I am pleased to share that I will be one of many speakers at Harvard Divinity School’s Conference in the Evolution of Spirituality’s program on “Belonging” on September 21. I will be presenting virtually. We invite you to join for what I anticipate will be an interesting conversation about belonging, spiritual life, and our connection to one another.
My presentation is titled “Belonging to Living Earth, All Life, All People, and Spirit-Self: Insights by Mandela, Barfield, Bellow and Steiner.”
The presentation brings together four people whose lives and work have deeply influenced my own thinking: Nelson Mandela, Owen Barfield, Saul Bellow, and Rudolf Steiner. At its heart is a question that has remained important throughout my life: What does it mean to develop an inner life and a path that can help us experience a deeper sense of connection—to the Earth, to all of life, to all people, and to our own higher spiritual selves?
Nelson Mandela has been a particular inspiration to me. When I read “The Long Walk to Freedom” in 1994, I recognized in Mandela’s life an inner path that he had developed largely on his own during his extraordinary years of imprisonment. He thought about great thoughts by memorizing and meditating on inspirational ideas in literature, poetry and scripture and the process itself REVEALED his own divinity, eternity, infinity and inner freedom and joy.
We will explore how Mandela’s experience connects in surprising ways with the ideas of Barfield, Bellow, and Steiner—and what these connections might have to say to us today about belonging, freedom, joy, and the development of our own inner lives.
I am grateful to Harvard Divinity School and the Evolution of Spirituality Program for the opportunity to participate in this conference.
Registration is open to the public. You can learn more about the conference and register through Harvard’s Program for the Evolution of Spirituality. The talk is scheduled in the afternoon of 9/21 from 1 to 3 EST. My talk will likely begin about 1:50 or 2 p.m. EST and will last for about 20 minutes.
I have also included below the paper and the powerpoint slides that support the presentation of the paper for anyone who would like to explore these ideas before or after the conference.
The powerpoint slides that support the presentation of the paper.