In this issue:
  • Theology and Gender Beyond the Binary
  • The Burkhart Center Weekly/Monthly Offerings
  • Mystics Summit: Two on Tuesdays
  • Much Matters Book List Revealed
  • The Universal Mystic Heart by Rev. David Hett
  • Understanding Fundamentalism V: Was Jesus woke? Depends on who you say I am? by Christy Caine
  • Outside Partner Recommended Resources
Theology and Gender
Beyond the Binary
August 5, 12, 19
7 - 8:30 pm
on Zoom
The Burkhart Center, in conjunction with Dr. Yvonne Zimmerman, Associate Academic Dean and Assistant Professor of Christian Ethics at The Methodist Theological School in Ohio (MTSO), is presenting this 3-week seminar the first three Thursdays in August, 7 – 8:30 pm beginning August 5. Guest speakers will open us up to discussing current gender-related realities to bring more light for us all.

With individual sessions on “The Gender Unicorn,” “Christian Faith Beyond the Binary,” and “Parenting on the Binary,” the basic seminar description says:
For many people, gender is simple: male or female. But is gender always this simple? Is it this simple for everyone? Also, what does Christian faith have to say about gender? Does Christian theology demand that Christians stick with a simple, binary conception of gender? The purpose of this series is to reflect on these questions by learning about expanded conceptions of gender, exploring resources from the Christian tradition for thinking about gender justice, and learning from the experiences of parents of trans and nonbinary children.
Women Living the Questions
Wednesdays 
9:30 -11 am

The group is meeting in-person at First Community North once again, in Room 101. They are discussing past Spiritual Searcher James Finley’s The Contemplative Heart and viewing videos of others on contemplative practices throughout the summer.

Email Linda Baldeck for more information or register below.
Progressing Spirit
Saturday, July 10
9:30 -11:30 am
on Zoom

Our final meeting of the program year; we begin again in September, the second Saturday of each month. Free-ranging discussions on current trends and personal feelings on faith and spirituality, theology and society based on weekly columns by authors of progressive thinking. Subscribe to receive these weekly articles at:

Rev. David Hett facilitates this Burkhart Center Zoom group.
Mystics Summit:
Two on Tuesdays
Andrew Harvey & Brie Stoner interviewed by Mirabai Starr
Tuesdays, July 6 & 13
7 – 8:30 pm
on Zoom

The Burkhart Center’s Mystic Mondays in June has flowed over into July, but on the first two Tuesdays of the month, featuring interviews by Mirabai Starr with two mystics chosen by Mystic Monday participants:

Tuesday, July 6—Andrew Harvey, longtime spiritual teacher with emphasis on the experience of the Divine Mother, speaks with Mirabai on “Radical Regeneration:” The importance and challenge of evolutionary mysticism, the nature of our current global dark night, and the vision of the birth of the divine human that is emerging.

Tuesday, July 13—Brie Stoner, a recent graduate of Richard Rohr’s “Living School,” is a mother, musician, writer, and student of the mystics, whose theme for this interview is “The Beauty of Becoming: The Vision for a Participatory Mystical Revelation.” She focuses on the work of two perhaps lesser-known but important 20th century mystics, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and Beatrice Bruteau, and the way that “creative ecstasy” is the key to our personal and social transformation, bringing mystical aspirations home to the body, to ordinary life, to our own embodied creativity.

If you have registered for Mystic Mondays, you do not need to register again for these two sessions. New registrants, register below.
Much Matters
Book Discussion
Thursday, July 15
6 – 8 pm
Via Zoom

Sociologist Kristin Kobes Du Mez, in a sweeping history of the last 75 years of American evangelicalism, reveals how evangelicals have worked to replace the Jesus of the gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism.

