Falling Upward: A Spirituality For The Two Halves Of Life

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Catholics need to be converted to giving the Scriptures some actual authority in their lives. Luther wasn’t wrong when he said that most Catholics did not read the Bible. Most Catholics are still not that interested in the Bible. (Historically they did not have the printing press, nor could most people read, so you can’t blame them entirely.) I have been a priest for 42 years now, and I would sadly say that most Catholics would rather hear quotes from saints, Popes, and bishops, the current news, or funny stories, if they are to pay attention. If I quote strongly from the Sermon on the Mount, they are almost throwaway lines. I can see Catholics glaze over because they have never read the New Testament, much less studied it, or been guided by it. I am very sad to have to admit this. It is the Achilles heel of much of the Catholic world, priests included. (The only good thing about it is that they never fight you like Protestants do about Scripture. They are easily duped, and the hierarchy has been able to take advantage of this.) BB: Wait, this is good. You write, I don’t remember what book it’s from. “Religion is for people who are scared to go to hell.” The book is not simplistic. It is I who am cramming the whole thesis into a nutshell for the sake of time and tide – which always changing, wait for no man. RR: Remember Ken Wilber… Maybe you’ve heard this, “Cleaning up, growing up, waking up, showing up.” Most people never get beyond the cleaning up stage. They use religion to appear pure.

Falling Upward by Richard Rohr | Waterstones

The Two Halves' refers to Jung's program of life, where in the first half, we build th Thomas Merton said it was actually dangerous to put the Scriptures in the hands of people whose inner self is not yet sufficiently awakened to encounter the Spirit, because they will try to use God for their own egocentric purposes. (This is why religion is so subject to corruption!) Now, if we are going to talk about conversion and penance, let me apply that to the two major groups that have occupied Western Christianity—Catholics and Protestants. Neither one has really let the Word of God guide their lives. RR: No. The gospel is totally counterintuitive, it isn’t what we think it should be. We suffer to find who to blame for the evils of the world. That’s very different.

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I am a Christian. But I certainly wouldn't say the next world will be a Disneyland, for I know better in my bones. Much more to the point, I think, is Kierkegaard's enduring image, in Either/Or, of a spirit world where the rewards go to the the saddest human beings. RR: Because I’m on the receiving end. I’m on the vulnerable end. You figure it out. Without vulnerability, you can’t get the gospel. You just can’t. If it’s another steering exercise, a way to steer my life.

Falling Upward: A Spirituality For The Two Halves Of Life

Rohr, Richard (1999). "Where the Gospel leads us". In Wink, Walter (ed.). Homosexuality and Christian faith: questions of conscience for the churches. Fortress Press. ISBN 9780800631864.Book Genre: Christian, Christianity, Faith, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Religion, Self Help, Spirituality, Theology Maybe being a grandparent and seeing parents in their later years gives me pause to ask "where do I fit in? What will yield the fruit I am to produce?" I have been doing some Falling Upwards work through Alanon and my new franciscan based church community where Rohr's "everything belongs" is a motto. His "Both/And" inclusionary philosophy is biblically referenced which strengthens my love for the pursuit of that spirit which is within us all. Being a fan of biographies, I want to read Merton, Dali Lama, Helen Keller, and others who lived a full second half life.