The Creation Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers Daily Meditations
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Week of 4/21-25/2025: Two Announcements & the Power of the Empty
TombWeekly summary by the DM Team 4/27/2025
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As the impacts of the new regime ripple out, learn the deeper stakes involved. Get your copy of Trump & the MAGA Movement as Anti-Christ today! Choose your format in the book block below. |
April 21, 2025: Two Announcements for DM Readers Matthew informs us that he’s taking a month off to focus on completing a new book. It’s a new interpretation of John of the Cross’s poetry
using the Four Paths of Creation Spirituality. John of the Cross wrote about the three paths of purgation, illumination and union as a structure to talk about our spiritual journey. But Matthew believes these three paths distorted and dishonored his poetry, whereas the Four Paths will elevate it. While Matthew is focusing on his writing, he has asked his friend and colleague Gianluigi Gugliermetto to fill in on the DMs. GG (Matthew’s nickname for him) has been collaborating with Matthew for
years. He is a theologian and Episcopal priest who was awarded his Ph.D. in Religion from Claremont Graduate University in California, where he specialized in feminist and process theology. GG is the founder of Creation Spirituality Italy, and most recently of Mistica Evolutiva www.misticaevolutiva.it. He is also available for spiritual counseling online. See www.gianluigigugliermetto.com. Meanwhile, Matthew will continue to do a weekly video. |
Theologian Gianluigi Gugliermetto. Photo used with permission. |
April 22, 2025: A Second Announcement & Earth Day, 2025 First, we want to acknowledge the loss of Pope Francis who died yesterday. He was a champion for the Earth. His first
encyclical, Laudato Si, was dedicated to that cause. We will reflect more on the pope in a future DM. The second
announcement is about the forthcoming 24-week course on “Jesus and the Christ Consciousness” with Shift Network. One third of it
will be on re-examining who Jesus is and what he taught, and two-thirds will be drawing on the great mystics-prophets who tried to live and teach Christ’s teachings over the centuries. Included in the 24-week class will be several current thinkers and activists whom Matthew admires. Among them are: Mirabai Starr, Andrew Harvey, Neil Douglas Klotz, John Philip Newell, Bruce Chilton, Rabbi David Zaslow, and Christina Cleveland, each of whom will teach a class. Gianluigi Gugliermetto will
lead a process class where students interact among themselves. Matthew believes we are on the cusp of a Christianity or Christ Path 2.0. To register for this class, click on the link in the caption below. And a blessed Earth Day to one and all as we love and work to protect our dear Mother Earth. |
“The Path of Christ Consciousness” begins June 10, 2025. Register HERE.
April 23, 2025: Retrieving the Empty Tomb (This is the first of Gianluigi Gugliermetto’s DMs as he subs for Matthew while Matthew works on his next book.) At a time when Christian Nationalism is rampant, we may ask if Christianity has any resources to counteract it. Indeed it does. One is the tradition of the Empty Tomb. In his book A Spirituality Named Compassion, Matthew Fox lamented that Christianity historically placed too much emphasis on the cross of Jesus and not enough on his empty tomb.
The cross is often seen as a symbol of salvation, when actually it was an implement of torture. Meanwhile, the Empty Tomb as a symbol is very rich. The Empty Tomb is primarily a symbol of creativity and liberation. Because the tomb is open and because someone has actually exited from it, it is a tomb in motion, a circle in motion. Thus, a spiral. (The spiral) has a direction. The direction is the increase of love-justice in the world. * April 24, 2005: Retrieving the Cosmic Christ We are reflecting on the Empty Tomb
as a Christian symbol. The Gospel accounts of the Empty Tomb present a very specific detail: the linens in which Jesus’ corpse was wrapped are left behind. This is quite a clear message of letting go, leaving behind the trappings of death. Nevertheless, Christianity has elevated these linens into a holy relic. The “Shroud of Turin” has corroborated a vision of Jesus as a “man of sorrow.” (Interestingly, Gianluigi Gugliermetto was born in Turin.) Both the cross and the shroud seem to exalt pain
and death. Early Christians did not feel or think in this way. In contrast, the notion of the Cosmic Christ, which almost disappeared in modern Christianity, meant that the presence of the Risen Life was felt everywhere—in all creation, as well as within the individual and the community. |
“He Is Not Here.” Painting by Walter
Rane, 2004. Published with permission. |
April 25, 2025: The Empty Tomb and Deep Ecumenism When patriarchal cultures — such as Judaism at the time of Jesus — bury the dead in caves, they perform a paradox, symbolically
speaking. The cave symbolizes the body of the mother, from which a new life will be born. Thus, burying someone in a cave is an affirmation of faith in the resurrection. However, “mother” and “woman” are also connected to “the body,” which in patriarchal theology is often thought of as sinful. And, sadly, this misogyny is on blatant display in most presidential pronouncements of late. Earth-based spiritualities, on the other hand, can boast an array of symbols which celebrate the feminine
