Spiritual Wisdom Research Articles

The Spiritual Wisdom of the Gospels for Christian Preachers and Teachers: On Earth as it is in Heaven, by John Shea

The Spiritual Wisdom of the Gospels for Christian Preachers and Teachers: On Earth as it is in Heaven, by John Shea

Wisdom in Pastoral Care and Counseling: What Does it Entail?

The purpose of this article is to suggest richer potential meanings of spiritual wisdom and theological reflection in response to a critical reading of Pamela Cooper-White's book, Shared wisdom: Use of the self in pastoral care and counseling.

MULLĀ SADRĀ BETWEEN MYSTICAL PHILOSOPHY AND QURĀN INTERPRETATION: THROUGH HIS COMMENTARY ON THE “CHAPTER OF EARTHQUAKE”

This article explores the interpretation of the Qurān presented by Mullā Sadrā (d. 1050AH/1640), a mystic philosopher of Ithnācasharī Shīca Islam in Iran. First, in his Keys to the Unknown (Mafātīh al-ghayb), we know the general mechanism of how reading the Qur'ān realizes spiritual perfection. Mullā Sadrā considers the Qurān as the source of spiritual wisdom with a multi-layered structure of meaning. Through concentration on Qur'ānic texts, a reader's soul will be open to a deeper layer of meaning with an awareness of a higher level of spiritual perfection. As a concrete example, we examine his commentary on the Chapter of Earthquake (Sūrat al-Zalzalah), which depicts the catastrophic events on the Last Day. In the literal meaning, or the surface layer of meaning, he intuits as a hidden deeper meaning the incessant re-creation and dynamic flux of existence towards perfection, which also explains different transformations of human beings in the hereafter. We find here another spirituality of Islam, which differs from that of the Islam built on the surface meanings of the Qur'ān.

Implicit Religion in Dreams

Throughout history, virtually every major religion has prized dreams as a primary means of divine revelation. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, many in the fields of psychotherapy and pastoral counseling have recognized that dreams can help their clients develop the religious and spiritual dimensions of their lives. This article argues that the concept of implicit religion can encourage dreamers to appreciate spiritual wisdom they might otherwise overlook in the secular and nonreligious imagery of their dreams.

Women in Daoism (review)

Reviewed by: Women in Daoism Robin R. Wang (bio) Catherine Despeux and Livia Kohn. Women in Daoism. Cambridge, MA: Three Pines Press, 2003. viii, 296 pp. Paperback $25.00, ISBN 1-931483-01-9. The Daodejing observes: "Everything embodies yin and embraces yang; through the blending of these qi, they attain harmony" (chapter 42). How, one may ask, does this yin-yang interplay actually take place in the universe and in human life? What is the role and function of the yin force? How does yin play out in many aspects of human life? Women in Daoism by Catherine Despeux and Livia Kohn, perhaps for the first time, takes its readers on a journey to discover the dynamic world of yin supremacy, particularly as yin is manifested in the multifaceted roles, functions, and realities of women's lives. Their impressive effort succeeds in transforming what would otherwise be a merely conceptual investigation into a rich narrative disclosing the vivid world of women in Daoism that allows readers to envision what it would be like to seek genuine harmony with the universe. The book is divided into three parts and ten chapters. Each of these is subdivided into topics ranging from "The Mother of the Dao" to "Women's Inner Alchemy." The first part, on "Goddesses," goes beyond identifying these divine objects of religious devotion and offers an appreciation of the Daoist worldview [End Page 69] and the role of women within it. The second part, on "Immortals and Ordinands," surveys the actual records of women's lives throughout Chinese history, the communities in which they have sought spiritual perfection, and whatever teachings that they impart to other women who might take up the path to immortality. The third part, on "Women's Transformation," is a detailed description and analysis of actual Daoist practices, culminating in the inner alchemy by which immortality, flowing from a life progressively liberated from the conventions and restraints of the patriarchal family, can actually be achieved. This book is not simply an attempt at Chinese intellectual history but an exceptional invitation to contemporary women to discover what might be the most valuable quality in their own lives and to cultivate it accordingly. The complexity of Chinese women's identities, roles, and actual lived experience has become an increasingly central topic for investigation. Much work has been done on the Confucian tradition, focusing on the relationship between Confucianism and women. But little attention has been directed toward the Daoist tradition. This book offers a significant resource for moving in that direction. The authors insightfully point out that "Daoism offers a social alternative for women in that it opens paths to pursue their own goals as independent agents, be it the practice of self-cultivation, service as mediums, nuns, or priests, or [the] attainment of immortality" (p. 5). These options have provided women with a reliable path toward spiritual wisdom and emancipation. Five basic images of the roles of women have emerged from the authors' analysis of the history of Daoism: (1) the female as mother, the life-giver and nurturing power of the universe; (2) women as representative of the cosmic force of yin , which fully complements the male yang; (3) women as authoritative teachers in the esoteric movements of religious Daoism; (4) women as possessors of empowering supernatural techniques who have the wisdom to use them properly; and (5) the female body as the seat of the essential ingredients and processes of spiritual transformation (p. 5). While these roles have materialized at different stages of history, a full grasp of the magnitude of the presence of women in Daoism requires a critical evaluation of each cumulative impact. At the risk of simplifying the rich lessons to be gathered from this book, let me highlight just three important themes from its abundant contents. First, there is the construction of an ontological basis for the female identity. The authors offer a convincing case that women, as representatives of cosmic yin, embody a distinctive set of forces and components in the universe. This awareness allocates a paradigm shift in the discernment of the roles of woman. In the mainstream of Confucian culture throughout history, women's identity and self...

