Evolutionary spirituality, though it comes in many colors, has a message much more suited for the life conditions of the modern and postmodern world: the evolution of this world is the goal of spiritual life. And by “world” I mean the manifest cosmos of time and space, both the interior and exterior realms – consciousness, culture, and cosmos. The action is here – in this time, in this place, in the possibilities that lie in the near and distant future of this culture, this world, this universe. Yes, there still may be spiritual transcendence of the most radical, sublime, and subtle forms, but transcendence is in the service of evolution, not the other way around. And the difference is everything.
Evolutionaries by Carter Phipps
Weekly Pause & Ponder
It is love itself that brings all of us together. This human family we are part of, this singular voice that is the accumulation of all voices raised together in praise of all Creation, this one heartbeat, this one drum, this one immaculate love that put us here together so that we could learn its primary teaching – that love is the energy of Creation, that is takes love to create love.
Embers by Richard Wagamese, p. 46
Weekly Pause & Ponder
Service as an expression of joy is not structured around the concept of doing things for others so much as acting in a way that dissolves the boundary of self and others. The joy experienced in this context is an expression of a non-dual state of being.
The Conscious Activist by James O’Dea, p. 172
Weekly Pause & Ponder
There is no amount of darkness that can extinguish the inner light. The important thing is not to spend our lives trying to control the environment around us. The task is to control the environment within us.
Joan Chittister. www.azquotes.com
Weekly Pause & Ponder
Love [people] even in [their] sin, for that is the semblance of Divine Love and is the highest love on earth. Love all God’s creation, the whole and every grain of sand in it. Love every leaf, every ray of God’s light. Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things. Once you have perceived it, you will begin to comprehend it better every day. And you will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky. www.meditations@cac.org