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Center for Christian Spirituality

Fall 2009 Newsletter

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Dear Friends,

During this 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth, one wonders whether he had any inkling of the far-ranging repercussions of his thought! Students and teachers from the natural and social sciences, philosophy, theology and spirituality continue to decipher and debate, praise and condemn his understanding of how life evolves. The impact of his theory is as deep as the time it traces and its circles of influence grow ever wider.

Some say Darwin’s theory is bereft of spirit; others take a different view. In her recent book, naturalist Lynn Haupt argues that it was Darwin’s capacity for contemplative seeing that enabled him to penetrate the patterns of life. Pope Benedict XVI, in his 2006 Easter Vigil homily, spoke thus: “Christ’s Resurrection is something more, something different. If we may borrow the language of the theory of evolution, it is the greatest ‘mutation,’ absolutely the most crucial leap into a totally new dimension that there has ever been in the long history of life and its development: a leap into a completely new order which does concern us, and concerns the whole of history.” Our 2010 keynote speaker, Ilia Delio, OSF, will probe Benedict’s insight even more deeply. Perhaps the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning hints at our theme most simply:

          Earth’s crammed with heaven,
          And every common bush afire with God;
          But only (those) who see take off (their) shoes-
          The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries,
          And daub their natural faces unaware
          More and more from the first similitude.

Our programs this fall explore various aspects of this, our evolving universe. Even as we move forward on multiple fronts, we cannot forget our “option for the poor.” The spirituality of Francis of Assisi, lover of all creatures, prompts us to reverence our earth as it develops and diminishes. The contemplative attitude of “staying awake” is a must if we are to stay attuned to the Spirit’s unfolding presence on all levels of life. And we need the courage of faith and the boldness of love to receive “Christ in Evolution,” the never ending revelation of God that mirrors the transformation of our own expanding consciousness. The invitation to change is in us and around us! We need each other more than ever as we move through these exciting and demanding times. Please gather with us so that we can meet them together.

Sincerely,

Barbara E. Quinn, RSCJ

Director