Reviews

Lawrence A. Hoffman, The Journey Home: Discovering the Deep Spiritual Wisdom of the Jewish TraditionArthur Hertzberg, A Jew in America: My Life and a People's Struggle for IdentityWalter Brueggemann, Reverberations of Faith: A Theological Handbook of Old Testament ThemesJ. Arthur Baird, Holy Word: The Paradigm of New Testament FormationGlenna Jackson, ‘Have Mercy on Me’: The Story of the Canaanite Woman in Matthew 15.21–28Walter Brueggemann, William C. Placher, and Brian K. Blount, Struggling with ScriptureMichael S. Horton, Covenant and Eschatology: The Divine DramaFergus Kerr, After Aquinas: Versions of ThomismMark A. Noll, America's God: From Jonathan Edwards to Abraham LincolnJill Felicity Durey, Trollope and the Church of EnglandP. Travis Kroeker and Bruce K. Ward, Remembering the End: Dostoevsky as Prophet to ModernityAmy Plantinga Pauw, The Supreme Harmony of All: The Trinitarian Theology of Jonathan EdwardsStephen Prickett, Narrative, Religion and Science: Fundamentalism Versus Irony, 1700–1999Niels Henrik Gregersen and Ulf Görman (eds), Design and Disorder: Perspectives From Science and TheologyCynthia D. Moe‐Lobeda, Healing a Broken World: Globalization and GodCarl E. Braaten and Robert W. Jensen (eds), Re‐evangelizing in the Postmodern World: The Strange New Word of the GospelAlan E. Lewis , Between Cross and Resurrection: A Theology of Holy SaturdayBruce L. Fields, Introducing Black Theology: Three Crucial Questions for the Evangelical ChurchOliver O’Donovan, Common Objects of Love: Moral Reflection and the Shaping of CommunityJames K.A. Smith, Speech and Theology: Language and the Logic of IncarnationTimothy Ward, Word and Supplement: Speech Acts, Biblical Texts, and the Sufficiency of ScriptureDavid K. Naugle, Worldview: The History of a ConceptMarc Gopin, Holy War, Holy Peace: How Religion Can Bring Peace to the Middle EastDenys Turner, Faith SeekingL. Gregory Jones and Stephanie Paulsell (eds), The Scope of Our Art: The Vocation of the Theological TeacherDwight Longenecker, St. Benedict and St. ThérèseJeremy Begbie (ed), Sounding the Depths: Theology Through the Arts

Joining hands: politics and religion together for social change

Did Martin Luther King's spiritual understanding of political struggle truly help the Civil Rights movement? Can breast cancer victims incorporate both spiritual wisdom and political action in their fight for life? Confronting questions that challenge the foundations of both politics and spirituality, Roger S. Gottlieb presents a brave new account of how religious ethics and progressive movements share a common vision of a transformed world. In doing so, he offers a bold and eloquent affirmation: that authentic religion requires an activist, transforming presence in the political world, and that the moral and psychological insights of religion are indispensable resources in political struggles for democracy, human rights and ecological sanity. With original and compelling interpretations of Martin Luther King and the civil rights struggle, feminism, disability rights, the global environmental movement, and the fight for breast cancer, Joining Hands will alter the way spiritual seekers, political activists, and society as a whole think about the political role of religion and the spiritual component of politics.

