Week of 6/1-6/6/2026: Good Work, Sardinia, Ritual, Disarming AI

This is a summary of the previous week’s daily meditations. Some are written by Matthew Fox (MF) and some are written by his colleague, Gianluigi Gugliermetto. (GG) You can click on any title to view the DM in its entirety. Also, remember that each Monday DM continues to include a video teaching by Matthew Fox. Thank you for your loyal readership.

June 1, 2026: Pope Leo on the Limits, Dangers & “Disarming” of AI (MF)
We continue to explore Pope Leo’s encyclical on AI.* One of the issues he writes about is “disarming” AI. He clarifies: “To disarm does not mean rejecting technology, but preventing it from dominating humanity.” And, he says, we must beware that “AI tends to amplify the power of those who already possess economic resources, expertise and access to data.” At the finale of his encyclical, he endorses the very words from Mary’s “Magnificat” about deposing the rich and powerful in God’s name. He then subtly links the title of his encyclical (“magnificent”) to Mary’s fierce feminine values (“Magnificat”).

June 2, 2026: On Work and Spirituality (MF)
Pope Leo’s ambitious encyclical on “Magnificent Humanity” discusses the importance of work which, of course, Matthew does also in his book The Reinvention of Work: A New Livelihood for Our Time. That book became the foundation of the unique Doctor of Ministry (D.Min) program in “Spirituality and Work” at the University of Creation Spirituality (UCS). UCS drew many people from varied professions who sought to ground their work in spirituality. Many students did substantive and excellent work as a result of their studies. One lesson Matthew learned from writing the book was that a consensus exists among world religions about the spiritual importance of work in our lives and communities, and how joy, justice, and service are qualities that make our work meaningful.

June 3, 2026: Bernard Amadei’s Challenge to his Engineering Profession (MF)
Bernard Amadei is one of the students who graduated from UCS’s Doctor of Ministry program. He sent Matthew an email in which he stated that he had become burned out from 27 years of teaching in the engineering department at the University of Colorado in Boulder. But after only two weeks of classes at UCS, he reported, “I got my soul back.” Inspired, he returned to Boulder and founded Engineers Without Borders. Recently he sent a summary and the Conclusion of his new book, Engineering With Soul: Inner and Outer Dimensions of Earth-Centered Engineering. His basic premise is that “systems reflect the consciousness of those who design and manage them” and his book attempts to “reframe engineering as both a technical and deeply human practice.” We can all become renewed in our professions by prioritizing a sense of meaning, purpose and values.

June 4, 2026: Awakening the Divine Human (GG)
Mysticism and the principles of Creation Spirituality provided the backdrop for the work of 45 participants on retreat on the island of Sardinia. Gainluigi’s role as the leader of this retreat was to create an environment conducive to deep soul work. GG shares that the theme which was most palpable that week was this: Creation Spirituality aligns very well with the sacred Neolithic and Bronze Age sites that were visited. It was clear to everyone there that the sites they visited exuded sacred power. In Sardinia, workshops led by skilled staff members were interspersed with pilgrimages to sacred places. The eventual result was a sense of ineffable joy, a touching of the most painful depths, and a feeling of cosmic compassion.

June 5, 2026: Ritual as the Narrow Gate to Larger Pastures (GG)
Gianluigi tells us that during the recent retreat in Sardinia, he experienced yet again the tremendous power of ritual action. Says Matthew in his book The Reinvention of Work: The whole purpose of ritual is to connect us to the Great Work. He also offered the following: Without ritual, a community rapidly loses its soul.…To do ritual is to tap into the collective memory of our ancestors, our shared morphic fields….Ritual is the primary means by which the elders pass on to the young the gift of their own stories….It is through ritual that we are reminded of a deeper time than everyday time, and we can truly enter timelessness.

June 6, 2026: Making Rituals for Our Troubled Days (GG)
In his major work The Coming of the Cosmic Christ, Matthew Fox explains the six principles that he has adopted for planning and leading rituals: Reset all worship in a cosmological context. Bring the body back. Bring play back. Make room for the via negativa — darkness, silence, suffering. Awaken and nurture the prophet. Bring participation back. Matthew adds that in indigenous rituals, there is always sacrifice, gratitude, and bravery. Gratitude is the essence of worship–not in the simple sense that people thank God verbally, but with whole body involvement, an act of deep praise of existence itself. Matthew also talks about ritual as remembrance. Rabbi Heschel explains: It is a recollection of how we have once been blessed by the manifestation of the divine presence in our lives.

*Pope Leo, Magnifica Humanitas

Banner image: Created by pilgrims who walk a spiral path up to the top of a sacred hill overlooking sacred Mt. Shasta in California, this spiral is a tool for mindfulness and other spiritual work. Photo by Cynthia Greb. Used with permission.

Related Readings by Matthew Fox

Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh: Transforming Evil in Soul and Society

LETTERS TO POPE FRANCIS: Building a Church with Justice & Compassion 

A New Reformation: Creation Spirituality & The Transformation of Christianity

One River, Many Wells: Wisdom Springing from Global Faiths

The Reinvention of Work: A New Vision of Livelihood For Our Time

Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality

Christian Mystics: 365 Readings & Meditations

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

A Way to God: Thomas Merton’s Creation Spirituality Journey