The living cosmology that the Cosmic Christ (or Cosmic Wisdom or Buddha Nature or Image of God) ushers into society and psyche has the power to launch an era of what I call Deep Ecumenism.
Deep Ecumenism is the movement that will unleash the wisdom of all world religions–Hinduism and Buddhism, Islam and Judaism, Taoism and Shintoism, Christianity in all its forms and native religions and goddess religions throughout the world. This unleashing of wisdom holds the last hope for the survival of the planet we call home. For there is no such things as a Lutheran sun and a Taoist moon, a Jewish ocean and a Roman Catholic forest, Buddhist river and an atheist corn field.
When humanity learns this, we will have learned a way out of our anthropocentric dilemma that is boring our young, killing our souls, trivializing our worship and exterminating the planet. Universalism is a common characteristic to all the traditions of the Cosmic Christ in the Scriptures and in Western history that we have considered above.
Why am I so confident that the Cosmic Christ can usher in an age of deep ecumenism? Remember that cosmology is three things: the scientific creation story, mystical experience, and creativity. The scientific story is today being heard and believed globally. East Indians and Africans, Russians and Latin Americans, Europeans and North Americans, Chinese and Australians are beginning to hear the same story–that this planet was not an accident, that we have been “loved from before the beginning” in the original fireball itself, that the universe wanted us and prepared for us and awaited us eagerly over a 13.8 billion year history.
We have a responsibility to give back the cherished blessing of our lives with grace and gratitude. We must return blessing for blessing. Generativity and creativity have been built into the universe from the start; intrinsic to our destiny as cosmic citizens, we are all images of God the Creator.
Adapted from Matthew Fox, The Coming of the Cosmic Christ, p. 228.
To read the transcript of Matthew Fox’s video teaching, click HERE.
Banner Image: “Cosmic Mass – Our Sacred Earth” Detail of a flyer for a Cosmic Mass held in April 2019, “celebrating our common humanity on an endangered Earth.”
Queries for Contemplation
Do you see Deep Ecumenism happening around you among believers of many persuasions? And also in you? What hope does this bring you?
Recommended Reading
The Coming of the Cosmic Christ: The Healing of Mother Earth and the Birth of a Global Renaissance
In what may be considered the most comprehensive outline of the Christian paradigm shift of our Age, Matthew Fox eloquently foreshadows the manner in which the spirit of Christ resurrects in terms of the return to an earth-based mysticism, the expression of creativity, mystical sexuality, the respect due the young, the rebirth of effective forms of worship—all of these mirroring the ongoing blessings of Mother Earth and the recovery of Eros, the feminine aspect of the Divine.
“The eighth wonder of the world…convincing proof that our Western religious tradition does indeed have the depth of imagination to reinvent its faith.” — Brian Swimme, author of The Universe Story and Journey of the Universe.
“This book is a classic.” Thomas Berry, author of The Great Work and The Dream of the Earth.
6 thoughts on “What is Deep Ecumenism? Why Now?”
Unfortunately, monotheist religions think that if you admit to the validity of other religions, you’re betraying your own, and that only your own holds the truth. It takes a special maturity to be open to ecumenism…
Uma, you’re right most monotheistic religions think they are the only true religion, BUT as you say, “It takes a special maturity to be open to ecumenism…” and that’s why Matthew keeps writing things like this. And things have changed. Within the Creation Spirituality community we are definitely into deep ecumenism and there are other groups as well, such as the United Church of Christ–I know because I sponsored a document which committed the United Church of Christ to deep ecumenism or “interfaith” relations as they called it.
Meister Eckhart once wrote: “Theologians may quarrel, but the mystics of the world speak the same language.” In mysticism we find deep ecumenism. Religions of the world have many differences, but their mystics have much in common.
AMEN !!!
Humanities relationship with God, influences the destiny of creation.
Jeanette, So true !!!