Nov/Dec 2021 Newsletter

This newsletter is a publication of Creation Spirituality Communities and is funded by its members and supporters. If you are enjoying this newsletter and appreciate keeping up with the Creation Spirituality community, please consider becoming a member or renewing your membership.


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Painting by Su Skjersaa, available as a card for purchase at suskjersaa.com
Ah, Snow
by Rev. Roger L. Brown
 
Ah, snow,
So white and pure,
Bright and shiny,
Falls in flakes unique.
Every snowflake a one of the kind design.
A cosmic design,
Creation’s ultimate art.
 
Ah, snow
The sign of the winter season.
The blessing of winter cold
It’s magical character
Light, fluffy, wet, or heavy.
 
Ah, snow
Snow that paints the forests white and green,
Covering brambles and branches --
Creating a snow-fallen highway,
Winding its way through the forest, and
Guiding cross-country skiers as
Snowshoers plod along behind them.
 
Ah, snow
That covers my world in
Pure unblemished white
That makes my world shine and sparkle.
 
Ah, snow
That cosmic creative act
Of forgiveness and redemption snowfall.
As snow falls, it covers
The sins of litter and trash,
Lawns unmowed and yards full of clutter
That snow has painted over these landscape sins.
 
So the winter landscape is whitewashed into
Glorious white to shine in the sun!
Upcoming Events
Longing for spiritual connection in these troubling times?

We invite you to join us every Sunday for this online, interfaith Worship Experience. We are growing a strong, nurturing community and want you to be part! This year, as last, we will be engaging in the 12 Days of Turning -- a wonderful time of reflection and creativity as one year ends and another begins. You don't want to miss it!

In case you are unable to attend in person, all who register will receive a link to be able to view the CSIWE after the event happens. So be sure to Register!

Every Sunday 7:00p/6:00p/5:00p/4:00p
Eastern/Central/Mountain/Pacific

Please register in advance for this meeting

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
The time of the LONE WOLF is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word "struggle" from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration...

You can catch up on the previous webinars on our YouTube channel.  CiC Playlist

Register below to receive the Zoom link.
Lecture/Q&A: Howard Thurman, MLK, Jr., & The Return of...

Join Matthew Fox in the Rowe Retreat Center's virtual event, Howard Thurman, Martin Luther King, Jr. and The Return of The Sacred Masculine Rowe Retreat Center Tuesday, January 11, 4:00pm-6:00pm PT...

Read more
www.matthewfox.org
Creation Spirituality Online Class
Starts February, 2022
Are You Drawn to
A Deeper Understanding
of
 Creation Spirituality?

Come... Learn... Engage… in Community!

Virtual Class Starts February 2022

Facilitated by The Rev. Dr. Sid Hall


For Pre-Registration Info Contact: marciaflagg@gmail.com
News
For the month of November at Spiritwind we studied the teachings of Creation Spirituality, then in December we are looking at the histories of the sacred and secular versions of Christmas.
 
Spiritwind is a Creation Spirituality Community in the tradition of ONE RIVER, MANY WELLS led by Rev. Dr. Rick Reich-Kuykendall (530) 823-8610
Spiritwind Book Published
Creative Offerings
Painting by Su Skjersaa, available as a card for purchase at suskjersaa.com
The Grand Artist
(The Lava Rock)
by Karin Grumstrup

Beautifully sculptured
for millions of years as the
artist perfected her craft.
 
Her magnificent blackness
spoke to me of darkness, but
she stood day in and day out
in the brightness of the sun.
 
Patient, proud, and stunning.
 
This massive lava boulder
opened my heart.
She is, I thought, a warrior woman
dressed in her ancient beauty
and wisdom.
 
She lets the water wash around
her as it flowed through the
behemoth Rio Grande Gorge, also
carved by the same artist’s infinite
powerful touch.
 
Come here and touch me she
beckoned.
What do you feel? she asked me.
 