Paul Kramer facilitates this month’s discussion.
Register below to receive an email with the Zoom link prior to the discussion, or email Dr. Shah Hasan directly.
Much Matters Book Discussion
Cycle 10 Selections
July-November

  • August 19 Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail (2016) by Ben Montgomery Marilyn Matt, facilitator

  • September 16 Memorial Drive: A Daughter’s Memoir (2021) by Natasha Truthewey Valerie Zielinski, facilitator

  • October 21 Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty (2021) by Patrick Raddon Keefe Diane Sturges, facilitator

  • November 18 Homeland Elegies: A Novel (2021) by Ayad Akhtar Facilitator Awaiting Confirmation
Tuesday Morning Study Group
Tuesdays, returning September 14
9:30-10:45 am

Pick up a copy of Brian McLaren's new book, Faith After Doubt: Why Your Beliefs Stopped Working and What to Do about It, which will be the topic of our fall series, beginning Tuesday, September 14.


Contemplative Way Group
Thursdays
11:45 am – 1 pm
Returning in September

Taking a summer respite, the group will gather again in September with a new text to engage with in sacred reading and discussion, followed by a 30-minute silent meditation based on each individual's practice.

Register below to receive information when we begin again.

Hosted by Rev. David Hett.
The Universal Mystic Heart
Rev. David Hett, Dean, The Burkhart Center
If there is one thing the June series of our Burkhart Center’s “Mystic Monday” interviewees agree on, it is that being a mystic, or having mystical experiences, is an inherent birthright of ours as particular conscious manifestations of the Divine Reality.

Although these experiences are “ineffable,” that is, impossible to fully articulate in words after experiencing a felt sense of oneness, meaning, purpose, connection, love, selflessness, etc., they are actually quite common and arise out of ordinary circumstances if we remain present and aware for them.

Elizabeth Lesser said we need “the mystic heart,” to stay wide open to everyone’s voices. Richard Rohr described the need to “cultivate the eyes of love” in order to be available for the sacred to be seen in the midst of the ordinary. A simple definition of mystics is that they see “the extraordinary in the ordinary.” Anne Lamott is a prophet of “modest magical mysticism,” as she spoke of the sacred and holy in everyday life, seeing even death, grief, and loss as doorways to the deepest experience of the sacred.

And Rabbi Rami Shapiro reminded us that the “aliveness” that we are is the aliveness of “the Holy Blessed One.” In the interview, he quoted St. Paul’s recognition that the God is that in which “we live and move and have our being,” and that “our being” is US. God, you can say, is us, and more than us, because Godness also is total Being, everything else that exists as well.

But we often run roughshod over these mystical experiences in our daily grind and unattuned awareness, and so Rabbi Rami says, “you can set the stage, prime the pump” for such experiences. One of my favorite James Finley quotes comes when he says that you can’t create or control these moments of “grace,” but you can “stack the deck in your favor,” you can put yourself in the way of these experiences. And you do that mainly by staying present and aware. He says something like, you don’t miss tasting the first cup of coffee in the morning, and you don’t miss the sunset. Rabbi Rami reminds us that this is what spiritual practices are all about, to set the stage and be awake for such moments of grace, awe, and wonder.

Rather than some supernatural being on a throne in the sky, Rabbi Rami defines “God” as “the Happening happening as all happening at this moment.” In each moment, the entire manifest reality is God “happening,” and so God is always present (God is “presence”) and available.

In another place, Rabbi Rami says, “It seems that all my teachers teach the same things, and I continually fail to learn them:

  1. There is no limit to God;
  2. There is no limit to love;
  3. There is no limit to how many times I can fail to realize there is no limit to God and love.”

And, in his Rabbi Rami Guide to Parenting, which is more like a guide for all of us, he answers the big question, “What is the purpose of life?:”

Life doesn’t have a purpose. Life is purpose. You don’t have to find something extra other than life; you only have to live life rightly with curiosity, courage and compassion. When you do, your heart will open and you will be filled with an ever-increasing capacity to love and be loved. You are not here to win something, or earn something, or to escape to some other dimension. You are here to live and live well.

