Gerald May Seminar
Fifth Gerald G. May Seminar with Matthew Fox
Earth Spirituality and the Mystical Tradition
April 23-24, 2010
"In times like ours, when the planet is reeling from abuse and misuse at the hands of humans, when human inventions and discoveries have shrunken time and space on this planet so that we can communicate by Internet and satellites instantaneously with others around the globe, when livable space for our own and other species is dwindling and being depleted, it ought to prove especially beneficial to look to spirituality to help us find our way back (and forward!) to what it means to be human."
— Matthew Fox
Claim and celebrate the wisdom of our world's religions.
Claim and celebrate our inheritance as co-creators with the Holy One.
Claim and celebrate the power and possibility of our compassionate creativity.
The ecological crisis of our time – the disappearance of 27,000 species per year, the peril of the waters, the soul, the rainforests, the ozone – all reveal a spirit-issue beyond the violence of humans toward the more-than-human.
In this year's Gerald May Seminar, Matthew Fox will show how healthy spirituality, rooted in the wisdom of the mystical tradition, can assist the bringing about of an environmental revolution. And he will help us explore our own roles as co-creators with the Divine.
Creativity is the birthright and the responsibility of all peoples – a special gift of the human species. This Divine co-creative power can be used in the demonic ways of violence, weaponry and wars OR we can claim its true purpose, compassion and healing justice.
During our time together, we will consider, experience and celebrate the wisdom that comes from world spiritual traditions and science and our own experience. As wonder-filled mystics we will learn, question, reflect, dance, draw, and otherwise claim and celebrate the wisdom found in the world's religions and our inheritance as Divine co-creators.
| Date: | Friday Lecture, April 23, 2010 Saturday Workshop, April 24, 2010 |
| Time: | Friday Lecture, 7-9pm Saturday Workshop, 10am-4pm |
| Place: | Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockville 100 Welsh Park Drive Rockville, MD 20850 |
| Leader: | Matthew Fox |
| Cost: | Friday Lecture, $25 * Saturday Workshop, $75 * Both Friday & Saturday, $100 * |
| * Early Bird Registration prices Early bird registration deadline is March 22, 2010 |
"Matthew Fox might well be the most creative, the most comprehensive, surely the most challenging religious-spiritual teacher in America." (Thomas Berry)
Matthew Fox, a well-known author, educator and lecturer, has for years been renewing the ancient tradition of Creation Spirituality-a tradition that honors the arts and artists, is wisdom centered, prophetic and caring about eco-justice and social justice and gender justice issues. Fox's effort to reawaken the West to its own mystical tradition has included revivifying awareness of Hildegard of Bingen, Meister Eckhart and the mysticism of Thomas Aquinas as well as interacting with contemporary scientists who are also mystics.
He is the author of 28 books including Original Blessing; The Reinvention of Work; One River, Many Wells; A Spirituality Named Compassion; and, his most recent, The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors to Awaken the Sacred Masculine.
Fox holds a doctorate in the History and Theology of Spirituality from the Institut Catholique de Paris, and for 34 years he was a member of the Dominican Order. He established the Institute in Culture and Creation Spirituality that operated for seven years at Mundelein College in Chicago and twelve years at Holy Names College in Oakland, California. He also started the University of Creation Spirituality in Oakland, and was President and a member of the Board of Directors there for nine years. He is currently President of Friends of Creation Spirituality, a non-profit he created in 1984.
Fox's books have received numerous awards, and he himself is the recipient of the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award. Through his work and writing, he has committed himself to the vision of "reinventing work, education and worship" in order to "bring about a non-violent revolution on our planet."
The Gerald May Seminar is offered in memory of the life and legacy
of Gerald (Jerry) May, Shalem's Senior Fellow for Contemplative
Theology and Psychology, and to strengthen the great themes of
contemplative understanding and practice that Jerry so valued.
Registration
Early bird registration deadline is March 22, 2010.
After March 22, registration costs will increase.
- To register online for the Friday lecture only, please click here.
- To register online for the Saturday workshop only, please click here.
- To register online for both Friday & Saturday, please click here.
To register by mail, download our Short Program Registration Form (PDF).
Or contact Program Registrar, Chris Jeffrey, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , (301-897-7334 ext. 209)
For directions to Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockville, please click here.
Natural world illustration copyright of iStockphoto.com.
To download a flyer of this year's Gerald May Event to post at your church or local community bulletin board please click here.