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Some
Truths about Fascism 05/17/2024 |
Let me tell you some characteristics of Fascism: |
Fascism seeks to control. Fascism wants to control women’s bodies. Fascism wants to control ideas. Fascism wants to burn books or ban them. Fascism is Patriarchy unmasked. Fascism is dualism on steroids—Us vs. Them. |
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Fascism
blames others and projects onto others. Fascism is ill at ease with democracy. Fascism is the reptilian brain dominating. Fascism is full of fear. Fascism is not happy and does not spread happiness. Fascism is about Control, Control, Control. Fascism is about power-over. |
“The 10 tactics of fascism” by Jason Stanley. Big Think. | Fascism is contrary to Compassion. Fascism is deeply misogynistic. Fascism is sadistic. |
Fascism is about “I win, you lose.” Fascism is not interested in truth. Fascism is not interested in freedom. Fascism is afraid of play. Fascism is regularly pre-occupied with sex. Fascism has no Via Positiva and is frightened of goodness and beauty and awe—anything bigger than itself. Fascism is ill at ease with contemplation or meditation, silence or stillness or contemplation, thus with the Via
Negativa. Fascism is unmoved by the suffering of others. Fascism is frightened of artists and art and creativity, thus ill at home with the Via
Creativa. Fascism knows nothing—and wants to know nothing–about justice or compassion or authentic celebration. Fascism is uninterested in
truth. Power is its goal. |
Fascism has no heart and turns its back on Aquinas’s teaching that “the proper objects of the heart are truth and justice.” Fascism is contrary to the teachings of Jesus. (It is time the Pope write an encyclical |
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against Fascism and
dismantle Opus Dei while he is at it.) |
This is what I have learned about Fascism from observing it and studying it. In practice, it fills the definition of Susan Sontag as “institutional violence.” Compare the Supreme Court’s decision to overthrow Roe v Wade and the violence that has ensued with pregnant women. And how pleased the fascists are of their work that is rendering women so miserable and afraid--but fighting back. Sadists need masochists to
be “happy.” |
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See Matthew Fox, The Pope’s War: Why Ratzinger’s Secret War Has Imperiled the Church and What Can Be Saved. And Fox, A Spirituality Named Compassion. And Fox, Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh: Transforming Evil in Soul and Society, pp. xiii, 9f., 20, 155, 195, 258, 300.
Banner image: “The Day They Hung Democracy.” Image by Daniel Arrhakis on Flickr. |
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Responses are welcomed. To add
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Queries for Contemplation |
Do these understandings of Fascism resonate with you? Do they help explain some of the goings-on in politics in the world today? How can healthy spirituality blunt fascism’s appeal in today’s world? |
The Pope’s War: Why Ratzinger’s Secret Crusade Has Imperiled the Church and How It Can Be Saved
The Pope’s War offers a provocative look at three decades of corruption in the
Catholic Church, focusing on Josef Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI. The final section in the book focuses on birthing a truly catholic Christianity.
“This book should be read by everybody, not only for its ferocious courage, but also for its vision for what needs to be saved from the destructive forces that threaten authentic Christianity.” ~ Andrew Harvey, author of The Hope.
“In the gripping The Pope’s War, Matthew Fox takes an unwavering look at the layers of corruption in the Catholic Church, holding moral truth against power.” — Jason Berry, author of Vows of Silence: The Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II
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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 |
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A Spirituality Named Compassion: Uniting Mystical Awareness with Social Justice
In A Spirituality Named Compassion, Matthew Fox delivers a profound exploration of the
meaning and practice of compassion. Establishing a spirituality for the future that promises personal, social, and global healing, Fox marries mysticism with social justice, leading the way toward a gentler and more ecological spirituality and an acceptance of our interdependence which is the substratum of all compassionate activity.
“Well worth our deepest
consideration…Puts compassion into its proper focus after centuries of neglect.” –The Catholic Register
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In the Beginning There Was Joy: A Cosmic Celebration for Kids of All Ages
The first book in the Father Fox’s Fantastical Fables series tells the story of the big bang and how humans fit into the awesome, fantastical,
cosmic picture! With artwork curated from illustrators around the world, this book expresses the joy and wonder of all peoples and cultures, planting seeds of respect, cooperation and hope to work together for the healing of our planet. "Matthew Fox has created a narrative, for every parent and grandparent, both spiritual and
scientific, that is a gift for all elders who recognize their responsibility in initiating the young ones into the grandeur of existence." Cosmologist Brian Swimme, Author of Cosmogenesis and The Universe Story "Matthew Fox has given all of us, children included, a wondrous and enchanting view of creation
and all that humanity should aspire to." - Caroline Myss, Author of Anatomy of the Spirit and A Time for Grace |
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UPCOMING EVENTS See Matthew Fox's full calendar
HERE |
Join Matthew Fox in a new, live, 7-week video course hosted by the Shift Network, Cultivating Compassion in Spirituality: What Meister Eckhart & Other World Mystics Can Teach Us About Navigating Collective Turmoil. Tuesdays, May 7 – June 25, 5:00pm - 6:30pm PT. Register HERE. |
Join Matthew Fox as he discusses his book with scientist Rupert Sheldrake, Natural Grace: Dialogues on Creation, Darkness and the Soul in Spirituality and Science in an Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat, Thursday, May 16, 4:00-5:30 pm PT.
Register HERE. |
Join keynote speakers Matthew Fox and Brian Swimme at the 2024 Creation Spirituality Communities Gathering on “Reimagining Our Story, Hope for Humanity,” live at Cape Cod, MA and by livestream. Friday, May 31 – Sunday, June 2. Learn more and register HERE. |
Creation Spirituality Conversations |
Matthew Fox speaks on "Preserving Things in the Good" at the Unity of Walnut Creek Earth Day worship service held on April 21, 2024. |
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