Rise Of The Spiritual Activist

Rise of the Spiritual Activist connects faith with social justice and seeks to provide for the would-be activist a spiritual model for advocacy. Economic injustice, oppression, sexism, racism, homophobia, pollution of God's creation, and many other societal concerns will need to be addressed in today's arena of advocacy and protest, making Rise of the Spiritual Activist relevant for people of faith who want to repair the world. Márquez-Sterling provides the philosophical foundation for spiritual activism as well as interviews with spiritual activists in the field and a step-by-step guide on how to run a justice effort.

Rise of the Spiritual Activist connects faith with social justice and seeks to provide for the would-be activist a spiritual model for advocacy. Economic injustice, oppression, sexism, racism, homophobia, pollution of Gods creation, and many other societal concerns will need to be addressed in todays arena of advocacy and protest, making Rise of the Spiritual Activist relevant for people of faith who want to repair the world. Mrquez-Sterling provides the philosophical foundation for spiritual activism as well as interviews with spiritual activists in the field and a step-by-step guide on how to run a justice effort.

Award-winning author James O'Dea has created a handbook for those interested in Sacred Activism, a fusing spiritual knowledge with radical action. O'Dea outlines the polarities between the inner path of spiritual growth and the outer path of social activism, concluding that the two must co-exist in equal weighting so that the human race can become a compassionate force for good. 'James O’Dea is a modern-day prophet who has journeyed further than anyone I know in the ways of peace' Lynne Twist 'The Conscious Activist is a major contribution to the most important movement of our time - one that fuses profound spiritual awareness with radical action. It is wise and passionate and superbly written, with the kind of graceful but pungent clarity that only long experience can engender' Andrew Harvey 'After reading The Conscious Activist, you will drop to your knees in heart-opening awe and then you will rise to your feet, inspired to act in a truly transformational way' Marianne Williamson An extraordinary and rousing manifesto from award-winning author James O’Dea, The Conscious Activist is both a compelling narrative and a deep reflection on the demands of mystical realization and effective activism. Throughout the book, O'Dea poses that an integration of the two has the power to permanently transform the social order and to wake up humanity from its course of rapid self-destruction. Divided into two parts, Part I offers parallel narratives of author James O’Dea’s training and spiritual development as both a mystic and an activist. The mystic, he explains, must move past petty ego concerns in order to experience oneness with each other and our divine source. The activist, on the other hand, explores the role of passion and conscience in activating social change. In Part II, O’Dea pursues this fascinating concept of a meeting ground between the two worlds, where spirituality and action unite to spark an accelerated transition towards our greater goal: a more evolved civilization. He asks us all to become conscious activists – to learn, collectively, how to move beyond our rigid conformity to beliefs of the past and its archaic structures of power and control.

Over the past half century the issues facing activists have changed, as has our understanding and awareness of spirituality. For activists, spiritual philosophy is rising up the agenda because it offers distinct, tried and tested approaches to deep questions: Where did it all go wrong? What does it mean to be human? What is the place of leadership? What is the nature of power? The book begins by defining spirituality for a modern audience of all faiths and beliefs, and goes on to consider the problems and necessities of true leadership. Drawing on a rich history of spirituality and activism, from The Bhagavad Gita, to the Hebrew prophets, to Carl Jung, it is both guide and inspiration for people involved in activism for social or environmental justice. The text is enriched with tales from the authors' own experiences. It contains case studies of inspirational spiritual activists (including Mama Efua, Desmond Tutu, Gerrard Winstanley, Sojourner Truth and Julia Butterfly Hill), which demonstrate the transformative power of spiritual principles in action.

Every age has its teachers, who keep the eternal truths alive for all of us, writes Marianne Williamson, the best-selling author of The Age of Miracles. In the case of Andrew Harvey, the light he sheds is like a meteor burst across the inner sky. In The Hope, Andrew Harvey offers not only a guide to discovering your divine purpose but also...

This practical guide to individual and social transformation through spirituality and faith helps readers slow down, build stronger relationships at home and at work, and embrace the world around them.

Winner of the Frank S. and Elizabeth D. Brewer Best First Book Prize of the American Society of Church History Named a Society for U. S. Intellectual History Notable Title in American Intellectual History The story of liberal religion in the twentieth century, Matthew S. Hedstrom contends, is a story of cultural ascendency. This may come as a surprise-most scholarship in American religious history, after all, equates the numerical decline of the Protestant mainline with the failure of religious liberalism. Yet a look beyond the pews, into the wider culture, reveals a more complex and fascinating story, one Hedstrom tells in The Rise of Liberal Religion. Hedstrom attends especially to the critically important yet little-studied arena of religious book culture-particularly the religious middlebrow of mid-century-as the site where religious liberalism was most effectively popularized. By looking at book weeks, book clubs, public libraries, new publishing enterprises, key authors and bestsellers, wartime reading programs, and fan mail, among other sources, Hedstrom is able to provide a rich, on-the-ground account of the men, women, and organizations that drove religious liberalism's cultural rise in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. Critically, by the post-WWII period the religious middlebrow had expanded beyond its Protestant roots, using mystical and psychological spirituality as a platform for interreligious exchange. This compelling history of religion and book culture not only shows how reading and book buying were critical twentieth-century religious practices, but also provides a model for thinking about the relationship of religion to consumer culture more broadly. In this way, The Rise of Liberal Religion offers both innovative cultural history and new ways of seeing the imprint of liberal religion in our own times.

Named one of the Fifty Best Spiritual Books of 2013 by SPIRITUALITY & PRACTICE in the JUSTICE category! The Occupy Wall Street movement and protest movements around the world are evidence of a new era of intergenerational activists seeking deeper spiritual meaning in their quest for peace and justice. This book is a call to action for a new era of spirituality-infused activism. Authors Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox encourage us to use our talents in service of compassion and justice and to move beyond our broken systems--economic, political, educational, and religious--discovering a spirituality that not only helps us to get along, but also encourages us to reevaluate our traditions, transforming them and in the process building a more sacred and just world. Incorporating the words of young activist leaders culled from interviews and surveys, the book provides a framework that is deliberately interfaith and speaks to our profound yearning for a life with spiritual purpose and for a better world. Each chapter is construed as a dialogue between Fox, a 72-year-old theologian, and Bucko, a 37-year-old spiritual activist and mentor to homeless youth. As we listen in on these familiar yet profound conversations, we learn about Fox and Bucko's own spiritual journeys and discover a radical spirituality that is inclusive, democratic, and relevant to the world we live in today. Table of Contents Foreword by Mona Eltahawy Foreword by Andrew Harvey Introduction: Invitation to Occupy Your Conscience 1. Is It Time to Replace the God of Religion with the God of Life? 2. Radical Spirituality for a Radical Generation 3. Adam's Story 4. Matthew's Story 5. What's Your Calling? Are You Living in Service of Compassion and Justice? 6. Spiritual Practice: Touch Life and Be Changed by It 7. No Generation Has All the Answers: Elders and Youth Working Together 8. Birthing New Economics, New Communities, and New Monasticism Conclusion: Occupy Generation and the Practice of Spiritual Democracy Afterword by Lama Surya Das