Christianity and Nature-Based Spirituality

Christianity and Nature-Based Spirituality PDF Author: Lillie Rowden
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780989464291
Category : Christianity and other religions
Languages : en
Pages : 398

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Book Description
Encounter with Nature-based Spirituality, as interpreted through the Medicine Wheel and other indigenous practices, profoundly expanded the author's Christian spiritual base. Out of these experiences developed a distinctive approach to spirituality. This book explores four premises: First, the integration of Christianity and Nature-based Spirituality impacts one's life path and spiritual belief system, yet transcends and includes both traditions. Second, this integration is relevant to a ministry for the spiritual, psychological, emotional, physical growth and healing of individuals and groups by utilizing the author's form of integrated Nature-based Spirituality, leadership skills and mentoring tools for the purpose of eco-spiritual mentoring. Third, the expansion of ideas and beliefs address the practical and spiritual purposes of sustaining the earth in the current planetary crises. Fourth, Jesus can be identified in his social role as a shaman.

Christianity and Nature-Based Spirituality

Christianity and Nature-Based Spirituality PDF Author: Lillie Rowden
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780989464291
Category : Christianity and other religions
Languages : en
Pages : 398

Get Book Here

Book Description
Encounter with Nature-based Spirituality, as interpreted through the Medicine Wheel and other indigenous practices, profoundly expanded the author's Christian spiritual base. Out of these experiences developed a distinctive approach to spirituality. This book explores four premises: First, the integration of Christianity and Nature-based Spirituality impacts one's life path and spiritual belief system, yet transcends and includes both traditions. Second, this integration is relevant to a ministry for the spiritual, psychological, emotional, physical growth and healing of individuals and groups by utilizing the author's form of integrated Nature-based Spirituality, leadership skills and mentoring tools for the purpose of eco-spiritual mentoring. Third, the expansion of ideas and beliefs address the practical and spiritual purposes of sustaining the earth in the current planetary crises. Fourth, Jesus can be identified in his social role as a shaman.

Dark Green Religion

Dark Green Religion PDF Author: Bron Raymond Taylor
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520237757
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 357

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Book Description
"A love of green may be a human universal. Deepening the palette of green scholarship, Bron Taylor proves remarkably to be both an encyclopedist and a visionary."--Jonathan Benthall, author of Returning to Religion: Why a Secular Age is Haunted by Faith "This important book provides insight into how a profound sense of relation to nature offers many in the modern world a vehicle for attaining a spiritual wholeness akin to what has been historically associated with established religion. In this sense, Dark Green Religion offers both understanding and hope for a world struggling for meaning and purpose beyond the isolation of the material here and now."--Stephen Kellert, Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies "In this thought-provoking volume, Bron Taylor explores the seemingly boundless efforts by human beings to understand the nature of life and our place in the universe. Examining in depth the ways in which influential philosophers and naturalists have viewed this relationship, Taylor contributes to the further development of thought in this critically important area, where our depth of understanding will play a critical role in our survival."--Peter H. Raven, President, Missouri Botanical Garden "Carefully researched, strongly argued, originally conceived, and very well executed, this book is a vital contribution on a subject of immense religious, political, and environmental importance. It's also a great read."--Roger S. Gottlieb, author of A Greener Faith: Religious Environmentalism and our Planet's Future "A fascinating analysis of our emotional and spiritual relationship to nature. Whether you call it dark green religion or something else, Bron Taylor takes us through our spiritual relationship with our planet, its ecosystems and evolution, in an enlightened and completely undogmatic manner."--Dr. Claude Martin, Former Director General, World Wildlife Fund "An excellent collection of guideposts for perplexed students and scholars about the relationships of nature religions, spirituality, animism, pantheism, deep ecology, Gaia, and land ethics--and for the environmentalist seeking to make the world a better place through green religion as a social force."--Fikret Berkes, author of Sacred Ecology: Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Resource Management "Dark Green Religion shows conclusively how nature has inspired a growing religious movement on the planet, contesting the long reign of many older faiths. Taylor expertly guides us through an astonishing array of thinkers, past and present, who have embraced, in part or whole, the new religion. I was thoroughly convinced that this movement has indeed become a major force on Earth, with great potential consequences for our environmental ethics."--Donald Worster, University of Kansas "In this exceptionally interesting and informative book, Bron Taylor has harvested the fruits of years of pioneering research in what amounts to a new field in religious studies: the study of how religious/spiritual themes show up in the work of people concerned about nature in many diverse ways. Taylor persuasively argues that appreciation of nature's sacred or spiritual dimension both informs and motivates the work of individuals ranging from radical environmentalists and surfers, to eco-tourism leaders and museum curators. I highly recommend this book for everyone interested learning more about the surprising extent to which religious/spiritual influences many of those who work to protect, to exhibit, or to represent the natural world."--Michael E. Zimmerman, Director, Center for Humanities and the Arts, University of Colorado at Boulder

Christian Spirituality

Christian Spirituality PDF Author: Donald Alexander
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 9780830812783
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 212

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Book Description
How can we grow closer to God? Is there a secret to spiritual life? Do we need a second blessing? Is sanctification instantaneous or is it a process? The nature of Christian spirituality has been widely debated throughout the history of the church. Donald L. Alexander brings together five scholars in a fascinating debate on sanctification and spirituality.

