According to “Integral Philosophy,” a person doesn’t move up the spiral of greater consciousness (and thus begin making necessary course corrections) until their present stage of development becomes unlivable. By ‘unlivable’ we mean that there are recurring incidents – disasters, if you will – that no longer allow them to remain with the status quo. It becomes evident that something has to change, and quickly!

We might even think in terms of being ‘extruded’ – forced out under pressure.

As I look around the world these days, I see plenty of evidence telling me that things are unworkable. Just name a sector – government, religion, business, education – that isn’t chock-full of disasters. Continue reading…

What kind of delusional idiot would say ‘amen’ to a post such as this on Christmas Day?!

I’m guessing the same sort of delusional, idiotic person who, in the name of religion and all that is holy, would forbid others to celebrate this day to begin with!

I’ll explain… Continue reading…

A lot of people claim the Jesus story as their narrative of preference. For many, Jesus is the surest way to reside in an afterlife called ‘heaven’ while for others Jesus and his story contain the words of life, peace and justice for the here and now of ‘this’ world.

Regardless of why people follow Jesus, nearly all would admit two things about him: One, he didn’t have a lot of success hanging out with the religious folks of his day and Two, he didn’t spend much time attempting to win these people over, either! Continue reading…

It was so disappointing. She knows better. And don’t try to comfort me by saying that ‘she did her best’ or that we as parents did everything within our power to raise her correctly and see that she succeeded… the fact is, she failed and therefore we failed. It’s unforgivable and at this point I don’t even know how we’ll be able to move on. Heartbroken doesn’t even begin to touch the depth of our pain and sadness.

Ever since her ‘failure’ or ‘fall’ or however you want to label it, I’ve been running it through my mind over and over again asking, “What could we have done differently?” Continue reading…

So much of the Christian world today seemingly puts more emphasis on ‘right’ (rote?) thinking than anything else. ‘Getting it right’ is, for many, still what matters most. It’s important to believe the right doctrines and say the right phrases in the right ways – maybe like the recitation of the ‘sinners prayer,’ learning certain creedal statements, or creating ‘statements of faith’ that are as precise, complete and as ‘biblical’ as possible. Meanwhile as these core teachings are crafted and a multitude of cleverly-written tracts are being published, the surrounding community is responding with massive indifference; they’re longing for relief from debt, poverty, poor daycare and healthcare options, and deficient educational opportunities for themselves and their children.

Too bad things like conducting ourselves according to the Fruit of the Spirit (passing tradition on the other side of the road instead of the person in need), all too often places a distant second to our dogma(s). Continue reading…