Sunday, December 16, 2018

Guidelines for the Advent of a Universal Mysticism (Part 4)



The Wild Reed’s 2018 Advent series focuses on eight guidelines for interreligious understanding and the recognition and facilitation of a universal approach to mysticism. These guidelines were developed by Thomas Keating and members of the Snowmass Conference. They are excerpted from Wayne Teasdale’s 1999 book, The Mystic Heart: Discovering a Universal Spirituality in the World’s Religions.

Along with many other people, I trust that the coming (or advent) of this universal spirituality is something that the Divine is calling humanity to embrace and embody. (Note: To start at the beginning of this series, click here.)



The Fourth Guideline

If we would actualize our innate potential for infinite life and development, we need to follow the path of faith, regardless of our tradition. All paths traverse some expression of faith’s compelling power to lead us into actualization of our spiritual potential. The fourth guideline defines the nature of this experience of faith: Faith is opening, accepting, and responding to Ultimate Reality. Faith in this sense precedes every belief system.

Faith is essentially the quality of openness, eagerness, and expectation we see in children and other enlightened souls. It is a basic attitude of trust in the ultimate mystery behind existence; it is a gesture and stand of pure openness. This attitude of trust precedes a system of belief or a tradition. It is a universal experience and requirement for the higher life; without it, the spiritual journey is impossible. In a certain sense, faith is also a willingness to relinquish control to the source. It is a capacity to trust the mystery of the ultimate.


NEXT: The Fifth Guideline


See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
Guidelines for the Advent of a Universal Mysticism: An Introduction
Guidelines for the Advent of a Universal Mysticism (Part 1)
Guidelines for the Advent of a Universal Mysticism (Part 2)
Guidelines for the Advent of a Universal Mysticism (Part 3)
Something Extraordinary . . . Again
In Search of a Global Ethic
The Ground Zero Papal Prayer Service . . . and a Reminder of the Spirituality That Transcends What All the Religions Claim to Represent
A Return to the Spirit
Beltane and the Reclaiming of Spirit
New Horizons: Reflections on A Passage to India
Advent: A “ChristoPagan” Perspective
An Advent Prayer
Advent: The Season of Blessed Paradox
Active Waiting: A Radical Attitude Toward Life
No Other Time, No Other Place
Advent: Renewing Our Connection with the Sacred
Celebrating the Coming of the Sun and the Son
Christmastide Approaches

Opening image:The Prayer Tree” by Michael Bayly. Each of the posts in this series is accompanied by one or two images of what I've come to call the Prayer Tree, that special oak tree by Minnehaha Creek, close to my home in south Minneapolis. This tree and its location serve as a sacred place for me; for as its name suggests, I go there to pray, meditate, and reflect deeply. Also, as my friend McAuley recently pointed out, it serves as a beautiful representation of the axis mundi – the cosmic axis, the center of the world. Often symbolized by a tree, the axis mundi, as both a celestial and geographic pillar, serves as a point of connection between sky (heaven) and earth, the higher and lower realms of consciousness, and the four compass directions. As a representation of the axis mundi, and thus a rich symbol of groundedness, connection, and unity, the "Prayer Tree" seems a very appropriate image for The Wild Reed's 2018 Advent series on universal mysticism.


1 comment:

Astral said...

In so many of your postings, there is a confirmation of a universal truth. A "yes" that resigned so loudly across the globe that it must be true. ( Richard Rohr)
The Ultimate Reality, The Higher Power Mother, Father, names, gender,sex, race are all moot. " I Am Who I Am" is All.