Finally, in Rabbi Rami’s book, Holy Rascals: Advice for Spiritual Revolutionaries, the book I’m reading now, he gives this quick brief guide regarding “the mystic heart of every religion,” which are “the four points of Perennial Wisdom: (1) all beings are manifestings of the singular Reality we call God, Brahman, Allah, Nature, Universe, Dharmakaya, et cetera; (2) we humans have an innate capacity to know ourselves and all life as a manifesting of Reality; (3) knowing this gives rise to an ethic of universal compassion and justice; and (4) knowing this and living this ethic is the highest calling of every human being.”

What a brief, brilliant definition of the mode of consciousness transformation, and the fruits of transformative work.
Understanding Fundamentalism:
Was Jesus woke? Depends on who you say that I am
by Christy Caine

Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him. Mark 8:27-30 NRSV

A few weeks ago a dear Catholic friend shared that they and their young adult children had been discussing an article in the Wall Street Journal1 about the then upcoming Southern Baptist Convention’s meeting where the denomination planned to elect a new president. She shared the following portion of the article about the Conservative Baptist Network’s candidate, Mike Stone:

“…a group called the Conservative Baptist Network formed last year to combat what its members see as a drift away from biblical orthodoxy toward liberalism. Their candidate, Mike Stone, says the convention’s leaders have pushed social justice causes that undermine the denominations’ mission, and are out of touch with Southern Baptists in the pews.

'We see some worldly ideologies, philosophies and theories that are beginning to make their way into Southern Baptist life,’ Mr. Stone, the group’s candidate for SBC president, said to a Macon, Ga., church in March this year. ‘Our Lord isn’t woke.’”

Our friend asked: “Our kids want to know how social justice isn’t the church’s work? … And the kids argue that Jesus was the first ‘woke’!”*

The question she’s really asking is: How can people from the same religion who all claim to follow Jesus have such a vastly different understanding of who Jesus is, what he is like, and what he taught? The short answer is we didn’t learn about the same Jesus.

The story of Jesus told by Fundamentalism shapes how he is understood. This version of his story is summarized this way: virgin birth, ministry defined by miracles, crucifixion, miraculous resurrection, supernatural ascension, prophetic triumphant return. Some of John Shelby Spong’s work highlights this focus on the divinity of Jesus and how scripture is used (or misused) to “prove” it. Fundamentalism tends to not focus on the content of Jesus’ teaching nor the context of his ministry in historical terms. These are seen as distractions from what Fundamentalism (and conservative branches of Christianity) understands to be the primary role of the church: saving souls from hell through the Great Commission and Jesus’ role as Messiah. This perspective focusses on future events and afterlife destinations through evangelism and conversion in order to save people from what they believe will be a literal hell. It not only views social justice in order to save people from injustice and oppression now to not be the church’s responsibility but views it as a threat to God’s “true” mission. In contrast, mainline Protestants and Catholic Social Teaching understand Jesus and his message to extend beyond a literal sense of his divinity, recognizing his message to represent how we are to live out God’s divine compassion as members of God’s kingdom and followers of Jesus’ way which includes addressing all the ways people need saving from the hell they are in here and now.

By deemphasizing what Jesus taught and omitting important historical context, the rich symbolic subtext in his parables, the everyday application of the wisdom of Jesus the Jewish Rabbi creates a very different understanding of Jesus. People don’t agree on whether Jesus is woke because many of us were taught that to be Christ-like is to model his sinlessness through abstaining from personal sin while others have learned to be like Jesus means to model his compassion in how we treat our enemies and our neighbors. Theologians like Marcus Borg have pointed out that believing in and worshipping Jesus is quite a bit different than following the way of Jesus.2

But what does “woke” mean? In its simplest terms it means “alert to or aware of social and racial discrimination and injustice”3 and might include being well-informed about these issues.

So, was Jesus woke?