Religion and the Order of Nature

Religion and the Order of Nature PDF Author: Seyyed Hossein Nasr
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0195356160
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 319

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Book Description
The current ecological crisis is a matter of urgent global concern, with solutions being sought on many fronts. In this book, Seyyed Hossein Nasr argues that the devastation of our world has been exacerbated, if not actually caused, by the reductionist view of nature that has been advanced by modern secular science. What is needed, he believes, is the recovery of the truth to which the great, enduring religions all attest; namely that nature is sacred. Nasr traces the historical process through which Western civilization moved away from the idea of nature as sacred and embraced a world view which sees humans as alienated from nature and nature itself as a machine to be dominated and manipulated by humans. His goal is to negate the totalitarian claims of modern science and to re-open the way to the religious view of the order of nature, developed over centuries in the cosmologies and sacred sciences of the great traditions. Each tradition, Nasr shows, has a wealth of knowledge and experience concerning the order of nature. The resuscitation of this knowledge, he argues, would allow religions all over the globe to enrich each other and cooperate to heal the wounds inflicted upon the Earth.

Four Views on Christian Spirituality

Four Views on Christian Spirituality PDF Author: Bruce A. Demarest
Publisher: Zondervan Academic
ISBN: 0310591899
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
How do Christians cultivate a vibrant and Christ-centered spirituality that's rooted in biblical clarity? Spiritual formation--the cultivation of a relationship with God--lies at the heart of what it means to be a Christian in the body of Christ. But with the rise of diverse spiritual practices, from Zen meditation to out-of-body experiences, the idea of spirituality has become watered down by postmodern culture. Christian spirituality, on the other hand, embraces devotion to the triune God, abiding in Christ, the pursuit of holiness, and the cultivation of virtues. But what exactly falls within the scope Christian spirituality? This volume of the Counterpoints series focuses on the Church’s search for spiritual identity, meaning, and significance as interpreted by four of the major Christian traditions: Eastern Orthodoxy – represented by Bradley Nassif Roman Catholic – represented by Scott Hahn Progressive Protestant – represented by Joseph Driskill Evangelical - represented by Evan Howard The Counterpoints series presents a comparison and critique of scholarly views on topics important to Christians that are both fair-minded and respectful of the biblical text. Each volume is a one-stop reference that allows readers to evaluate the different positions on a specific issue and form their own, educated opinion.

Shamanic Christianity

Shamanic Christianity PDF Author: Bradford Keeney
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 159477627X
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 190

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Book Description
A guide to reconnecting with Jesus, Mary, and the saints as shamanic teachers of divine mysteries • Contains meditations, contemplations, parables, and active ritual tasks that help bring forth a shamanic understanding and practice of Christianity • Shows shamanic experience to be the root of mystical communion When the missionaries came to North America to “save” the American Indians, they were perplexed to discover that while they talked about Jesus, some of the Indians claimed to talk directly with him. Among Christians there is almost complete silence on the subject of the place of shamanism in experiencing the divine, yet shamanic experience is at the root of all mystical communion. Shamanic Christianity offers a chance to rekindle the shamanic practices of Christianity to those who wish to restore their direct connection to the spirit world. In the tradition of contemplative practice, this reconnection takes the form of devotions. Presented in four forms, these devotions begin with a specific contemplation, followed by a meditative focus, then a parable from the author’s own visionary experiences, and finally an active mystical practice to help ground the meditations and contemplations in a ritual or ceremony that involves active participation. These four forms serve to reintroduce Jesus, Mary, and the historically renowned saints as shamanic teachers of divine mysteries whose spiritual presence is readily available to contemporary lives. The author also presents specific directives for handling everyday challenges in a shamanic-inspired manner, drawing upon creative activities and resources that encourage approaching the world with the imaginative and playful spirit of a child, whose personal freedom and creative expression is always wide open to possibilities.

Natural Spirituality

Natural Spirituality PDF Author: Joyce Rockwood Hudson
Publisher: Chiron Publications
ISBN: 9781893383555
Category : Individuation (Psychology)
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Natural Spirituality moves Jungian dream work from the professional world of the analyst's office into the everyday world of the laity in the local church. The book offers serious Christians in every community an opportunity to embark upon the spiritual path of individuation. With clarity and simplicity Joyce Hudson puts into her reader's hands the tools for inner work that Carl Jung offered to Christianity. Joyce Hudson then goes beyond Jung to present original models of masculine and feminine wholeness. In illustrating the masculine model, she offers an analysis of the lives and music of the Beatles that is both insightful and entertaining. To illustrate the model of feminine wholeness, Hudson joins ranks with C.S. Lewis, Robert Johnson, Marie-Louise von Franz, and Erich Neumann in putting forth her own interpretation of the classical myth of Psyche and Eros. Finally, she offers detailed advice and helpful resources for instituting continuing programs for inner work in local churches. While maintaining deep respect for Church tradition, this highly readable work opens the door for an expanded and enlivened Christianity.

Cicero on the Philosophy of Religion

Cicero on the Philosophy of Religion PDF Author: J. P. F. Wynne
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107070481
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
Do the gods love you? Cicero gives deep and surprising answers in two philosophical dialogues on traditional Roman religion.

This Sacred Earth

This Sacred Earth PDF Author: Roger S. Gottlieb
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136915397
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 783

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Book Description
Updated with nearly forty new selections to reflect the tremendous growth and transformation of scholarly, theological, and activist religious environmentalism, the second edition of This Sacred Earth is an unparalleled resource for the study of religion's complex relationship to the environment.

Devoted to Nature

Devoted to Nature PDF Author: Evan Berry
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520285727
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
"Devoted to Nature explores the religious underpinnings of American environmentalism, tracing the theological character of American environment thought from their Romantic foundations to contemporary discourse about nature spirituality. This history is most readily visible during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, when religious sources tangibly shaped ideas about the natural world, recreational practices, and modes of social and political interaction. The roots of the environmental movement evidence explicitly Christian understandings of salvation, redemption, and progress, which provided the context for Americans enthusiastic about the out-of-doors and established the horizons of possibility for the national environmental imagination"--Provided by publisher.