The Creation Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers
Daily Meditations with Matthew Fox
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Walking the Labyrinth: A Spiritual Practice with the Four Paths |
Last week, in my class on the mystics with the Creation Spirituality Communities program, I met a woman doing a very useful thing, I believe. |
Her name is Mary Ann Wamhoff and she is a serious practitioner of the Labyrinth, having studied with Lauren Artress and taught courses herself over the years—in addition to being a regular practitioner of that ancient practice. | |
But she is also a student of Creation Spirituality and has taken it upon herself to tweak the practice slightly so that the Four Paths of CS become the basis of the practice. With
her permission, I reproduce a summary of her “Creation Spirituality Walk of the Labyrinth” here. 1. Via Positiva: First, Circle the labyrinth, preferably three times in a clockwise direction—the Celtic way, focusing on your blessings, especially
the awesome goodness of Creation! Embrace the Via Positiva and thank the minerals, flora, fauna, ancestors, stars, supernovas, original fireball, angels, and Unknowable. Connecting to the whole. |
| 2. Via Negativa: Release. As you enter and proceed to the center, focus on letting go of your grief, sadness, anger, rage, confusion. Enter the silence of your soul. Perhaps listen to the sounds of nature if you are outdoors. Feel the Via Negativa. Scream the psalm of lament silently or out loud if you are so
moved. |
3. Via Creativa. Receive. Stay in the center as long as you desire, ready to take in Spirit, inspiration, insight, creativity! Invite the Via Creativa so that you can better co-create
with Spirit and the Evolutionary Consciousness. Embrace your role as Mystic and Artist. Celebrate! As Merton says, it’s “the creative action of love and grace in our hearts.” Envision future possibilities. |
4. Via Transformativa: Return. As you leave the center and proceed to the exit (which is the same as the entrance), await information regarding your Sacred Action. Do you need to speak truth to power? Do you need to | |
get into good trouble? This is the Via Transformativa and speaks to you of
your role as Prophet. This is where we participate in evolution to create a vibrant, just, compassionate world. |
Mary Ann is an Advanced Certified Labyrinth Facilitator, a member of Veriditas Council and Veriditas International Association of Professionally Trained Labyrinth Facilitators, a member of The Labyrinth
Society, and a board Member of the Labyrinth Resource Group of Santa Fe. Her web page is: www.virginialabyrinths.com The Four Paths are laid out in Matthew Fox, Original Blessing and in Fox, Meditations with Meister Eckhart, and in many other of his works. Banner Image: Labyrinth of Chartres Cathedral. Photo by Erez Attias on Unsplash |
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today's video, please click the image. You will be taken to today's post on the Daily Meditations with Matthew Fox website, where you can see the meditation in a larger version and also view and post your Comments. In the sharing that follows, a kind of community is developing around the DM.
If you can't reach Matthew's video on the website, try his Vimeo channel HERE. |
Queries for Contemplation Do you practice walking the Labyrinth? Does this essay assist you to practice it and the Four Paths in a fuller fashion? |
Responses are welcomed. To add your comment, please click HERE
to go to our website and scroll down to the Comments field. |
Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality In this book Matthew Fox lays out a whole new direction for Christianity—a direction that is in fact very ancient and very grounded in Jewish thinking (the fact that Jesus was a Jew is often neglected by Christian theology). Here Fox lays out the Four Paths of Creation Spirituality, the Vias Positiva,
Negativa, Creativa and Transformativa in an extended and deeply developed way. “Original Blessing makes available to the Christian world and to the human community a radical cure for all dark and derogatory views of the natural world wherever these may have originated.” –Thomas Berry, author, The Dream of the Earth; The Great Work; co-author, The Universe Story | |
Meditations with Meister Eckhart: A Centering
Book A centering book by Matthew Fox. This book of simple but rich meditations exemplifies the deep yet playful creation-centered spirituality of Meister Eckhart, Meister Eckhart was a 13th-century Dominican preacher who
was a mystic, prophet, feminist, activist, defender of the poor, and advocate of creation-centered spirituality, who was condemned shortly after he died. “These quiet presentations of spirituality are remarkable for their immediacy and clarity.” –Publishers Weekly. | |
See Matthew Fox's full calendar HERE
Join Matthew Fox as he offers a new, 12-week advanced course on the Shift Network:
7 Mystics on Recovering the Sacred and
Forging a New Story for Humanity: Timeless Wisdom to Deepen, Heal & Inspire Your Life Journey. NOTE: There is a prerequisite: In order to take this 12-week advanced course, one must have taken any prior shift course with Matthew Fox (not just the 7-week 7
Mystics course). Tuesdays, August 16-November 1, 5:00pm-6:30pm PT (GMT/UTC-7). Register HERE. Join Matthew Fox in a 6-week virtual course on “Mystics, Mysticism and Ourselves as Mystic-Prophets,” hosted by Creation Spirituality Communities. Wednesdays, 8/24, 8/31, 9/7, 9/14,
9/21, and 9/28, 4:00pm-6:00pm PT. Register HERE. Join Matthew Fox for the monthly Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat, discussing The Coming of the Cosmic Christ, Thursday, September 15, 4:00pm-6:00pm PT. Register HERE. |
Creation Spirituality in Conversation |
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Host Sandie Sedbeer welcomes Matthew Fox in a discussion of Creation Spirituality: Fresh Perspectives and Approaches to the Most Vital Issues of Our Time on WHAT IS GOING OM. Navigate to the podcast page by clicking the image on the left. |
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