Eckhart’s Imageless Image: Art Spirituality, and the Apophatic Way

The doctrine of Images is a pervasive, deep, and difficult area in Eckhart studies. In recent years, a number of articles and even books have been devoted to this aspect of the Meister's teaching. Among those accessible from the Eckhart Review are Loris Sturlese's important article from 1993 and Bruce Milem's prize-winning essay of two years ago. I also highly recommend the pertinent section of Bernard McGinn's fine new book, The Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart. (I have provided a short bibliography for those who are interested in pursuing the subject further.) Despite its difficulty and medieval tenor, there is nothing quaint or musty about Eckhart's concern with the notion of Image, and in particular the human person as Imago Dei the Image of God. This ancient Christian doctrine is still very much at the front of theological disputation as indicated in the Santa Clara lecture given last April by Mary Catherine Hilkert, 'Imago Dei: Does the Symbol Have a Future?'l In her excellent address, which is available as a reprint from Santa Clara University; she summarizes much of the theological debate surrounding the theme and offers constructive suggestions about rehabilitating it in an era in which feminist, liberation, and ecological demands require a reassessment of both the concept, the language in which it has been formulated, and its historical and current implications for spirituality and ethics.2 Hilkert does not cite Eckhart, nor does Eckhart address issues that are of special importance to Hilkert and many people toda~ such as human arrogance in regard to other species and the planet as a whole, gender disparity, and the oppressive inequity between rich nations and poor nations. Still, Eckhart's approach to the Image, and the Imago Dei in particular, offers insights that are surprisingly similar to many of Hilkert' s observations and, I think, contain a wealth of spiritual wisdom. Eckhart did not approach this subject in a vacuum, of course. He drew on resources of both the biblical and philosophical traditions of the past, as well as theological speculation. Since I do not have much to add byway of textual exegesis to what has been so admirably discussed by Bernard McGinn, Bruce

An overview of transpersonal psychology.

Abstract An overview of transpersonal psychology is provided with specific focus on a number of its central themes (nonduality, intrinsic health, self‐transcendence, and inclusivity) and practices (meditation, ritual, and inquiry). The relationship of transpersonal psychology to both mainstream psychology and spiritual wisdom traditions is discussed. The field's implications for diversity issues, research, and service applications are also considered.

Is a Global Ethics Possible?

This article addresses the question: Is a global ethics possible? The authors suggest developing a global ethics is a subject of critical importance to the practice of public administration. Ethics is important in public administration, especially at the international level. However the form and pace of globalization—rapidly changing the very nature of work in both the public and private sectors—are removing many familiar organizational, regional and even cultural norms and ethics. Considering the world’s diversity, is it even logical to assume that a universally accepted global ethics is possible? The authors propose that it is both logical and possible. The article first summarizes the ideas of the most noted scholar on global ethic—Hans Kung. It next presents an abbreviated explanation of the common spiritual wisdom literature, which is built on the five largest religious traditions. The article then applies the Kung criteria set to the spiritual wisdom literature and concludes that it is a viable candidate for being considered a universal global ethics.

Santayana and Buddhism: The Choice between the Cross and the Bo Tree

Santayana honors Gotama Buddha as a profound religious genius as well as an original philosopher. Gotama's way is genuine spiritual wisdom, and constantly compared with Christian mysticism as a way of enlightenment. It is therefore understandable that a Spaniard, who learned his catechism in Avila, and who was educated in New England of Emerson and other Transcendentalists who honored Oriental wisdom, should have so much to say about Buddha and Buddhism. The effort of this paper is to gather many of isolated passages to give a coherent picture of Santayana and Buddhism. One difficulty to be overcome is that philosopher rarely quotes his sources (the exception is a single quotation from Dasgupta). Although Santayana has numerous opinions, he does not reveal on which translations he has relied. Nor does he contrast different traditions of Buddhists. To overcome vagueness of scholarship, I have used volumes found in Widener Library: sorts of books known to Santayana's dissertation director, Josiah Royce, and those of a sympathetic sort that had led Santayana as early as writing of his dissertation on Rudolf Hermann Lotze to reject latter's defiantly Christian and Western contempt for oriental superstition. The sympathy can be expressed as similar to that of Schopenhauer in reading Upanishads or Wilhelm von Humboldt in studying Bhagavadgita. Santayana's study makes him aware of his Catholicism but he is unlike Jesuit Dahlmann who attacks Buddhism as Nihilism. Santayana is more like his contemporaries who worked in psychology and philosophy of religion. Although Friedrich Heiler's work' and writings of James Bissett Pratt2 were a bit too late to have influenced Santayana, comparison serves to illuminate and strengthen Santayana's conclusions. Perhaps Heiler is even more appropriate because Buddhistic insights remind him of those of St. Theresa. Santayana would support Pratt's view that Nirvana is not annihilation of all desire but extinguishing of evil passions. What Santayana finds congenial in Christian Neo-Platonism and in Spinoza, as well as in Buddhism, is achievement of freedom of spirit.3 It has become a commonplace of world history that two greatest founders of religion whose ways of salvation triumphed in Europe and in Asia respectively are Christ and Buddha. Philosophers of religion like Heiler accept both as saviors with a universal message, one, Jesus the master of prayer (der Meister des Gebets),

Spiritual wisdom and public administration: Are they compatible?

