It’s funny how quickly people pick up the Christmas script this time of year, talking about how “Jesus is the reason for the season.” We scurry about from store to store, looking for just the right holiday decorations, cards, and gifts. We load up our credit cards and keep retailers in business for another year. ThisContinue reading “Remembering Jesus at Christmas”
Tag Archives: Christianity
Curriculum Spiritus
In a recent post I offered a perspective on religion which views it as a single transcultural evolutionary phenomenon, not merely this or that religious tradition but religion itself as the creative incubator of a higher spiritual wisdom. Already this sounds suspicious, given the fact that religions today (and for a while now) have been moreContinue reading “Curriculum Spiritus”
The Progress of Wisdom
I write this on the day after the city of Paris suffered a coordination of terrorist attacks on its citizens. Just this morning we learned that ISIS (a radical sect of Islam that seeks to establish a theocratic state) has claimed responsibility for the slaughter of 129 innocent lives (and still counting). It’s tempting toContinue reading “The Progress of Wisdom”
Human Doing and Human Being
Morality (from the Latin mos, custom): Folkways of central importance accepted without question and embodying the fundamental moral views of a group. Ethics (from the Greek ethos, custom): The body of moral principles or values governing or distinctive of a particular culture or group. My description of the ethical function of religion has prompted aContinue reading “Human Doing and Human Being”
Our Moment of Decision
Today we seem to be at a moment of decision. Looking at the world’s main faith-traditions, ask yourself: Would I rather, along with Pope John-Paul II, turn away from Buddhism and turn first of all to the Muslim, because he like me believes above all else in the unity of God and in God’s revealedContinue reading “Our Moment of Decision”
Deliver Us From Conviction
In The Great Triathlon of Religion I attempted to put more definition around the type of religion called post-theism. If we are to really appreciate its distinctive contribution to our development as individuals and our evolution as a species, the meaning of post-theism needs to advance beyond being seen as nothing more than a resolutionContinue reading “Deliver Us From Conviction”
The Gravity and Glory of Existence
What is the meaning of Easter? Is it just about someone who died nearly two thousand years ago and came back to life? For almost half its history, Christianity celebrated Easter as its principal message to the world. As the Middle Ages dawned, however, the focus shifted to the Atonement where Jesus was supposed to have accomplishedContinue reading “The Gravity and Glory of Existence”
The Mythic Quest of Captain Ego
As an advocate for post-theism I give frequent attention to the question of how it differs from theism. I’ve made the point that the “post” in post-theism should not be interpreted to mean that theism is being left behind for a more preferable secular atheism. Whereas atheism takes its very existence from the debate overContinue reading “The Mythic Quest of Captain Ego”
An Update for Religion?
One of the biggest complaints I have about much contemporary religion is that it obligates believers to accept (whole or in part) worldviews which are thousands of years old and wildly outdated. This isn’t my problem only, as modern thinkers (and thoughtful believers) have struggled with the relevance issue for several centuries now. For a short while weContinue reading “An Update for Religion?”
Supremacy and Communion
Quick, before you start thinking too much, give your spontaneous response to the following question. Which of the two combinations of geometric shapes do you find more appealing? Now that I have your attention (though perhaps for only one more paragraph), let me do a little “psychic reading” of your life. This preference means thatContinue reading “Supremacy and Communion”
Tracts of Revolution 