Processional cross from Timiseni Church, Bucharest, Romania
RESOURCES
There’s a story that once when Henry Ford was in court he was being cross-examined. After a string of “I don’t know” answers, the lawyer said, “You don’t know a whole lot, do you?” To which Ford responded, “Give me a phone and ask me any question, and I will have an answer for you in 5 minutes!”
I dare say Ford would have wet his pants in joy to get on the internet. All this to say that I don’t want to give the impression I am an expert in all things spiritual. I’m not. And I have no desire to put myself out there in social media. I don’t do that well. Fortunately, I don’t have to. There are many excellent guides who navigate the cyberworld well. May I share a few of them with you?
The Liturgists.
This is an online and in-person event ministry for those who “can’t go to church anymore”. They provide a unique community and meaningful worship.
Evolve Faith.
They describe themselves as “a spiritual community of skeptics, believers, seekers, and doubters pursuing more thoughtful and honest ways to integrate faith and life.”
Evolving Faith.
Similar to Evolve Faith. They describe themselves as a home for the “questioner and doubter. Question-asker, status-quo upender, church kid, bible nerd, rebel”.
Dr. Hilary McBride.
Her website, and especially her Instagram, is a good place to start in my estimation. Hilary offers two things:
1. She is social media savvy. She networks well, and any she knows all the conferences and online events that will help a person working through their faith, and
2. Her particular specialty is in claiming the feminine voice in a historically patriarchal church. Her talk of “the divine feminine” may excite some of you, and it may scare some of you. Don’t be scared.
SCI.
This is a service that supports spiritual directors. On their website they have a search engine to help you find a spiritual director.
Helpful Guides
Richard Rohr.
He runs the Center for Action and Contemplation. Centred in New Mexico. Excellent blog.
Scot McKnight.
He is quite good at explaining the foundations of the emerging church and post-evangelicalism. Here is a good place to start.
Franky Schafer.
“An atheist who believes in God.” A former big name in the Evangelical world who is a clear voice on post-evangelicalism.
Ilia Delio.
A Franciscan nun with a Ph.D. in science and another Ph.D. in theology. The Omega Center website describes her as an “American theologian specializing in the area of science and religion, with interests in evolution, physics and neuroscience and the import of these for theology”. She is deep, but very readable, and she is an engaging presenter and has some great YouTube talks. I suggest you start here.
Matthew Fox.
The theologian who brought us Creation Theology. Don’t let the fact that he is a theologian scare you off. He doesn’t present heady dogmatics, he talks plainly without sacrificing depth. His website focuses on “Creation Spirituality, Reawakening Mysticism, Protecting Mother Earth”. He has connections with Occupy Spirituality. You might want to start with his “95 Theses”.
Raimon Panikkar.
He was a Roman Catholic priest who also considered himself to be a Hindu and a Buddhist. He was a philosopher who explored the presence of Christ in all religions (Christophany). He is not an easy read, so I suggest you start with this excellent presentation of his thought.
St John of the Cross.
This is the 16th Century mystic who gave us the term “dark night of the soul.” He is not an easy read, so I suggest you start with someone who explains his work. The best overview that I have found is this by Dr. D.W. Ekstrand.
Justine Huxley.
She is the director of St. Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace, which combines contemplation and action. Through this work she seeks to train “Generation Y” in social action based on faith values. Centred in London, England.