The other day, we looked at how moving away from facades and towards the authentic self represents faithful growth. One of the major facades people are prone to hiding behind is the notion of 'shoulds', doing things simply because we feel we are obligated — by others or by God — to do so. The … Continue reading The Movement away from Shoulds
The other day, I introduced Wilkie Au and Noreen Cannon Au's eight movements of growth, as one framework through which we can explore what authentic spiritual growth looks like. Today, I'd like to look into the first of the eight movements they describe: "the movement away from facades, from a pretended self that we are … Continue reading The Movement away from Facades
The other day, I wrote about how the core of Jesus' conflict with the religious establishment of his day, and the fault lines within religion today, is a fundamentally different understanding of what faith is all about: Is it about gate-keeping and behaviour control — creating community through conformity — or is it about providing … Continue reading Movements of Faith
A few weeks ago, when I was feeling particularly worn down by the stresses and sorrows of this pandemic year, I turned to my favorite book of contemporary spirituality, The Discerning Heart, by Wilkie Au and Noreen Cannon Au. In the Introduction, they talk about why they feel spiritual discernment is more important today than … Continue reading Beyond “Thou Shalt Not”
Looking at spiritual practices, and life as a whole, as medicine for the soul.
Matthew Root 