 13.8 billion-year journey to be the place we discover ourselves on this huge universe of two trillion galaxies, every with lots of of billions of stars, elicit our gratitude and generosity?
One technique to reply this query is to look about us for others who’re expressing their gratitude with their fiery hearts and prepared fingers. Artist Lily Yeh is such an individual.
Early this month, I acquired a letter from Lily telling me that she was invited to ship a Ted speak. We’ve identified one another for a variety of years as she visited our creation spirituality applications to share her highly effective work, and we now have labored collectively on conferences over time.
I like to recommend strongly blessing your self this Christmas season by taking in her 15-minute TED speak which, together with the images of her work, converse soundly of her fiery coronary heart and loving fingers.* I embrace right here the letter I wrote her on December 4, 2024, in response to her speak.
Lovely speak and presentation, Lily! I beloved listening to your magical story informed anew and with so many visuals to accompany it and to a different and I’m certain completely different viewers. It was very transferring and I beloved how individuals broke into applause alongside the way in which.
You might be so proper that magnificence saves and particularly in onerous instances like we discover ourselves in at present for the explanations you title–conflict, extinction of species, international warming and a lot extra. Thanks for being true to your massive vocation and braveness in going to the damaged locations and providing invites to the younger first who draw the adults and wonder and miracles comply with. And permitting your gentle to shine.
Continued blessings on you and your inspiring work. Might it unfold and unfold and unfold.
There’s a citation from a fifteenth century mystic and scientist (Nicolas of Cusa) that I like very a lot that got here to me as you spoke. It goes like this: ‘Humanity will discover that it isn’t a range of creeds, however the exact same creed which is in all places proposed.
There can’t be however one knowledge. If it had been attainable to have many wisdoms these must be from one; for earlier than any plurality exists there should first be unity.
People should subsequently all agree that there’s however one simplest knowledge whose energy is infinite and everybody, in explaining the depth of this magnificence, should uncover that it’s a supreme and horrible magnificence.’
Love and thanks,
Matthew
*Lily Yeh, “How artwork transforms brokenness into magnificence” on Ted Talks, April 2024.
See Matthew Fox, Christian Mystics, pp. 158f.
And Fox, The Reinvention of Work: A New Imaginative and prescient of Livelihood for Our Time, pp. 190-217.
And Fox, Creativity: The place the Divine and the Human Meet.
And Fox, The A.W.E. Challenge: Reinventing Schooling, Reinventing the Human.
And Fox, “The Cosmic Christ and Creativity:” in Fox, The Coming of the Cosmic Christ, pp. 199-210.
Banner Picture: “Lily Yeh by Daniel Traub” Photograph by Daniel Traub, Wikimedia Commons
Queries for Contemplation
Does Lily Yeh’s story encourage your good work—no matter it’s—that’s born of fiery hearts and prepared fingers as a response of gratitude to your existence?
Really useful Studying
Christian Mystics: 365 Readings & Meditations
As Matthew Fox notes, when an getting older Albert Einstein was requested if he had any regrets, he replied, “I want I had learn extra of the mystics earlier in my life.” The 365 writings in Christian Mystics symbolize a wide-ranging sampling of those readings for modern-day seekers of all faiths — or no religion. The visionaries quoted vary from Julian of Norwich to Martin Luther King, Jr., from Thomas Merton to Dorothee Soelle and Thomas Berry.
“Our world is in disaster, and we’d like highway maps that may floor us in knowledge, encourage us to motion, and assist us collect our skills in service of compassion and justice. This revolutionary e book does simply that. Matthew Fox takes a few of the most profound non secular teachings of the West and interprets them into sensible every day mediations. Examine and observe these teachings. Take what’s on this e book and train it to the youth as a result of the brand new technology can’t afford to endure the spirit and moral illiteracy of the previous.” — Adam Bucko, non secular activist and co-founder of the Reciprocity Basis for Homeless Youth.
The Reinvention of Work: A New Imaginative and prescient of Livelihood For Our Time
Thomas Aquinas mentioned, “To reside properly is to work properly,” and on this daring name for the revitalization of every day work, Fox shares his imaginative and prescient of a world the place our private {and professional} lives are celebrated in concord–a world the place the self isn’t sacrificed for a job however is sanctified by genuine “soul work.”
“Fox approaches the extent of poetry in describing the reciprocity that should be current between one’s internal and outer work…[A]n essential highway map to social change.” ~~ Nationwide Catholic Reporter
Creativity: The place the Divine and Human Meet
As a result of creativity is the important thing to each our genius and wonder as a species but in addition to our capability for evil, we have to train creativity and to show methods of steering this God-like energy in instructions that promote love of life (biophilia) and never love of demise (necrophilia). Pushing properly past the bounds of typical Christian doctrine, Fox’s deal with creativity makes an attempt nothing lower than to form a brand new ethic.
“Matt Fox is a pilgrim who seeks a path into the church of tomorrow. Numerous numbers will likely be joyful to comply with his lead.” –Bishop John Shelby Spong, writer, Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism, Dwelling in Sin
The A.W.E. Challenge reminds us that awe is the suitable response to the unfathomable surprise that’s creation… A.W.E. can also be the acronym for Fox’s proposed model of studying – an method to steadiness the three R’s. This method to studying, eldering, and mentoring is clever sufficient to honor the teachings of the Ancestors, to nurture Knowledge in addition to imparting information, and to Educate by Fox’s 10 C’s. The ten C’s are the core of the A.W.E. philosophy and technique of training, and embrace: compassion, contemplation, and creativity. The A.W.E. Challenge does for the huge topic of “studying” what Fox’s Reinvention of Work did for vocation and Unique Blessing did for theology. Included within the e book is a dvd of the ten C’s put to 10 video raps created and carried out by Professor Pitt.
“An awe-based imaginative and prescient of academic renewal.” — Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Apply.
The Coming of the Cosmic Christ: The Therapeutic of Mom Earth and the Start of a World Renaissance
In what could also be thought of essentially the most complete define of the Christian paradigm shift of our Age, Matthew Fox eloquently foreshadows the way during which the spirit of Christ resurrects when it comes to the return to an earth-based mysticism, the expression of creativity, mystical sexuality, the respect due the younger, the rebirth of efficient types of worship—all of those mirroring the continued blessings of Mom Earth and the restoration of Eros, the female facet of the Divine.
“The eighth surprise of the world…convincing proof that our Western spiritual custom does certainly have the depth of creativeness to reinvent its religion.” — Brian Swimme, writer of The Universe Story and Journey of the Universe.
“This e book is a basic.” Thomas Berry, writer of The Nice Work and The Dream of the Earth.
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