I sat and listened, and finally
I heard her say,
I have been here for ions of time,
opening to the flow of the artist’s
gift of allurement.
 
Now it is your turn.
Can you let the grand artist
entice you to flow with her,
create with her, and serve her.
 
I sat humbled at the thought.
My pad and paper inviting me
to write for the glorious artist,
who is ever expanding,
and co-creating in allurement.
 
               10/24/2021
               Big Arsenic Springs trail, New Mexico
Freedom
by Rev. Fr. Jerry Maynard

It is scary to be free yet I yearn to be free.

When I walk through the world, I am terrified; terrified by pain and by adventure.
Sometimes going through life feels like walking through a blizzard in shorts and flip flops; while other times it is like walking into the middle of a raging sea.

Still, sometimes, when I am my best self I see nothing more than joyous opportunity all around me. Every corner is another chance to be a lover of bodies and a lover of souls. Every step is a step towards yes — albeit a reluctant yes but a yes nonetheless.
I do not know for sure what freedom is but I know I yearn for it.

Maybe freedom is the tears you shed when you let go of unrequited love? Maybe freedom is saying no?

Maybe freedom is changing course?

I do not know for sure what freedom is but I know I yearn for it.

Maybe freedom is just getting up every morning and remembering what God says about me when I open my eyes;

Very good.

Amen.
An Aha Moment
by James Irving Mann

The instant you realize
your kinship with Creation,
your heart
will beat in Joy,
your eyes
will see in Wonder,
and
your spirit
will sing in Delight.
Painting by Su Skjersaa, available as a card for purchase at suskjersaa.com
Untitled
by Mary Pat Mengato

“Will it be in love?” you ask
Reverberating my whole being awake
Love?
The only reality there is
Hidden in plain sight
Under words that deny it
Yet it lives
In pages still to be written
Heard across eons
Disguised
Waiting to be discovered
Where it always was, is,
“Yes, it will be in love;
It is in love.”
Living in the very form
Lit into being
Every step on the path
As I view it
Illuminated in rays going deep to the core
Of life.
The flower repeats and grows the seed
Receives the light, love’s form appearing
All is love and love’s reflection
Knows the words
And speaks the answer
Pulsing an infinite yes.

Currently untitled, this poem is from a book I am writing about the experience of moving and living as love in the practice of Unity in Motion.
Holiday Season
by Robert Murphy

It's the season of many holidays and there's much to contemplate. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, and the impact of climate change, and other tragedies, humanity still has the opportunity to get things right. We can care for ourselves and our neighbors and our shared environment.

This year marked the 400th anniversary of the event known as "the first American Thanksgiving Day." There was much political and religious excitement, but, at the end of November, there were two points that should have been mentioned more often. Keep both points in mind for future celebrations during the harvest season.

First: America's first thanksgiving day took place long before the Europeans arrived in the region. And many tribes still set time aside for autumn events. This was the first year for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada. Canadians paused at the end of September to reflect on the ways in which religious and political authorities have colluded in the oppression of indigenous peoples. Reparations have been promised and there's a need to return tribal lands that have been taken illegally.

Truth with justice is needed for indigenous peoples  in the United States. Don't wait for government action. Start by organizing appropriate activities for your family, your religious organization, and your community. Ask the questions that should be asked in every season. When the people lead, the national leaders will follow.

Second: Keep in mind that Congress never authorized an annual celebration of Plymouth Colony or any other colony. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln called for national days of gratitude but they didn't mention Massachusetts and the Pilgrims in their holiday declarations. Both Presidents worked for national unity and healing.  

As recently as the 1940s, it was possible for an American President (Harry Truman) to issue a Thanksgiving Day declaration without mentioning the Pilgrims. Look at the original plans for the national celebration of the American Thanksgiving Day. Keep asking,  "What did Washington and Lincoln and the first members of Congress have in mind when they established the national holiday? What were they trying to accomplish? How can the holiday be reclaimed and recycled?"