Let’s look at some of Jesus’ parables and interactions for some clues.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan is an excellent example of why subtext and historical context matter in order to understand the points Jesus is making in his teachings. An important theme to recognize is that Jesus consistently makes the marginalized or the oppressed the heroes of his stories. In order to do this, he must surely be aware of who is marginalized and oppressed. The people of Israel and Samaritans reportedly despised each other in Jesus’ day, and it is a Samaritan whom Jesus chooses to illustrate what loving your neighbor as yourself truly means. This is not merely a nice story with inconsequential details in order to convey how we are to live out the Greatest Commandment and inherit eternal life; it is intrinsic to the point he is making about recognizing the humanity and worthiness of all people—even the most despised among as—as being our neighbor, not just as one whom we should love, but as one who is capable of loving as God loves and inheriting eternal life. He does this pointedly in response to the lawyer’s probing question of “and who is my neighbor?” This theme is repeated in The Widow’s Mite—the most impoverished is the one who gives the most, The Prodigal Son—the one who recognizes their failures, admits them, and changes course is celebrated. The parable of The Sheep and The Goats highlights how we are to treat those viewed as outsiders--the prisoner, the homeless, the sick, the thirsty. How we treat the marginalized and the oppressed is the very thing that separates the righteous from the unrighteous. Scripture is full of these references to the stranger who resides among you, meaning those from foreign lands or immigrants – regardless of their legal status, as well as the hungry, the widow, the orphan, the despised, the ones seen as “other.” His exchange with the Syrophoenician woman—an outsider—leverages pejorative words that marginalized foreigners in his day, yet, ultimately, he affirms her worthiness. When he heals a woman afflicted with a bleeding disorder and those with leprosy—he asserts the humanity and worthiness of those considered “unclean.” He elevates women within his inner circle. He heals the Roman soldier’s slave—even the oppressor is shown compassion. He defends the woman caught in adultery from the death penalty-establishing that only those who are without sin can cast the first stone – an act forcing self-reflection and self-examination before seeking to punish those seen as “less than” and challenging the injustice of a death penalty system. He actually speaks directly to the issue of justice when he says in Luke 4:18-19, where he is quoting Isaiah “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captive and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” A reference to the ancient concept of debt forgiveness and jubilee which I invite you to research further.

It seems pretty clear Jesus was “alert, aware, and well-informed about racial and social discrimination and injustice.”

So why is social justice perceived to be a threat to the gospel among some Christians?

We’ve established that this version of Jesus who intentionally addresses social justice and teaches us to do likewise is not the version of Jesus many have been taught. It’s hard to teach what you don’t know.

We’ve previously discussed how a binary worldview and difficulty holding in tension competing ideas without rejecting one as threatening are common traits in Fundamentalism. This contributes to why the Social Gospel is seen not only as a distraction from “the Gospel” but is “othered” as antithetical to the Gospel. In an either/or worldview, it’s difficult to accept yes/and concepts. Additionally, because of how deeply social issues have come to define political parties, as Mike Stone admits in his quote in the Wall Street Journal, social justice is associated with liberal ideals and when our faith and our politics are so tightly aligned with our identity and our sense of self, too often we are unable to objectively weigh the merits of issues because we allow our in-group loyalties to get in the way. This is why Jesus calls us to self-reflection: I know what you have heard, but who do you say that I am?

In a theology where every problem is caused by sin, Jesus is the answer for every problem. This is why evangelism IS considered to be the proper way to address racism and injustice. Conversion is the solution because injustice is understood as an individual sin problem, not a systemic or systematic one. Personal sin. Personal responsibility. Personal salvation. Personal relationship with Jesus. And by extension, a personal and individual approach to addressing issues in the world like racism and injustice. Fundamentalism, like conservative politics, tends to focus on the individual. This is why some folks don’t believe in the common good or are unable to perceive problems when framed within systems or societies. The solution to individual sin is individual conversion and righteousness. The train of thought is, since racism and injustice are caused by individual sin, if everyone became a born-again Christian, and were Christ-like in their efforts to be sinless like him, we would no longer have racism or injustice. There are obvious problems with this reasoning.

