Matthew Fox – Reclaiming Original Goodness

Matthew Fox – Reclaiming Original Goodness

Check it out: Matthew Fox – Reclaiming Original Goodness

With Renowned Activist &
Mega-Bestselling Author of Over 30 Books
Matthew Fox

New 7-Week Live Video Training Starts
Thursday, July 2, 2020

Put your faith into action, joining spiritual seekers throughout history who’ve followed Aquinas’ trailblazing wisdom — and cultivate compassion, courage, and resilience to meet life’s greatest challenges.

These days, many of us are working through the reality of the global pandemic, the awakening to centuries of entrenched racism and colonialism, societal unrest and upheaval, the ever-present reality of climate change, and so much more.

These times hold many challenges and a deep sense of uncertainty…

Thankfully, we’ve been given a powerful roadmap of wisdom that’s already led seekers through some of history’s bleakest moments — so they didn’t just settle for surviving, but emerged from their struggles with a renewed sense of gratitude, wonder, and connection to the Divine, and a new understanding of the action they were called to take in this world.

The wisdom of St. Thomas Aquinas, Christian mystic and theologian, helped followers build strength during the Black Plague, laid the foundations for an ahead-of-its-time cosmic awareness and eco-friendly consciousness, launched a non-dualistic (and thus femininst) perspective that few had ever heard before, laid out the idea of “the common good,” and more.

Now you can apply Aquinas’ profound wisdom to the circumstances of your own life, no matter what you’re facing.

Join Matthew Fox, a modern-day spiritual luminary, welcoming him as your mentor during this new 7-week live video course…

He’ll guide you to follow in the footsteps of Aquinas, whose teachings still speak to our deepest experiences — and whose calls for compassion, courage, and resilience are needed tremendously in today’s world.

As you’ll discover, Aquinas’ philosophical insights were far ahead of their time, ultimately shifting societal tide toward progressive ideals. He stood up — often alone — against centuries of entrenched dualistic orthodoxy. His influence in history has been immense, as evidenced by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. quoting Aquinas in his seminal “Letter From Birmingham Jail.”

He stood with the Poverty Movement (before the idea of the Populist Movement had been invented), proclaimed non-dualism as a philosophy (which later became the heart of feminist philosophy), asserted that humans were actually “not the most excellent thing in the universe,” and put forth many more “radical” ideas that greatly influenced Western thought.

Aquinas also maintained that combining a spiritual life with a scientific worldview significantly expanded our capacity to express our essential goodness.

As you travel Aquinas’ inspiring path and bring his profound teachings into your own life, you’ll discover that despite our modern-day turmoil, you can deepen into your spiritual journey toward wisdom, justice, and compassion, and away from fear and indifference.

Join us and discover how Aquinas’ wisdom can not only direct your path of contemplation, but inspire you to action — no matter the challenges you’re facing.

During this inspired and informative course, you’ll discover:

• How to become a whole, self-aware human through both contemplating nature and entering into your own house of wisdom as you silence your mind
• Why mysticism, not the intellect, is the true origin of values
• How Aquinas’ 4 Paths of Spiritual Experience — Via Positiva, Via Negativa, Via Creativa, and Via Transformativa — can guide you
• That supreme thankfulness or gratitude constitutes the very meaning of religion for Aquinas
• How the burgeoning culture of Aquinas’ lifetime was alive with feminine influence during the reawakening of Europe in the 13th century
• How Aquinas preferred Aristotle’s philosophy over Plato’s because it was non-dualistic
• The impact of Islamic scholarship on European worldviews — and of Aquinas including the newly invented University Movement and scholastic, scientific methods of asking questions
• How every creative act, done with intention and presence in Original Goodness, is a restorative act done on behalf of nature herself
• Why a human-centered worldview is dangerous — and why nature-centered thinking is more accurate (and far more healing)
• How to harness the power of being through non-dual mindfulness practices
• Why we’re “united to God as to One Unknown” and how, as Aquinas said, “the greatest accomplishment of the human mind is to know that it does not know who God is”
• The many ways you partner with God in the work of creation when you express your own creativity and enter fully into your work

What You’ll Discover in These 7 Weeks
In this timely offering from one of the world’s most respected voices of reason and inspiration, you’ll learn how Aquinas’ insights can be embodied today, shielding you from the turmoil of confusion, toxic thinking, and emotional triggers.

Matthew will guide you to fortify your heart with the will and confidence to become the clearest and most powerful version of YOU yet — coming into your own, when the world needs you most.

The Power of Live Streaming Video

You’ll connect with Matthew and experience his teachings through live streaming video. This connection is easy to use and will enhance the impact of Matthew’s wisdom and guidance. Or you can easily connect just via audio if you choose — through your phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop.

(Can’t make it live? No worries! After each class, the video and audio recordings will be available for you to download or stream in high-quality format at your convenience.)

Weekly Sessions Thursdays at 5:00pm Pacific
This course will feature LIVE teachings, interactive training sessions, and experiential practices with Matthew and special guest Meshi Chavez. Each session will build harmoniously upon the previous ones, so you’ll develop a complete holistic understanding of the practices, tools, and principles you’ll need to put your faith into action — cultivating compassion, courage, and resilience to meet life’s greatest challenges.

