Posts tagged evolution
The World in the Tomb

This is a strange Easter, no doubt about it. The day to celebrate resurrection this year is marked by separation, isolation, and underlying fear. People are dying, and the world as we knew it has gone underground. Some are mourning. Some are waiting with apprehension for what will come next. What will happen to our lives and to the way the world will be?

In many ways, this is not too different from the first the very first Easter morning for the followers of Jesus. While we generally try to celebrate the resurrection and get on to the part of the story where the tomb is empty and the Living Jesus has appeared, perhaps this Easter it makes sense to start as the disciples did. Let’s accept and the uncertainty of the moment.

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PracticeLuke HealyEaster, evolution Comments
God Beyond God – Evolutionary Devotion

“This is the most dangerous prayer you can pray, you know?”

I remember the words but not the speaker. I remember because I was bold enough and perhaps naïve enough to think I was up to the task. My spiritual ego was still quite strong and my zealous traditional Christian upbringing had prepared me well for the moment. Yes, I was ready. I could do this. I knew enough to know that I didn’t know what the consequences would be, only that they would be beyond what I could imagine at the time.

I’m pretty sure I literally, physically got down on my knees. And I opened my mouth to pray:

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EvolutionLuke Healyevolution, development, Devotion Comments
Cocreating Mystical Reality

“Transpersonal cocreation refers to dynamic interaction between embodied human beings and the mystery in the bringing forth of spiritual insights, practices, states, and worlds.”

-Jorge Ferrer

Last week, Paul wrote about partnering with God in the work of evolution through co-creation. He wrote about how that work involves doing more than Jesus did (John 14:12), participating in the birth of new creation (Rom. 8: 19-23), cutting “Kosmic grooves” into the fabric of tomorrow’s reality (Ken Wilber), and realizing “ourselves as incarnate divine creativity” (Richard Rohr). I’ve got those on my to-do list, but I’m not sure if I’ll quite finish by the end of the week!

No, of course these are life-long works of no short order. But it is also highly empowering to recognize that we have the potential and ability to engagingly participate in the evolving work of God. Not only can we, but we are highly encouraged to do so!

So how do we do this? Where do we start?

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MysticismLuke HealyCocreation, evolution, Mystical Comments
Christianity Beyond Tribalism
Christianity Beyond Tribalism

Why We Still Need Christianity

If we adopt a posture of growth in our lives and seek to continue to evolve in learning, practicing, loving, and more, we will discover one of the core principles of development: evolution moves toward greater inclusivity and greater complexity.

Fortunately, this direction of evolution will ultimately be the end of tribal religion—religion that is defined by its hard boundaries of saved and unsaved, believer and nonbeliever, holy and heathen, sacred and secular. The fuel for religious wars will run dry. Persecution and ostracization will be replaced by harmony and welcome. The lion will lay down with the lamb.

This beautiful utopia of the future is possible (if we have enough time to get there as a species), but some people believe the way we arrive at such a place is through the conglomeration or unification of spirituality into a synchronized path for all. That dissolving the boundaries leads to not only no separation, but also no distinction.  

But this homogenization is not in keeping with the principle of complexity. And sometimes our hopes . . . .

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MysticismLuke Healyevolution, Teilhard, Mystical, worship Comments
Everything That Rises Must Converge

Why We Need the “We” – Part Three

We are experiencing a great convergence in humanity today. As the world evolves further and further technologically and scientifically, the space is shrinking. Globalization is bringing people together in new ways both profound and troubling. This external convergence is absolutely heightening the need for greater evolution and convergence in our interior spaces: our morality, our values, our education, our empathy, and certainly our spirituality.

When there is a strong convergence, two ranges of outcome are possible: A horrible crash or a beautiful communion.

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WeSpace, Evolution, PracticeLuke Healyevolution, WeSpace, TeilhardComment
Evolving Collective Spiritual Practice

Why We Need the “We” – Part Two

Last week we explored the shift from shoulder-to-shoulder to heart-to-heart, focusing specifically on practice with just one other person. This week we’re going to broaden that out to a community context. Not only do we need to expand our spiritual practice beyond the confines of individualism, but we desperately need to evolve how we gather and practice together.

We also emphasized the importance of the need to further reflect oneness in our spiritual practice. If we seek the experience of oneness with all, and with one other person, what would it look like to seek this experience in a group? And wouldn’t such a group practice be reflective of a more evolved approach to our spiritual gatherings?

How do we get there? 

Let’s start with a very simple picture. Imagine a group of people sitting in rows of chairs (or pews) looking up at a person on a stage. Now picture a circle of chairs with people sitting, facing one another. What difference do you feel? Where in your body do you feel it? Stay there for a moment.

Now picture a glowing heart radiating from each person in the circle. See the spiritual energy and love flowing out of them. As the waves expand out, everyone’s spiritual energy fields are overlapping and engaging with one other, creating a palpable collective field where love, wisdom, encouragement, and much more can emerge. Is this a spiritual reality?

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WeSpace, Evolution, PracticeLuke Healypractice, evolution, WeSpace, Mystical, Heart PathComment