The Creation Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers Daily Meditations with Matthew Fox |
Happy Thanksgiving! Don't miss Matthew Fox's
special conversation with Robert Holden,
"Thanksgiving for Mystics: 5 Practices for Gratitude and Abundance
as a Spiritual Path," HERE |
By Gianluigi Gugliermetto 11/26/2025 |
The archetype of wholeness has a long history. It appears, for example, in the Pauline letters under the name of pleroma, where it refers to the Cosmic Christ — or God’s Wisdom — holding the universe together. It is also recognized in Jungian psychology as the symbol of the final aim — the integration of the parts of one’s personality, which paradoxically often peeps out in earlier dreams as a signal pointing to the end of the process. People dream, for
example, of square gardens or rotundas. |
In the middle between macrocosm (universe) and microcosm (soul), the archetype of wholeness also appears in our social interactions. It is the ideal city in which everybody has a purpose and a function. We tend to project it also on our families. |
A picture-perfect Thanksgiving dinner. Photo by Gabby-K for Monstera Production on Pexels. |
Here, one discovers that archetypes can also be dangerous and even destructive. The average American mind is quite idealistic — or at least it has been until recently — and many times I observed disasters in the making because of idealistic expectations that people placed upon their Thanksgiving dinner. Or rather,
upon themselves and upon members of their families, especially if they had not seen each other for a year or even longer. To me, as a foreigner, this always looked like creating on purpose, year after year, the perfect storm. Unless one belongs to a family that has managed to work out its inner conflicts, which is very
rare. |
“It takes a village.” ABC News 4 covers how agencies in one community responded in 2024 to residents’ mental health crises during the holidays. | But Thanksgiving can also be an occasion of inner work, if one becomes apt at observing one’s own expectations and projections, learns how to harness them back, and keeps observing one’s reactions in case of challenges or conflicts. |
I confess that I can’t really catch the spirit of Thanksgiving, if there is one. I know the criticisms raised against it, a bit of its history as a fabrication in the 1830s or so, and I experienced the anxieties around it when I lived in the USA. I also enjoyed the dinners to which I was invited, always recognizing the work put in by the hosts to make everything go smoothly. One can, of course, focus on the word itself and make of the day an occasion for giving thanks. After all, Meister Eckhart did maintain that saying “thanks” even just once might be enough of a prayer for a lifetime. |
But let’s not trivialize his sentence. He meant that the essence of prayer is welcoming reality, living it not begrudgingly but fully. There is no need for elaborate petitions to God if one is present, attentive, and accepting. That is the only good ground for a
true |
Dr. Tim Perry with Frontier Health stopped by WJHL First at Four to talk about the impact of gratitude on mental health over the Thanksgiving holiday. |
prayer of thanks. And that ground is possible only after leaving aside idealizations such as projecting the archetype of wholeness onto one’s family. I remember now morning church services on Thanksgiving day, in the parish where I was the priest, in the Diocese of Los Angeles, which were quiet
and meditative, including one when I was hit by a sun ray while preaching, and another when a bird decided to spend the entire service flying calmly over us. Does this mean that after all, there is a spirit of Thanksgiving haunting me? |
Banner Image: Sharing gratitude for creation. Photo by Min An on Pexels. |
Queries for Contemplation What does it mean for you to be “spiritual” on Thanksgiving
Day?
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Responses are welcomed. To add your comment, or read other comments and enter into dialogue, please click HERE to go to our website and scroll down to the Comments field. |
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| Counterpoint: A Response to Peter Thiel’s Antichrist An Important Conversation with Matthew Fox and Gil Duran Did you miss this two-session series with its powerful counter-narrative rooted in wisdom, justice, and authentic |
spirituality? This is your chance to
add it to your library of classics to be watched, re-watched, and contemplated. Fox explores the archetype of Christ and Antichrist as it plays out in our world today but also in artists of old. He draws from the teachings of Jesus and Hildegard of Bingen, Meister Eckhart, Carl Jung, and other mystics and visionaries, illuminating the stark contrast between life-giving and life-destroying spiritual energies. Purchase HERE. |
UPCOMING EVENTS See Matthew Fox's full calendar HERE |
Join Matthew Fox in a lecture and Q&A on “Dorothee Soelle: Mystical Feminist Who Transformed Theology through Suffering,” a presentation in the Spiritual Wanderlust Mystics and Prophets series. Saturday, December 6, 9:00am-10:30am Register HERE.Join Matthew Fox in a lecture and Q&A on “Dorothee Soelle: Mystical Feminist Who Transformed Theology through Suffering,” a presentation in the Spiritual Wanderlust Mystics and Prophets series.
Saturday, December 6, 9:00am-10:30am Register HERE. |
Celebrate the traditional feast of the Black Madonna and the Immaculate Conception when Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox joins award-winning singer/author Alessandra Belloni and music director John La Barbera in a 90-minute online event, “Honoring the Black Madonna as Our Lady of Freedom (Madonna della Libera),” in which they share the wisdom of the Black Madonna and her healing powers for our times when both democracy and Mother Earth are
in peril. Alessandra will also talk about her book Healing Journeys with the Black Madonna and present a 10-minute excerpt of her movie Musical Journeys with the Black Madonna in |
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Join Matthew Fox in a free 4-session Online Lecture/Discussion/Q&A event, “Creation Spirituality and the Celebrating & Healing of Mother Earth & Ourselves,” co-presented by the Episcopal Diocese of Wisconsin and Matthew Fox Legacy Project. Wednesdays, January 14, 21,28, February 4, 2026, 4:00pm-5:30pm
PT January 14 - Creation as an Original Blessing and the Springboard of Awe and Wonder January 21 - Sacred Mother Earth: The Holiness of Creation and Recovering the Cosmic Christ January 28 - The Cosmic Mass, and the Stations of the Cosmic Christ: Reinvigorating Liturgy and Rituals February 4 - Jesus as a Teacher of Democracy and the Renewal of Education and Values through the “10 Cs” Register HERE |
Join Matthew Fox in a new 6-month program of mystical wisdom for a new world. In this 6-month immersion program with Matthew, you’ll explore what it means to be a modern mystic and prophet, integrating this sacred knowledge into your life through the authentic teachings of Jesus and other wisdom keepers. This journey births what Matthew calls Christianity 2.0 — based not on dogma, but on a spirituality that recovers the sacred sense of original goodness. By Application only - apply
HERE Register for a free information session HERE |
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Awakening the Divine Human: An Immersion in the Living Wisdom of Creation Spirituality …a week-long retreat in Sardinia, Italy, May 25-30, 2026 Join us on the sacred
island of Sardinia for a deeply immersive 6-day retreat rooted in the teachings of Matthew Fox, C.G. Jung, and the ancient wisdom of the land. Set along the turquoise shores and among the Neolithic sites of this timeless Mediterranean island, this retreat invites you into a transformative journey of reconnection—with Earth, Self, Gender, and the Divine. Learn more 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 HERE, Meeting ID: 886 6530 2478 Learn more at www.orderofthesacredearth.org Creation Spirituality Conversations |
Join Matthew Fox for a transformative 4-part series that brings together some of the most provocative spiritual leaders, thinkers, and activists of our time. Together, we’ll explore the deep spiritual roots of this political moment and uncover pathways toward
collective action, resilience, and renewal. Learn more HERE. |
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