This article argues for the use of spiritual wisdom in the profession of public administration. Given the problems emerging from the information age, this article projects some likely challenges of the new millennium and recommends that we should use all the wisdom available to humankind including the common spiritual wisdom found the primary literature of all the religious traditions. This article argues a fundamental shift has occurred in the paradigm that is needed to guide our actions in the twenty-first century. Fortunately, the existing spiritual wisdom can help us more intelligently meet those challenges especially in the area of ethic

The pursuit of spiritual wisdom: the thought and art of Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin

This book explores van Gogh's and Gauguin's conviction that the purpose of visual art in human culture is to communicate a spiritual understanding of existence comparable to the wisdom contained in the metaphors and parables of myths, religions, and literature. Monographic studies in the book, which entail many new interpretations of van Gogh's and Gauguin's imagery, reveal the ways in which their ideas and the specific events of their personal lives shaped their creation of meaningful symbolic motifs.

Ecrits aprocryphes chretiens

Ecrits apocryphes chritiens, ed. Francois Bovon and Pierre Geoltrain. Paris: Gallimard, 1997. Pp. lxvi + 1,782. F 450,00. This handsome and not inexpensive volume of translations of Christian (to use the editors' terminology) will, naturally, be of most interest Francophone readers: as the editors themselves state at the outset (with some understandable irritation), such collections have already existed a long time in German, English, Italian, and Spanish (p. xi). That a parallel resource has not yet been compiled for French-speakers is, perhaps, all the justification that the editors require for the publication of the present edition. The individual introductions, footnotes, and comprehensive indices make this beautiful little book accessible a range of professional or amateur readers. In their introduction, Bovon and Geoltrain amiably offer these writings whoever might find them of interest: students of history and literature, seekers of spiritual wisdom, and even those of an orthodox theological bent who wish to know better their enemies (pp. xi-xii). The construction of this particular collection, however, should also catch the eye of all students and scholars who take seriously the study of noncanonical Christian writings from the first centuries CE. As the editors wryly announce, It is paradoxical compose a collection (recueil) of Christian writings; for saying 'collection' immediately implies interest, worth, and authority (p. xi)-in short, all those things we are traditionally taught apocryphal texts lack by virtue of their noncanonicity. Any effort at collation, categorization, and explication must seek answer this paradox, and the present editors do so admirably and provocatively. Their choice of texts is neither strange nor unorthodox (academically speaking). All of the standards are be found in this volume: infancy gospels, acts, revelation texts of all manner and setting, and various pseudepigraphic epistles. The fine translations have been made by a variety of experts conversant in the linguistic and social areas required (texts have been translated from Greek, Latin, Syriac, Coptic, Arabic, Ethiopic, Georgian, and Armenian). Naturally, Francophone readers will benefit most from these translations; but even Anglophone students of these texts can benefit from the opportunity rethink the traditional vocabulary and syntax of apocrypha. The compactness and plasticity of French grammar allow for some more euphonious translations than we Anglophones might be used to: the elegant Evangile selon Thomas provides one case in point. Some interesting selections not found in many standard scholarly Anglophone translations (such as J. K. Elliott's recent restoration of M. R. James's collection) include the Gospel of Eve, Doctrina Addai, the Ascension of Isaiah, various books of Ezra, the Odes of Solomon, the Book of the Revelation of Elkasai, the Legend of Simon and Theonoe, and the Encomium of John the Baptist. These texts have appeared in print elsewhere and have been the objects of careful study, but it is their inclusion here as Christian that is noteworthy. Indeed, perhaps the most interesting part of this volume for the student of early Christianity is the careful introduction composed by the two editors, in which they address the thorny question of what exactly constitutes apocrypha. Bovon and Geoltrain remain consistent in their attempts not define apocrypha in relation the canon. They are most successful in this, I think, in the arrangement of the work. …

THE BALANCE OF NATURE, THE GARDEN OF EDEN, AND THE POWER OF POLICY: SOME OBSERVATIONS ON CONTEMPORARY ENVIRONMENTAL MYTHOLOGY

