The move from the socialized mind to the self authoring mind might well be characterized by the move from being told what to see, believe and how to fit in, to how to see, come to your own conclusions and what what it means to be an interdependent individual. (have you gotten his book yet?)
The question I think facing the church as we head into the second decade of this millennium is whether or not we are comfortable with facilitating peoples journeys within the context of community or whether we are more concerned to create cookie cutter clones who believe the same thing, quote the same verses, have the same views on the Left Behind series, homosexuality, politics, woman’s role in marriage and church and genetic engineering. [read more...]
Jane Loevinger is one of the pioneers in the area of ego development or how we see the world and how we make sense of our lives (including God, others and the universe around us) are what experts refer to as meaning making systems. Meaning making, or the development of the “self” or “ego,” is what goes on as we learn to make increasingly sophisticated meaning of the world around us.
A five year old thinks there are monsters under the bed at night. When we come in and turn on the light and show them there is nothing to be scared of we are often greeted with the explanation that “of course the monsters hide for the light they are only there in the dark.” This is the way a 5 year old makes sense of their world. If that was still going on at 13 years of age we would be concerned. Most of us are familiar with child development and the name of someone like Jean Piaget. We are less familiar with adult development. [read more...]
In my post from the 8th I mentioned three things I more convinced of than ever before, and for where the church sits in culture and our needed response. I said… Spirituality will be more creational, relational and communitarian into the 21st century There are always two things in play when it comes the church’s role/response to culture. There is reflective and informed biblical reading and there is insightful and aware cultural sign post reading. We need both for the church to be effective. [read more...]
A year ago on the anniversary of the posting of Luther’s 95 Theses I was invited with 8 others from the US and 16 others from the rest of the world, to go to Wittenburg to discuss what the Next Reformations (notice the plural) might look like for us in the 21st century. The title of this blog post was what I talked about. I said then, have said it on this site, and have spoken about it at conferences for the last year. Spirituality in the 21st century will be more relational, creational and communitarian. The image you see here was for our year long class called spiritual explorations live.
All that background to say when I arrived a church consult with one of the churches I have been working with for the last 18 months the guy I most closely collaborate with said “we are going to see Avatar today, I think you are going to be surprised.” Well, he was right. Avatar might be the best depiction in movie form of what a spirituality of seeing and awareness might look like in a the postmodern West. Is it technologically spectacular? Yes. Is it the most expensive movie made in history? Yes. Is it a mashup (@dethim for that language application) of stories like Pocahontas and Dances with Wolves? Yes. Is it a great illustration of a spirituality with creational, communitarian and relational sensitivities? Yes! And it is for this last reason I would most press you should see it. This movie is a perfect conversation piece on semiotics…the signs of the times.
Come on gang let’s not bicker about whether or not Cameron’s theology is perfectly biblical or too pantheistic or all the other crazy debates we get into. No one said this was a biblical theological expose’. Let’s acknowledge he has a pulse on the spirituality of our times and is doing it with robust imagination, something that often seems rather domesticated within the church.
Every once in a while a quick summary….for those that have been following skip to the “NEW MATERIAL” header half way down
transformation means a change in how you see the world and a shift in how you see yourself. Not just a shift in your point of view but a whole different perception what of what is possible.
DEFINITION- ongoing and integrated shifts in the way we see and make meaning of ourselves God others and the world.
Portals to Transformation
1 DEEP PERSONAL PAIN
jars us out of autopilot and causes us to ask deep questions and question the way things are supposed to be
2. Noetic Experiences…
3. The Right Resources, teacher, situations come on the scene
Choices that Cultivate Possible Transformative Moments – the gardeners metaphor we developed
1. Gardeners accommodate new experiences and resist assimilating them. [read more...]
The last post we gave you the opportunity to review attention and intention posts and just briefly mentioned repetition. These three key legs are what support a good practice.
Some people balk at this work practice but let me tell you why we use it. Jesus as an example had a practice of pulling away from the crowds and heading to the mountains, desert or water. This practice was for apparently a number of things… but what is important is that the Gospels make clear this rhythm of “awayness” funded him being in a different way. In other words awayness changed his withness. Practice patterns fund life patterns. Practice enables us to do through training what we simply can’t accomplish through trying. [read more...]
I said we would explore the notion found in almost every tradition, the renewing of the mind as a critical consideration for transformation. Unfortunately I think our love affair with the biblical text (not a good thing I might add, I think we are textually addicted) has clouded our reading of that very text.
When Paul says be transformed Romans (in 12.1-2) by the renewing of your mind I have yet to hear instruction on how this is to be done except by taking in more bible text, memorize more bible text, study more bible text, think about bible text. Maybe I was just exposed most of my life to one narrow strand of teaching. [read more...]
There are any number of ways to train our awareness which is why we are so big on centering prayer and the sources that can fund that practice like John Cassian’s Conferences, The Cloud of Unknowing, St Bonaventure’s Soul’s Journey to God, Thomas Keating’s work, Cynthia Borgeault, and Murchadh O’Madagain (Bourgeault’s Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening and O’Madagain’s Centering Prayer and the Healing of the Unconcious are the two best places to start if you are new to the practice.) [read more...]
Sunday I will speak in Cape Town to a large group that forms the core of a church plant that is a genuine attempt to think and be in different ways. The services are more facilitated conversations than preaching events, web 2.0 technology is increasingly informing the conversation creating a church 2.0 environment. I love their willing spirit and drive to be Jesus in the worlds in which they live in.
Here is the video to open the 2 week conversation I will be doing on doubt.
One of the most powerful spiritual mentoring times I have experienced was when I got to spend a week retreat where David Steindl-Rast was present. I only had a couple hour long sessions with him for spiritual direction, but his input has been indelible.
His simple message is that gratefulness as a pattern and practice is life transforming. That is it. Nothing deeper, nothing more insightful.
His coaching to me… “Ron gratefulness is always a reflection on something, someone, some event, and usually something transformative. The way we keep that memory transformative and those events potent is for gratefulness to bring them into the present. This is the big loss in our times. We don’t keep bringing important moments from the past forward.”
Today is a day designed for just this… pull the past into the present. Practice gratefulness. For some more help from Father David take a look here.
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VelocityCulture.com is a web and conference based resource brokering the best leadership, cultural and theological resources. Through consulting, conference speaking, learning communities and e-learning all over the world and a redesigned seminary-like learning experience called III:TEXT, VelocityCulture.com is helping bring about deep shifts in the way people live, think and lead.
