The Creation Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers |
Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh |
08/05/2023
by Rick Reich-Kuykendall |
The title of this book indicates a paradox, as most
religious people would think “sins” would be of the “flesh.” Matthew turns it around and shows that there are blessings of the flesh and sins of the spirit—as he demonstrates with the seven capital or “deadly” sins.
(See quotations by Matthew Fox, below.) |
The classical teaching about sin in the Garden of Eden is that we must resist the trinity of lust, pride, and disobedience. Desire gets a hit, pride takes a wallop, and disobedience get you a ticket to hell itself. But there may be genuine overkill here: What about the need for desire, for passion, for knowing what calls us and allures us,
sirenlike, from our | |
slumber? Fire is not the problem—in fact, acedia is lack of fire, and there lies the problem. Knowing and responding generously to what motivates us is an essential part of being alive in the world. Teresa of Avila
said that prayer is 95 percent desire! |
| One of Thomas Aquinas’s definitions of sin, was “misdirected love.” Perhaps evil is inevitable in a universe as powerful and creative and full of eating and being eaten, living and dying
as ours is. Perhaps evil is to blessing what terror is to beauty. Perhaps evil is the moral equivalent of terror, the moral counterpoint to beauty. Just as beauty and terror go together, so do goodness and evil, blessing and malice. Perhaps. |
See Matthew Fox, Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh: Transforming Evil in Soul and Society. pp. 228-229, 161, 160 Banner image: Blessings of the Flesh. Photo by Eye for Ebony on
Unsplash |
Queries for Contemplation Share some
of your blessings of the flesh and sins of the spirit---if you feel comfortable. |
Responses are welcomed. To add your comment, please click HERE
to go to our website and scroll down to the Comments field. |
Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh: Transforming Evil in Soul and Society Visionary theologian and best-selling author
Matthew Fox offers a new theology of evil that fundamentally changes the traditional perception of good and evil and points the way to a more enlightened treatment of ourselves, one another, and all of nature. In comparing the Eastern tradition of the 7 chakras to the Western tradition of the 7 capital sins, Fox allows us to think creatively about our capacity for personal and institutional evil and what we can do about them.
“A scholarly masterpiece
embodying a better vision and depth of perception far beyond the grasp of any one single science. A breath-taking analysis.” — Diarmuid O’Murchu, author of Quantum Theology: Spiritual Implications of the New Physics
| |
See Matthew Fox's full calendar
HERE |
Join Matthew Fox and Brian Swimme in a new 7-week online course hosted by The Shift Network: "Science, Spirituality & the Noosphere: Deepen the Meaning of Your Life & the Power You Hold to Create Fulfillment & Happiness," beginning August 8. Register
HERE and receive access to a free introductory video. Join Matthew Fox for a Cosmic Mass and Panel Forum at the 2023 Parliament of the World’s Religions - A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom & Human Rights, August 14-18 in Chicago, IL Wed., 8/16, 7:00pm CT - The Cosmic Mass - Honoring Gaia, Solidarity for Our Earth Thurs., 8/17, 1:00pm CT – Panel and Response to The Cosmic Mass Register HERE. |
Creation Spirituality Conversations |
Aaron Perry hosts Matthew Fox on the Y On
Earth podcast, on “Hildegard von Bingen & Her “Viriditas,” sharing profound wisdom and deep insights about the essential importance of our relationship with Mother Earth, our celebration of the Divine Feminine, and our connection with Creation Spirituality, drawing upon centuries
of knowledge and wisdom from indigenous and mystical traditions world-wide… particularly from the Rhineland Mystic Movement of the medieval European Renaissance, and a most extraordinary woman at its helm: Hildegard von Bingen. | |
Please share this post! Just click the buttons below.
OR share your insights on Instagram or Twitter using the hashtag #RevDrMatthewFox and tag Matt with @RevDrMatthewFox
|
|
|
|
