What voyager saw

Twice, before I left St. Andrew United Church of Christ to move to Northport Michigan and begin my work at Trinity Church of the United Church of Christ, renowned theologian and author, Matthew Fox, visited.  He talked with more than 200 people both times we gathered to learn from him.  Members of Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community http://www.marymotherofjesus.org (MMOJ), St. Andrew UCC  http://www.uccstandrew.org, and a much broader community of the faithful attended.

Matthew was electric in his energy.  He said those of us in Sarasota County and beyond “needed to move from thinking of ourselves as retired and begin to conceive of ourselves as re-fired and re-wired.”  The world needs your wisdom, your enthusiasm, your faith, your prayer, your song, your art, your march, your eyes and hands of compassion, your mentoring said Matthew.  Here he is deep in conversation with Bishop Bridget Mary Meehan of MMOJ on February 22, 2014:  http://www.bridgetmarys.blogspot.com

Matthew just this month published a new and updated version of his autobiography, “Confessions.”

Along with many, many others, I have been invited to write a review of this new update of his autobiography:  http://matthewfox.org/books/book-reviews-new/confessions-revised-updated/personal-reflections-on-confessions-the-blog-tour/                      on our blog sites.  My review will appear here at:  www.wellsofwellness.org on the day after Christmas.                                                                                                I encourage you to watch for it.

Between now and then, I am going to post three or four times with words directly from Matthew’s book.  Today I post the final paragraph from his book:

“For over forty years humankind has been living with the photographic icon of Mother Earth taken by the Apollo astronauts, and it has assisted us to see ourselves as one special planet. But as of 2014 a new photograph which I predict will become and must become even more iconic has been gifted us by the Voyager 1 spacecraft —that picture taken from the edge of our solar system as the spacecraft was exiting it in July 2012 and looking back on its journey. In it earth is just a dot set among many other dots in the distance that scientists had to point out with an arrow. “Earth as dot” reminds us how seemingly insignificant we are; how unique we may be in the universe; and how precious all the beauty and diversity and marvels of our modest planet boasting life and oceans, forests and creatures of myriad kinds really is. Such an icon might help put our species into context again so we get over our reptilian-brain aggression in favor of sustainability and the ways of compassion. Are we up to the task? Can we let go as a species? Time will tell and time is running out. But of this I am sure: Creation spirituality is part of that project.”

What are your thoughts about “earth as a dot” and us smaller still?

Thank you Matthew Fox for your joy, your passion for justice, your speaking the truth, your transformation of our understanding of who we are before God . . .

We are, indeed, among God’s “Original Blessing”!

May it be that we become those who are up to the task of “sustainability and the ways of compassion!”