Spiritual Warriors All Around Us and Within Us

There are many reasons for meditating on the archetype of the spiritual warrior at this time in history, an archetype found in spiritual traditions the world over. 

We have called on teachings from the Jewish tradition such as the prophets themselves; and the “lion” invitation in the Zohar.  And while we are at it, let us not forget that when Jesus as an adolescent lived in the wilderness with John the Baptist, lions roamed that very wilderness (literal lions I mean).  His mentor stood up to imperial power and paid the ultimate price.

We have called on the Native American teachings—super important that they are—about the difference between a soldier and a warrior.

We have called on the Sufi tradition and also how Mohammed himself stressed that the primary jihad is the battle with oneself that must not be overlooked.  This is the struggle we all have in choosing to build virtue—authentic manliness—and reject vice.  

And Yes, Mr. Zuckerberg, that calls for rejecting the toxic, pseudo, corrupt, dangerous, masculinity that serves only the ego and honors power-over instead of power and passion-with, i.e. compassion.

Hildegard of Bingen time and again calls on her sisters to become more “manly” and more virtuous, to develop that strong side of themselves as she clearly did in her prophetic vocation to stand up to emperors, popes, abbots, bishops and archbishops.  Indeed, at the age of 81, she and all her nuns were interdicted for a year (a group excommunication) by the local archbishop for a year for rejecting an order from him.

Hildegard had that “lion” energy that is needed today to fight the climate emergency, whether as politicians, firefighters, first responders, citizens, journalists, neighbors, etc.  To resist those powerful forces who want to enrich themselves on expanded fossil fuel usage, militarism and more. 

We see many acts of compassion, generosity and sacrifice all around us in many spheres of activity.  Many examples of spiritual warriorhood.  And its opposite.

Here is one story of a spiritual warrior among us which I received from a friend in the mail today.

While I was at the multinational action at Standing Rock in 2016, I became close friends with one of the water protectors, a young Indigenous stunt man, voiceover actor, and community organizer named Courage Escamilla. In the years since, he’s worked relentlessly toward his dream of making it in the LA entertainment industry, along the way overcoming homelessness, health struggles, the devastating loss of his mother to COVID in 2020, and dire transportation challenges (commuting to jobs for hours on a motorbike in searing heat and freezing cold). 

In the past few years, he’d finally made it, with a home in Altadena…..only to witness the destruction of almost his entire beloved community in the Eaton Fire. With fire trucks driving through their community, always on the way to somewhere else, Courage joined with his neighbors in emptying their swimming pools to douse the fires and cutting off fuel to flamethrowing severed gas lines, saving a precious few homes but losing many more.Miraculously sheltered from the flying embers by local topography, his own house was spared, but is not liveable due to air and water contamination and ongoing fire risk. Temporarily unhoused, without a source of livelihood, he is staying with friends.

I’ve followed Courage’s Facebook posts as he’s chronicled his heartbreak at the unimaginable loss his community is navigating. I’ve witnessed his efforts to help and promote friends’ GoFundMes in the days that followed the fire. So it was no surprise when I saw his own GoFundMe video.

His GoFundMe is not focused on rebuilding his own life: he has sworn that he will not rest until his community is restored.

I know Courage – he is fiercely honest, determined, resourceful and resilient, and he will do what he says he’ll do. I wanted to share his GoFundMe with you as the most moving example of spiritual-warrior spirit I can imagine. Donate to Help Courage Rebuild Altadena… and his life., organized by Courage Escamilla.  

To be continued.

See Matthew Fox, “Hildegard as Prophet to Society and Religion,” in Fox, Hildegard of Bingen, A Saint For Our Times: Unleashing Her Power in the 21^st Century, pp. 97-132.

And Fox, “Spiritual Warriorhood,” in Fox, One River, Many Wells: Wisdom Springing from Global Faiths, pp. 404-423.

See also Fox, “Spiritual Warriors,” in Fox, The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors To Awaken the Sacred Masculine, pp. 77-104.

And Fox, Trump & The MAGA Movement as Anti-Christ: A Handbook for the 2024 Election.

Banner Image: Smoldering remains of a home in Altadena, CA, where 7,000 homes were razed in the Eaton Fire. Photo by Courage Escamilla, used with permission.

Queries for Contemplation

What stories can you share of spiritual warriors all around us?  And of your journey to spiritual warriorhood?  And to making choices of virtue and authentic manliness, whether you are a man or a woman?

Recommended Reading

Hildegard of Bingen, A Saint for Our Times: Unleashing Her Power in the 21st Century

Matthew Fox writes in Hildegard of Bingen about this amazing woman and what we can learn from her.
In an era when women were marginalized, Hildegard was an outspoken, controversial figure. Yet so visionary was her insight that she was sought out by kings, popes, abbots, and bishops for advice.
“This book gives strong, sterling, and unvarnished evidence that everything – everything – we ourselves become will affect what women after us may also become….This is a truly marvelous, useful, profound, and creative book.” ~~ Andrew Harvey, author of The Hope: A Guide to Sacred Activism.

One River, Many Wells: Wisdom Springing from Global Faiths

Matthew Fox calls on all the world traditions for their wisdom and their inspiration in a work that is far more than a list of theological position papers but a new way to pray—to meditate in a global spiritual context on the wisdom all our traditions share. Fox chooses 18 themes that are foundational to any spirituality and demonstrates how all the world spiritual traditions offer wisdom about each.“Reading One River, Many Wells is like entering the rich silence of a masterfully directed retreat. As you read this text, you reflect, you pray, you embrace Divinity. Truly no words can fully express my respect and awe for this magnificent contribution to contemporary spirituality.” –Caroline Myss, author of Anatomy of the Spirit

The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors to Awaken the Sacred Masculine

To awaken what Fox calls “the sacred masculine,” he unearths ten metaphors, or archetypes, ranging from the Green Man, an ancient pagan symbol of our fundamental relationship with nature,  to the Spiritual Warrior….These timeless archetypes can inspire men to pursue their higher calling to connect to their deepest selves and to reinvent the world.
“Every man on this planet should read this book — not to mention every woman who wants to understand the struggles, often unconscious, that shape the men they know.” — Rabbi Michael Lerner, author of The Left Hand of God

Trump & The MAGA Movement as Anti-Christ: A Handbook for the 2024 Election

Matthew Fox tells us that he had always shied away from using the term “Anti-Christ” because it was so often used to spread control and fear. However, given today’s rise of authoritarianism and forces of democracide, ecocide, and christofascism, he turns the tables in this book employing the archetype for the cause of justice, democracy, and a renewed Earth and humanity.
From the Foreword: If there was ever a time, a moment, for examining the archetype of the Antichrist, it is now…Read this book with an open mind. Good and evil are real forces in our world. ~~ Caroline Myss, author of Anatomy of the Spirit and Conversations with the Divine.
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