The Creation Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers Daily Meditations with Matthew Fox |
Diary from the Italian Countryside, part 1 By Gianluigi Gugliermetto 3/13/2026 |
Last week, I moved to an old farmhouse that I am renovating. I decided that enough rooms were ready and enough comfort was available already. I chose this place three years ago, before a very serious illness. Perhaps I would not have chosen it now, as it feels quite isolated, almost like a
hermitage. |
The other day, I heard a car’s engine, and I immediately ran to the balcony, realizing that here “car” meant “stranger arriving,” for the only other sounds are those made by birds, insects, and the occasional agricultural machine. From my windows, I can see only cultivated hills and patches of woods, and some houses in the distance. My house is not alone, however. I live in a small village with a funny name. About twelve of us dwell here in the village permanently, |
Gianluigi Gugliermetto’s house. Photo by GG, used with permission. |
and there is probably space for at least 100 people, with generously-sized rooms. Most buildings therefore, are empty, while the smoke rising from chimneys and the smell of burnt wood mean “inhabited house.” I am curious to know the stories of these twelve people, but it’s too early to ask. In reality, I can get to a train station in 15 minutes by car, and from there in 70 minutes to Milan. Five minutes away by car are a pharmacy and a grocery store, as well as restaurants and cafés. I am by no means truly isolated. But it is something else to live in an old house with very thick
walls, brick vaults, and windows with old glass. Immersed in nature, plunged in an aquarel, and so necessarily attentive to the tiniest bodily sensation, to the faintest birth of a thought, to the smallest stirring of the soul. |
Deep peace: the view from the window of Gianluigi’s new house. Photo by GG, used with permission. | It is something else, especially because out there, chaos and war are raging. The world is seemingly falling apart. The ugliest humans are ruling. Was the international order always a lie? How long will evil reign? Is humanity going to survive this crisis? Like many of you, I am losing hope, or at least I am very cautious about it. But I feel that this house is calling me to a reset. I understand much better how my nervous system has been upset by the news cycle, and almost controlled by it. I want to reclaim my freedom and build a healthy mental and bodily routine. I want to create a place where visitors will feel
welcomed in a much more than |
formal way: welcomed, and heard, and challenged to become their better selves. The silence, the birds, the wooden stove, the views, the grass, the old stones, and the magnificent linden tree in front will do their job. That is now my hope. Is it a tiny hope? Or is it a hope tailored to my real
strengths, to my real capabilities? As Matthew Fox has reminded us, Thomas Aquinas said that the human soul is capax universi: that is, it is capable of containing the whole universe. I believe that strongly. I feel connected to all the people, and the animals, and the woods and waterfalls I met around the world. I feel connected to
the dead people whose books I have studied, and to their living thoughts. I feel connected to the people dying for the greed of others in Gaza and Iran and Israel, and everywhere, and to the people being born. But from now on, I will attempt to feel the universe from my tiny special spot where my soul has called and settled
me. |
Banner Image: The view from Gianluigi’s balcony. Photo by GG, used with permission. |
Queries for Contemplation What might it mean for you to have a hope “tailored to your capabilities”?
What do you think about a “reset”? How can silence help? |
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. Books and More by Matthew and Friends! Be sure to check out Matthew's new store at MatthewFox.org, now offering books, recorded courses old and new, and special events... and don't miss our growing collection of books endorsed by Matthew on Bookshop.org! CREATION SPIRITUALITY CONVERSATIONS |
Matthew Fox offers a keynote at the Unity Earth Symposium V on The Future of
Interspirituality: From Awareness to Action, exploring the maturation of interspirituality and how shared spiritual awareness becomes structured, embodied action in the world. |
|
UPCOMING EVENTS See Matthew Fox's full calendar HERE |
Join Matthew Fox and Carolyn Myss in a 3-session event: "Darkness, Love and Advancing Consciousness in These Times." March 11, 18, 25, 2026 (Wednesdays) Virtual / Live Zoom Event. The Sophia Institute, 3pm PT. Learn more HERE. |
|
Matthew Fox joins David Abram, Lynn Twist, and Randy Woodley as Cameron Trimble of Convergence CoLab hosts “Vision for the Common Good,” a four-session Conversation Series. Tuesdays, March 17, 24, 31, and April 7, 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 HERE, Meeting ID: 886 6530 2478 Learn more at www.orderofthesacredearth.org |
Join Matthew Fox for a Lecture, Discussion, and Q&A on “Julian of Norwich: Wisdom in a Time of Pandemic—And Beyond, ” an Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 4:00pm-5:30pm PT. Register HERE. |
Matthew Fox offers a lecture, “A Christianity for All Creation” as part of “For All Creation: A Day with Matthew Fox, Kelly Sherman-Conroy and Will Allen,” an On-site and Virtual Event presented by the Center for Ecological Regeneration, Hennepin Ave. UMC, and Garrett
Evangelical Theological Seminary in Minneapolis, MN. Saturday, April 18, 9:00am – 3:00pm Register HERE. |
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. |
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: |
|
|
|