What's needed is a multiracial, multicultural, and multi-regional holiday that all Americans can enjoy at the end of November. Instead of keeping indigenous peoples on the sidelines, their leadership and their vision should be celebrated. It can be noted, also, that harvest dinners are almost universal. Jesus of Nazareth made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to observe Sukkoth. Kwanzaa activities in December are inspired, in part, by the harvest traditions in Africa.

December has a long list of special events. Human Rights Day (December 10) deserves some special mention. It honors the day when the United Nations adopted and proclaimed its Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In the United States, much gets said about human rights, but many Americans know very little human rights work and how it developed. Pause at the beginning of December for a time of reflection. The Noble Peace Prize is usually awarded on December 10th. Talk with religious and community groups about the importance of human rights. Encourage support for the human rights groups that are especially important in your life.
Painting by Su Skjersaa, available as a card for purchase at suskjersaa.com
Ohhhhhh
by Beth Benson
Professional Fairy Godmother

Creation
Life
Force
lifeforce
Begins
Again at the beginning
Renews itself
Through every disaster
insists
That life
goes
On
After
All
And before
anything

Life

Before any thing

life

And so we find ourselves alive

here
In this 
Newsletter reading now

And so we begin again

Oh, god of all the chances, 
Here we are again
breathing
In
Life

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
A Review of What Stories are you Living?
As I read Pearson’s book I was transported back to my early days as a pastor. I had hired a Religious Sister to be the director of Religious Education in the parish. Inevitably, as I would make my way to the office she would have six to ten people gathered around her telling stories. I would mutter to myself, “I think we hired her to do more than to listen and tell stories.” It was only years later I realized that more wisdom was communicated through those stories than many of the sermons preached or classes taught in that same building.

I fast forward about 50 years. As a monk, I became director of a retreat center. Saint Francis Retreat Center is part of Mepkin Abbey, a Cistercian Monastery, 60 miles north of Charleston, South Carolina. It did not take long to realize that our most popular and transformative offerings where those that enabled others to tell their stories. We were feeding the deep hunger of many who long for a safe and secure opportunity to tell their stories and listen to those of other companions on life’s journey. This is how they find the language that voices their own life experience.

This was my background for reading What Stories are We Living? after I took the Pearson-Marr Archetype Indicator Instrument she coauthored, available on her website. With an initial grasp of the High-Scoring Archetypes of the 12 she identifies that most resonated with me I began an incredible journey through her book. The book is more than a didactic description of Archetypes. Carol worked with me to, not only find ways to better utilize my strong ones, but also to access my midrange score ones and use then as sidekicks. I even saw the value my low scoring ones could have.

There was another hidden treasure as I read and studied the plotlines of the 12. As one who listens to a lot of stories I felt I was given a new resource, as I began to identify the archetypes of others. I could now help them identify and affirm some of their own hidden strengths and engage other archetypes to help negotiate life.

So, whether you are a novice in the field of Archetypes like myself or seasoned by some of Carol’s other outstanding work in this field, you will find her archetypal wisdom seeps through every page. Furthermore, you will find an energy in this book that can help us move forward through these unprecedented tumultuous times to update our own, as well as, the communal stories we live by.

Rev. Guerric Heckel, ocso
Mepkin Abbey
Moncks Corner, SC

Editor's Note: We would love to have someone from the CSC Community review Carol's book. If you are interested in writing a review for the next Newsletter, please contact newsletter@cscommunities.org and we can send you an advance copy.
15 Possible Roles We Could Play to Help the World
by John Robinson
 
