Liminal Living podcast (07/27/2024)
I appeared on the Liminal Living podcast with Tom Rundel, a contemplative pastor and podcaster.
What Does It Mean to Follow Jesus?
Recall that there are 45,000 Christian denominations, who almost never agree. Imagine that all 2.4 billion Christians agree that we should follow Jesus. What does it mean to follow Jesus?
How Are We to Treat Others?
Ramana Maharshi, a Hindu mystic, had the following exchange with a student: “Q: How are we to treat others? A: There are no others.”
The Future of Christianity
What is the future of Christianity? Can Christianity be more experiential, more nuanced, and more respectful of science?
The Benefits of Exploring Other Traditions
The benefits of exploring other traditions are numerous. So, it is helpful to understand both the similarities and the differences in religious beliefs and practices.
Zen and Spiritual Practice
Zen is not concerned with prescription or speculation. Buddhism is mostly concerned with practice, not belief.
Zen and Interdependence
Dogen Zenji encourages us to remove the barrier between self and other.
Zen and the Self
Buddhism does not believe in a permanent, unchanging self. Of course, each of us has forms, feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and awareness.
An Introduction to Zen
Buddhism embraces a different worldview than most Western religions. Zen is experiential, not intellectual.
Faith & Justice Book Group podcast (06/18/2024)
Recently, I was a guest on three related podcasts hosted by my friend, Brian Allain.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Natural Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way that we live and work. Increasingly, AI presents challenging questions about the nature of humanity and about the nature of the Universe itself.
Visions: Hallucinations or Transcendent Experiences?
Are visions hallucinations or transcendent experiences? Biologist J.B.S. Haldane said, “The Universe is not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we can suppose.”
Do We Honor Ultimate Reality in Other Traditions?
Do we honor Ultimate Reality in other traditions?
What Beliefs Are Fundamental To Christianity?
There are more than 45,000 forms of Christianity worldwide, and they disagree on the fundamentals. What beliefs are fundamental to Christianity?
Creation: Mythology, Religion, And Science
Creation myths can illustrate the intersection of mythology, religion, and science. Do we interpret ancient religious texts as history or mythology?
The Journey is the Destination
The journey is the destination. Zen is more of a philosophy than a religion. It is more experiential than intellectual.
Ultimate Reality Permeates Everyday Reality
Ultimate Reality is not far removed from everyday reality. In fact, Ultimate Reality permeates everyday reality.
Ultimate Reality: Consciousness, Energy, and Love
Today, fewer people imagine Ultimate Reality in purely personal terms or in purely supernatural terms. Increasingly, Ultimate Reality is imagined in impersonal, natural terms, such as consciousness, energy or love.
Ultimate Reality: Brahman, God, the Universe and the Void
Ultimate Reality has many names: Brahman in Hinduism, God in Christianity, the Universe in humanism and the Void in Buddhism.
What Do We Know about Ultimate Reality?
We know one thing about Ultimate Reality, namely that everyone is related, and everything is connected.