It’s a theologically reinforced mindset of individual vs. collective, personal vs. social responsibility, individual vs. systemic racism, isolated personal acts of injustice vs. societal injustice. We saw this mindset with the response to Covid mask protocols. If one’s theological worldview is grounded in personal salvation delivering one from punishment for personal sin, injustice in society is individualized this way too. When this is one’s grounding worldview, it is extremely difficult for folks to think of injustice in terms of systems. If the problem isn’t understood as systemic, it’s very difficult to accept systemic solutions. In this way, social justice and concepts of systemic and systematic racism undermine a theology of personal sin and personal salvation.

There’s a saying made famous by writer Anne Lamott that originated with her Jesuit friend Tom: "You can tell you've created God in your own image when God hates all the same people you do.” This is an important, self-examining koan. It also seems true that we can safely assume we’ve created God in our own image when we are blind to all the ways God calls us to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God4 by being alert and aware of all the ways people are marginalized and oppressed.

The important question isn’t whether Jesus is woke, but if we are.

Christy Caine is the former Director of The Burkhart Center. Questions can be sent to [email protected]. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of First Community or The Burkhart Center.

* Permission was granted by my friend to share our exchange.

References:
  1. The Wall Street Journal, “Our Lord Isn’t Woke. Southern Baptists Clash Over Their Future.” Ian Lovett, June 11, 2021
  2. The Heart of Christianity by Marcus Borg
  3. Woke was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2017
  4. Micah 6:8
Additional Recommended Resources
Summer Interspirituality Book Group
The Mystic Heart
July 12, August 9, September 13, 6:30 – 8 pm
on Zoom
Join members of the Spirituality Network as they discuss the importance of interspirituality in the world today with this upcoming book study.

To register, email Allison Dehart.

Join us in the study of The Mystic Heart (forward by the Dalai Lama) by Wayne Teasdale. Teasdale was a sannyasa, or Hindu monk, who also practiced Roman Catholicism and served on the board of trustees of the Parliament of the World's Religions. In this groundbreaking work, he proclaims the advent of a new movement towards "interspirituality" - one that claims as its heritage all valid spirituality drawn from any and all faiths. As a true mystic, Teasdale has profound personal realization into what he considers the main elements of true spirituality and their manifestation in various religious traditions.

The group will cover up through Chapter 4 at the first meeting on Monday, July 12. If you aren't able to get the reading done, don't hesitate to join us anyway to discuss interspirituality. We would love to include your voice.
Introducing SHALOM: a Series of Webinars Focused on
Issues of Peace & Justice

July 13, July 28, August 10, August 24

You can register via TicketSpice on our website
using the button below.
Revelations of 12 Living Artists

with Roger Housden

July 12 - August 6
Letting Go - 2021

with Frederic and
Mary Ann Brussat

July 12 - August 1
New Season of  Learning How
to See 
Podcast
What could happen if we approached the world in silent wonder, with a humility and openness to learning?

Brian McLaren is back in this powerful podcast unpacking the biases that impact the way we see—and ultimately love—ourselves and each other. From judgments made unconsciously to complacency in systemic evil, we must learn how to see if we are to learn how to transform.
Enrich your Spiritual Life in the
Introductory Wisdom School

Discover what it takes to create—and sustain—a wisdom rhythm in your life. Wisdom isn’t something you get from a guru or a reward for performing certain actions, but about inner work and transformation. Wisdom isn’t knowing more; it’s knowing more deeply, with more of yourself.

Connect and learn with others on the journey toward the Wisdom way in this 14-week online course from the Center for Action and Contemplation. 

Registration closes August 4 or when full.
Apply for Financial Assistance by July 28.
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