Many popular beliefs about the environment are based on outmoded scientific concepts or premature conclusions from highly contested terrain. This discussion considers three Sorelian myths, or fundamental assumptions, neither wholly true nor wholly false, that channel our thinking and action. One is the theory of the homeostatic ecosystem, or the “balance of nature,” which may reflect unconscious cultural assumptions regarding all forms of change, including political or social. Recent ecological and paleontological evidence that ecosystems are actually in constant flux, with no natural balance, has not fully displaced the homeostatic myth in people's minds. A second myth, that of the Garden of Eden, sees traditional societies as possessors of unique spiritual wisdom about the environment rather than simply constrained by limited supplies of energy and weak technology. This myth can lead to an essentializing of ethnic identity that may lead to increasingly serious conflicts over resources. The third myth is that of the power of government policy to solve all environmental problems, a belief that can lead to policy bandwagons that travel off the track of the best scientific information. The lesson of this exploration is that we need to recognize our limits to control events and constantly subject all environmental knowledge to critical scrutiny. Sometimes it may even prove necessary to revive discarded myths, such as that of the population explosion.

Secularization of Public Administration

At issue is the method used to define in the discipline. For example, when we discuss ethics, we base our inquiry on regime values and ignore the broader established literature concerning the common spiritual of mankind. Like much of western culture, secularization as a value strongly influences public administration. This article examines the history of in public administration research and questions secularization with its removal of linkage between spiritual wisdom and public values. Research in public administration evolved from a valueneutral basis immortalized in Woodrow Wilson's political/administrative dichotomy, to a logical positivism basis advanced by Herbert Simon, to a call for the return to value-based traditions. Recent research in the field, including research on ethics for public administrators, has acknowledged that do play an integral role and that the value-free neutrality approach was invalid. This article makes the case that public administration should not narrow its choice of to only secularization but should use the full range of human inquiry available to us, including the various Holy Scriptures from not only the Jewish and Christian traditions but other traditions as well, such as the Hindu, Buddhist, and Islamic. The excitement and meaning of our very existence-indeed. the future of life itself on this planet-is linked to the administrative process. Theory, and practice are inexorably interwoven and enmeshed. It is this complex net which is the center of attention in the study of public administration. (Simmons and Dvorin 1977, 3-4) In their book Public Administration Values, Policy, and Change (1977), Robert Simmons and Eugene Dvorin make a strong argument (as noted above) for the importance that play in public administration. They note the existence of a 473/Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory Much of this article flows from two sets of activitiesfirst, from the editing of a collection of chapters addressing philosophy and public administration. Some of the ideas in the article reflect those draft articles-an example is the draft chapter by Lance deHaven-Smith. Second, from a speech given at a joint conference of the Institute of Canadian Public Administration and the American Society for Public Administration, held in 1995 in Toronto, and from a paper presented at the Ninth National Symposium on Public Administration Theory, which was held in 1996 in Savannah, Georgia. J-PART 7(1997): 3:473-487 This content downloaded from 207.46.13.71 on Sat, 22 Oct 2016 06:07:35 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms

The Psychologist as Mythologist

This article discusses three ways that psychologists are mythologists. First, psychologists are mythmakers when taking the role of psychotherapists. The revised life-story narrative or personal mythology that they coauthor with the patient during therapy often contains elements of classic myths. Second, psychologists function as comparative mythologists when we unravel the psychological and spiritual wisdom woven into ancient and traditional myths. Third, psychologists are mythic researchers, as evidenced by MacAdams's empirical research that used Greek myths to study personal identity. Yet, the graduate education of psychologists rarely incorporates training in mythologies and their meanings. This oversight is being addressed at Saybrook Institute and a few other alternative graduate psychology schools.

Woman’s Role in Ojibway Spirituality

This paper describes the spirituality of Ojibway women, beginning with the respect native Canadians have for the earth, and the influence of the land and their nomadic lifestyle on traditional spiritual practises. Spiritual wisdom was traditionally taught at home by the mother or father of the family; today, it is taught in the teaching lodge and the sweat lodge, where women learn of their roles as leaders of ceremonies, healers, and celebrants of life.

Aging as a Spiritualizing Process

In many cultures, the process is seen as a clue to spiritual wisdom. The removal of this process from sight in mainline existence in this country brings with it a loss of ccnain parameters in which growth in spirit can grow to maturity. This article describes eleven dimensions of this process that can help in the crcation of a new spirituality not simply for the but for the rest of us willing to take seriously the fact that aging is a disease for which there is no cure.

Mine of Spiritual Wisdom

Mine of Spiritual Wisdom