Here’s a list of fifteen possible roles we could play to help the world. They’re in no particular order. As you read them, underline the ones that kindle your inner fire. You could be a… 
  • Climate warrior defending Creation against the continuing assault of development, pollution, and exploitation through social protest and civil disobedience.
  • Citizen Lobbyist pressuring local, state and national governments to declare a climate emergency and adopt immediate climate legislation.
  • Gardener or Animal Lover nourishing and supporting life in all its forms. 
  • Healer of physical, emotional, mental or spiritual wounds in human and non-human beings, nurturing the hurt and broken back to life.
  • Artist expressing and welcoming the Spirit’s powerful message of loving creativity through your own work. Art is the transformation of consciousness. 
  • Lover of Creation blessing every living thing with kindness, gratitude and praise. 
  • Skillful Builder for a Sustainable New World as enlightened craftsman, engineer, laborer, farmer, planner, chef, inventor, lawyer or educator.
  • Contemplative immersed in prayer and unitive conscious- ness sending healing energies throughout Creation.
  • Scientist, professional or amateur, seeking to understand the nature and causes of climate damage and its repair.
  • Spiritual Leader creating or revitalizing sacred ritual, celebration and theology in service to Creation.
  • Social Organizer inspiring and mobilizing community planning for long-term local sustainability and immediate climate action.
  • Conflict Manager skilled in compassionate non-violent communication and community problem-solving, guiding fractured groups through difficult choices toward unifying values and action.
  • Volunteer donating time, energy, skills, and money to political or climate action organizations. 
  • Nature Mystic going outside and falling in love with Creation for continued support, inspiration, and motivation.
  • Last but not least, Reducer of your own Carbon Footprint through lifestyle changes and carbon offset programs. And remember, the word “sacrifice” comes from the Latin and means “to make sacred.” What you give up helps restore the sacred world. 

Look back at the roles you underlined. Write about what you discovered. What is that fire that flared up inside? Why was each role you picked especially exciting? Now write about how you might express these roles in the world. Don’t make any immediate decisions, just witness what’s coming to mind. 

Conclusions 
While we may engage all these roles in different degrees and combinations, each of us has been chosen, by temperament, passion, interest or soul, to help the world in a unique way. What have you begun to recognize as your own natural and unique gifts and its path of expression. For me, the answer was right under my nose but I kept thinking it had to lie elsewhere. What brings me alive, where is my deep gladness, what touches my wounded heart? The answer was writing. I was doing it all along. I still can’t seem to stop. A lifetime of education, professional training, therapy experience, spiritual practice and teaching, exploration of consciousness aging, and the pain I feel everywhere in the climate crisis, all continue to fill me with wonder, insight, and compassion, so I keep writing. May you find what is right under your nose as well. 
Mythic Self
by Evan Mecham
 
My old myth was built on potency and might.
It was reactive, defensive, and fearful. 
It did not earn it conquered. 
Yet, the self it knew was unsure and easily damaged
from the rivalries and oppositions of the world.
My new myth embraced strength and reversed its gaze inward to know itself.
For, what I believe within my heart cannot be defiled.
It is mine forever.
What is Creation Spirituality Communities?
Creation Spirituality Communities, Inc. (CSC) is a network of individuals and communities who are grounded in the sacredness of all creation and seek to connect to the spirituality of creation through mysticism, creativity, and cultural transformation.

CSC includes people from many spiritual traditions, cultures, races, sexual identities, and ages. They come to Creation Spirituality through the writing and speeches of Matthew Fox, through articles and videos, through conversations with friends, and through study at one of the Creation Spirituality universities – now the Fox Institute of Creation Spirituality.

Creation Spirituality Communities provides avenues for gathering together, being inspired, and embodying the CS message of compassion, co-creation, and transformation. We are led by a nine member board of directors and supported by our members.
Below are the Creation Spirituality Communities that we are aware are meeting on a regular basis. If you are participating in a community or CS circle that is not included on this list, please let us know by writing to contact@cscommunities.org.

LIST OF CREATION SPIRITUALITY COMMUNITIES:
Creation Spirituality Communities
contact@cscommunities.org | www.cscommunities.org