Blog
What happened to spirit and spiritual experience during the first 2300 years of Western philosophy?
January 8, 2015
Rafael, The School of Athens Here are a few highlights from the history of philosophy showing an interesting variety of views regarding spiritual experience. Heraclitus around 500 BCE wrote that the god [daimon, indwelling divine spirit] is home [ethos] for a human being. Then Parmenides around 475 BCE, wrote a poem narrating a mystical experience of being carried in a chariot driven by goddesses who pilot him through the Gate of Justice on the way… Read More
Three types of religion: self-interested, intrinsic, and adventure (with Gandhi quotes)
January 5, 2015
What’s the evidence that religion makes a difference in a person’s level of altruism? Pretty slim, depending how religion is defined. People who go through the motions of being religious but are basically motivated by self-interest . . . well, what do you think? Right. No difference between external religion and no religion at all when it comes to doing for others. What about persons who devoutly embrace religious teachings as truths of intrinsic value?… Read More
New Year’s resolutions and Jesus’ decisions in the wilderness
January 1, 2015
There is a custom of making a New Year’s resolution, for example: This year I will get organized. These resolutions are notoriously impotent. By contrast, a decision launches an action or a course of action: Today I will spend an hour organizing my work space. If this is to count as a decision in the sense I have in mind, I must begin organizing now . . . or at least begin the course of… Read More
Love and friendship after Christmas
December 29, 2014
Aristotle (computer graphic) After the heartening response to the Christmas blogpost, it would feel like a betrayal to return here to business as usual. I offer a few observations and reflections on friendship, dedicated to you who responded so generously to that previous message. I love birthdays, including Christmas, because they celebrate you not for any achievement but just because you are. So much of life is striving, but being, simply being, is equally… Read More
Christmas letter: meaning, value, and family news
December 25, 2014
Wise men still seek him–and find him. Beloveds, (This is a short form for my mantra: You are a divinely created, infinitely loved, spiritually indwelt, evolutionary, free-will, son or daughter of God!) Christmas—for so many of us, a holiday brimming with meaning and value. It is also a great time for family and friends to catch up on news. Can we do two things at once? Of course we can, especially since the son of… Read More
Shin Buddhist faith–how close to Christianity?
December 22, 2014
Christians sometimes wonder, debate, and pray about the salvation of non-Christians. An answer to this question by Wilfred Cantwell Smith was that if it takes faith to be saved, then those are saved whose central affirmation is, “I take refuge in the Buddha. I take refuge in the dharma (teaching). I take refuge in the sangha (Buddhist community).” If we make a distinction between spiritual faith and intellectual belief, we can find faith in sincere… Read More
When it doesn’t make any difference which alternative we choose
December 18, 2014
A friend of mine reported hearing once unmistakably from God. She had debated intensely and at length between two passions: to pursue a career in opera or to go to seminary and then into the ministry. Exhausted by the struggle, she heard, “It doesn’t make any difference.” We have heard about Buridan’s ass, the donkey starving between two equally inviting bales of hay. We sometimes toss a coin to decide a contested issue. Though… Read More
Wisdom from Tagore for transcending foolish polarization
December 15, 2014
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) 1909 When perspectives clash, we do well to keep three dimensions in mind: affirming our common humanity, trying to understand our differences, and cherishing the unique personality of every individual. To disparage the notion of a common humanity (since it is so differently conceived from one culture to another) and to overlook the unique individual (since individuals are more typical than they suspect), and to consider people only in terms such as… Read More
Be perfect. Here’s a short path.
December 11, 2014
During the solitude of the morning came a moment of abject humiliation. It was ugly, but it revealed a new depth of need for personal growth—an opportunity not to pass up. So I prayed for help and sought to learn whatever I could. The line that came to mind was, “Be you perfect.” For the first time I thought through an approach to that invitation. First of all, be. This involves letting go of overactive… Read More