The Creation
Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers Daily Meditations with Matthew Fox |
Carl Jung, Murray Stein,
Steven Herrmann, & Christianity’s Future By Matthew Fox 12/16/2025 |
Jungian analyst Steven Herrmann has gifted us with significant books on topics such as Spiritual Democracy, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Jung and William James, Jung and Swami Vivekananda, Jung and Meister Eckhart, Vocational Dreams, and much more.* |
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Steven Herrmann traces the antecedents of Spiritual Democracy as a visionary
experience, a feeling state that unites the many in the one. |
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years of influential work, which has even included playwriting in his later years. After many years in Chicago, he moved to Zurich 20 years ago. As a spiritual theologian, I respect Jung’s contributions on many levels to understanding religious consciousness, the most recent example being where I share his thoughts on the
antichrist archetype in my recent book on Trump and the MAGA Movement as Antichrist. I remain curious how Jung’s work, updated by Stein and Herrmann, can assist the Christian movement as it evolves from the Age of Pisces, where it has been nestled for 2000 years, to the Age of Aquarius and post-modernism that
now beckons us. |
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| Herrmann’s in-depth treatment of Murray Stein’s
significant achievements, bringing Jung into a post-modern mindset, contributes substantially to this evolution. First, there is the interfaith or deep ecumenical dimension that Stein recognizes—what he calls a “plural consciousness.” In 2013, as co-president of a conference on world religions in Taiwan, he brought together speakers from Japan, Korea, and China to explore Taoism and Jungian studies. Says Stein: Jung needed to have experience. What is your |
experience of God? This was Jung’s approach to religion. As a spiritual theologian, those are my primary questions too: “How do we experience the divine?” And, “How do those of other cultures and religions do the same?” Stein “unites Eastern and Western spiritual traditions,” says
Herrmann, bringing “a message of hope, healing, and visionary consciousness to a global audience.” Interdependence is key to the future. Stein believes we have paid a heavy price for the modern era, which promoted a certain “disease” that cut off a connection to the religious function and to the symbols that bring the ego into a more conscious relationship
to the Self. He recognizes how, in Herrmann’s words, one serves the Self via the humble human vehicle of one’s vocation, whether that calling involves marriage, parenthood, science, or art. |
Stein has listened to many dreams of people who speak to these realities. One captures glimpses of Infinity during moments when the Self awakens within us, evoking a sense of mystery and wonder. We enter into this realm whenever we open ourselves to transcendence, and these are “at least potentially Christ-like openings into |
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Oneness.” Dreams often guide the dreamer “toward individuation through a calling to compassion.” Stein recognizes our post-modern times as being infected by a “virus of superficiality.” He warns that “triviality” can infect Jungian institutes and training programs: We live in postmodern times. The changes brought about in world culture…since the introduction of the computer and the internet into common usage worldwide, have profoundly affected all cultures, and this has had an impact also on our profession of psychotherapy. Everything goes faster, speed and efficiency are paramount, and
superficiality as the signature of the times is a result… |
Superficiality, distraction, and minuscule attention span: “Social media addiction.” Image by DoctorXGC on Wikimedia Commons | He is concerned
about how the postmodern world has been infected with the virus of superficiality.… Perhaps now is the time to listen more intently to the spirit of the depths.** For me, the “spirit of the depths” means the mystical traditions of the world, which must come alive, and for the West, this constitutes a paradigm shift
in theological education and church life, including Liturgy. |
After all, it was Jung himself who said, “it is to the mystics we owe what is best in humanity” and “only the mystics bring what is creative to religion itself.” In other words, there will be no renewal of religion and spirituality until we understand the mystical dimension of ourselves and our
traditions more deeply. Clearly, the Cosmic Christ archetype is on the rise. I thank Murray Stein and Steven Herrmann for carrying the Jungian genius into a new era in this groundbreaking study. |
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To see all of Steven Herrmann’s books, see Matthew Fox’s Creation Spirituality bookstore HERE.
**Steven Herrmann, Murray Stein: Individuation, Transformation, and the Ways to the Self in Jungian Psychology, pp. 23, 13,
36f.
Banner Image: The Cosmic Mass at the Parliament of World Religions, 2023, with wildlife lanterns sculpted by University of Creation Spirituality graduate Mary Plaster, D.Min. Photo by Mary Plaster, published with permission. |
Queries for Contemplation Do you recognize a “virus of superficiality” in our times? Do you experience a
taste of the Infinite and an opening to transcendence through experiences of mystery and wonder? Do you entertain the mystic in yourself and learn from mystic-prophets who inspire you? |
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 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 |
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 |
Join Matthew Fox in a new 6-month program of mystical wisdom for a new world. In this 6-month immersion program, 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. |
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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