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Teilhard and Aquinas Battling Dualism

06/12/2024

Teilhard, like Thomas Aquinas before him, waged an incessant battle against dualism. Aquinas did it by moving from Plato and Augustine to Aristotle. 

Teilhard, for example, challenges the meaning of “purity.” (Eckhart does the same.) Purity is not a debilitating separation from all created reality, but an impulse carrying one through all forms of created beauty. 

“No Mud, No Lotus.” Reflection by Thich Nhat Hanh.

He rescues “purity” from the ascetic tradition of cutting oneself off from that which is material and attributes it to being an instinct or “impulse” that carries us “through all forms of beauty.”

Purity for Teilhard is expansive, not restricted. The divine beauty appears in many forms and we are to engage in a pursuit for beauty.

Matter is not to be eschewed—it is not the problem. “Till the very end of time matter will always remain young, exuberant, sparkling, newborn for those who are willing.”  

Indeed, Matter and Spirit: These were no longer two things but two states or two aspects of one and the same cosmic Stuff, according to whether it was looked at or carried further in the direction in which it is becoming itself or in the direction in which it is disintegrating. Matter is the Matrix of Spirit. Spirit is the higher state of Matter.

Touching spirit through the body: Worshippers dancing in a Cosmic Mass.

Teilhard rediscovered this ancient teaching, which preceded the patriarchal teaching (rooted in Plato) of what Augustine called the “war” between matter and spirit, body and soul. Like Eckhart who said “the soul loves the body,” and

Aquinas who taught that soul is the “élan” in matter and that there exists a “wonderful communion of matter and spirit,” Teilhard celebrates matter.  

Matter and Spirit are no longer “two things” but “two states or two aspects of one and the same cosmic Stuff.”

A marriage has occurred! Matter and Spirit feed one another. Incarnation is not to be ignored. “Matter is the Matrix of Spirit” and “Spirit is a higher state of Matter.”

Matter was not ultra materialized as I would at first have believed but was instead metamorphosed into Psyche. Spirit was by no means the enemy on the opposite pole of the Tangibility which it was seeking to attain: rather it was its very heart.

Teilhard came to realize this lesson from evolution–that 

Professor and pastor Dr. Hal Green reflects on Teilhard’s teaching on the Heart of Matter.

Spirit was “the very heart” of matter which evolved and morphed into Psyche. Psyche was born of matter, and through all this evolving, Spirit was present at the core of things.

Adapted from Matthew Fox, Christian Mystics, pp. 217f., 220f.

See also Fox, Passion for Creation: The Earth-Honoring Spirit of Meister Eckhart.

Banner Image: “Ataraxia: A state of serene calmness.” by Patrick Verstappen on Flickr.

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Queries for Contemplation

How important is it that a healthy mysticism get over the dualism of matter and spirit, and that evolution as Teilhard understood it helps us to make that leap: a leap that Aquinas fought for before the advent of evolutionary thought?
 

Recommended Reading

Christian Mystics: 365 Readings & Meditations

As Matthew Fox notes, when an aging Albert Einstein was asked if he had any regrets, he replied, “I wish I had read more of the mystics earlier in my life.” The 365 writings in Christian Mystics represent a wide-ranging sampling of these readings for modern-day seekers of all faiths — or no faith. The visionaries quoted range from Julian of Norwich to Martin Luther King, Jr., from Thomas Merton to Dorothee Soelle and Thomas Berry.
“Our world is in crisis, and we need road maps that can ground us in wisdom, inspire us to action, and help us gather our talents in service of compassion and justice.  This revolutionary book does just that.  Matthew Fox takes some of the most profound spiritual teachings of the West and translates them into practical daily mediations.  Study and practice these teachings.  Take what’s in this book and teach it to the youth because the new generation cannot afford to suffer the spirit and ethical illiteracy of the past.” — Adam Bucko, spiritual activist and co-founder of the Reciprocity Foundation for Homeless Youth.

Passion for Creation: The Earth-Honoring Spirituality of Meister Eckhart

Matthew Fox’s comprehensive translation of Meister Eckhart’s sermons is a meeting of true prophets across centuries, resulting in a spirituality for the new millennium. The holiness of creation, the divine life in each person and the divine power of our creativity, our call to do justice and practice compassion–these are among Eckhart’s themes, brilliantly interpreted and explained for today’s reader.
“The most important book on mysticism in 500 years.”  — Madonna Kolbenschlag, author of Kissing Sleeping Beauty Goodbye.  

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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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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