principle. For Christians, then, exploring deep ecumenism with earth-based spiritualities is even more necessary than it ever was. April 26, 2025: Science and the Cosmic Christ Albert Einstein said: “We need a cosmic religion.” He saw his own religious heritage (Judaism) as “an ethical code that sanctifies life.” He would be horrified today at the crimes perpetrated by the state of Israel, as many Jews are. Many times Matthew has called Christians to move from a small vision of Jesus as
“personal savior” to the awareness that Divine Wisdom, exemplified in the life of Jesus, is present everywhere. It is a cosmic reality, not just a human reality, and surely not a Christian possession. In many ways, this means moving from an obsession with the cross to a real faith in the resurrection. One cannot explore the meaning and power of the Cosmic Christ without a living cosmology, a living mysticism, and the spiritual discipline of art as meditation. In other words, we are
bound to the holy trinity of science..., mysticism..., and art.*
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SIGN THE PLEDGE: Boycott pro-Trump corporations. Faithful America. EngageForDemocracy offers curated trustworthy reporting, educational resources, and action campaigns to hold government accountable to the Constitution and democratic norms. The DM Team warmly welcomes Gianluigi Gugliermetto as he substitutes for Matthew while Matthew is finishing his newest book. GG’s
DMs begin on April 23, 2025. *Please note: Unless otherwise noted, italicized quotations are from Matthew Fox. Banner image: “Empty sepulchre.” Image by Riccardo Cuppini on Flickr.
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The Coming of the Cosmic Christ: The Healing of Mother Earth and the Birth of a Global Renaissance
In what may be considered the
most comprehensive outline of the Christian paradigm shift of our Age, Matthew Fox eloquently foreshadows the manner in which the spirit of Christ resurrects in terms of the return to an earth-based mysticism, the expression of creativity, mystical sexuality, the respect due the young, the rebirth of effective forms of worship—all of these mirroring the ongoing blessings of Mother Earth and the recovery of Eros, the feminine aspect of the Divine. “The eighth wonder of the world…convincing proof that our Western religious tradition does indeed have the depth of imagination to reinvent its faith.” — Brian Swimme, author of The Universe Story and Journey of the Universe. “This book is a classic.” Thomas Berry, author of The Great Work and The Dream of the Earth. |
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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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Matthew Fox comments on Pope Francis' legacy of environmentalism and support for migrants, amidst more controversial aspects of his papacy, KPFA Pacifica Evening
News. |
UPCOMING EVENTS See Matthew Fox's full calendar HERE
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Join Matthew Fox in a new 6-month program of mystical wisdom for a new world: - Activate your spiritual awakening with the mystics
- Say “yes” to life & the beauty, goodness & potential it offers
- Awaken your inner mystic & prophet for deeper awakening
- Nurture the life-giving qualities of your humanity
By Application only - apply
HERERegister for a free information session HERE |
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| Join Matthew Fox in a 6-Class Course: The Great Christian Mystics exploring some of the richest and most
inspiring mystic-prophets in the Christian lineage, including Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Mechtild of Magdeburg, Thomas Aquinas, and Meister Eckhart. Open-ended course includes six modules of pre-recorded lessons, live community discussions, and live conversations with Matthew Fox. Starts Thursday, May 8; 10% off discount code: FOX-10 Register HERE. |
Join Matthew Fox as he discusses his book, Wrestling with the Prophets: Essays on Creation Spirituality and Everyday Life, in an online Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat. Thursday, May 15, 4:00pm-5:30pm PT. Register HERE. |
MONTHLY: Join Matthew Fox and Skylar Wilson of the Order of the Sacred Earth in a free virtual meeting for connection and networking with other mystic warriors. Last Tuesday of every month, 4:00-5:00pm PT. Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88665302478 Meeting ID: 886 6530 2478 Learn more at www.orderofthesacredearth.org |
Creation Spirituality Conversations |
The Christian Mystics: Wisdom for Our
Time Join renowned theologian and spiritual teacher Matthew Fox in a thought-provoking conversation with Ruby Reed on the lives, work and wisdom of some of The Christian Mystics and their vital role in our time.
In this webinar, we’ll explore how the mystic’s path can empower us to cultivate inner transformation and inspire action in the world by saying "Yes" to life and "No" to injustice, whether through art, contemplation, or activism. Discover how their insights can help us rekindle our spiritual fire and meet the needs of our time with resilience and love. This free video promotes Matthew's upcoming 6-session course with Advaya, that will be released on May 8. |
Inspired by this post? Share your insights on BlueSky, Instagram, Universeodon, or Facebook using the hashtag #RevDrMatthewFox and tag Matt with @RevDrMatthewFox FOLLOW MATTHEW FOX: |
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