Module 1: Aquinas in Context — His Day & Ours (July 2)

In this opening week, you’ll delve into Aquinas’ teachings and discover how they can guide you — and meet you right where you are in your struggles today.

You’ll explore his spiritual genius of profound substance — a fount of pre-modern wisdom for our post-modern times — and his ability to unite those of various traditions and no tradition at all. We all belong to nature, and Aquinas’ worldview begins with nature.

In this first module, you’ll explore stories from Aquinas’ adventurous life as you discover:

What pre-modern consciousness and post-modern consciousness have in common — and why neither features human beings at the center
How Aquinas welcomed truth from all spiritual traditions — affirming that “all truth comes from the Holy Spirit”
Aquinas’ poetry, and its aesthetic and spiritual impact on the feminine dimensions of the Gothic revolution — exemplified by the rose windows at Notre-Dame de Paris
The battles Aquinas fought on behalf of non-dualism, the unity of matter and spirit, and more
Powerful stories from his eventful life

Module 2: Aquinas, Science, Spirituality & the Future of Our Planet (July 9)

What happens to a society when science and spirituality split?

This week, you’ll explore how we’ve inherited a powerful split between religion and science. The result is a mainstream loss of respect for the sacredness of nature, and a loss of human dignity and moral direction.

When a society or educational system is cut off from intuition, says Matthew, it soon becomes a culture without values — merely mimicking inherited cultural values, without true self-reflection and cultural criticism.

While the modern era effectively killed the connection between science and religion, our post-modern era longs for it — and Aquinas has given us a powerful roadmap showing us the way forward.

In this module, you’ll discover:

How the trust in the sacredness of creation that Aquinas espoused was ruptured by the 14th-century Black Death pandemic and subsequent guilt-based religions
How science and spirituality can be renewed today in the face of the climate-change emergency
M.C. Richards’ (poet, potter, and philosopher) perspective about what happens when science and spirituality split
Why Aquinas tells us we’re here to get drunk on the universe — and why a mistake about creation results in a mistake about God
The tenants of Aquinas’ green theology — and how it applies to your life today
How our current ecological crisis grew out of scientific materialism and a broken religious consciousness that separated nature from the sacred
A powerful practice to embody the greatness of the human person — and how it’s especially useful in our current time, when a new cosmology is being revealed through science

Module 3: What Does It Mean to Be a Human Being? (July 16)

Religion is supreme thankfulness or gratitude.
— Thomas Aquinas
Who are you — and who are we, as a species?

Where do we want to go? And what sacrifices do we need to make to get there?

This week, you’ll explore how to cultivate your most noble sense of identity, according to Aquinas — and how our species’ current existential crisis is directly related to our identity crisis.

Increasingly violent and disruptive storms, droughts, floods, crop shortages, rising of seas, and pandemics are bearing down on us. We can’t face and overcome these crises without understanding who we are as a species.

Aquinas was a committed student of human nature — not only because he studied the advanced writings of Aristotle, Moses Maimonides, Avicenna, Averroes, and others… but he also synthesized them and taught us how important it is to put them into action.

In this module, you’ll discover:

How to cultivate joy — what Aquinas calls the human’s noblest act
How to harness the power of simultaneous being and doing states of existence
The ways the young and old experience the Divine
Why your creativity is nothing less than the Holy Spirit working through you
The ways your powers of courage, playfulness, magnanimity, compassion, and justice-making are essential to your adult spirituality
How to enter your house of wisdom and gain clarity around your identity through your meditation practice — cultivating what Aquinas calls the wonderful communion of body and soul, matter and spirit, wisdom in action

Module 4: Aquinas on the Via Positiva and the God of Awe, Joy & Delight (July 23)

If human beings are spiritual beings, then we must explore the spiritual journey more deeply.

This week, the first of Aquinas’ 4 Paths of Spiritual Experience, Via Positiva, will guide you through this transformative process.

Experience alone is not sufficient for learning about and teaching spirituality. We also need concepts, according to Aquinas. Among these experiences and concepts is the Via Positiva, the tasting of original goodness — and awe and wonder.

As you focus on the beauty and goodness of creation, you’ll soak up Aquinas’ powerful truth — that both the poet and the scientist begin at the same place: with the wonder of creation.

As you’ll discover, wonder opens the mind and the heart, ultimately leading you to a sense of profound gratitude.

In this module, you’ll discover:

Aquinas’ doctrine of original goodness
How we all undergo both the First Resurrection (waking up in this lifetime) and the Second Resurrection
Why Aquinas believed every being is a name for God
How to access the sheer joy of God — and experience God as what Aquinas calls supersubstantial beauty and a fountain of total beauty
How to meditate deeply on nature and its goodness as you allow Aquinas to coach you

Module 5: Aquinas on the Via Negativa and the God of Silence, Darkness, Loss & the Apophatic Divinity (July 30)

The first requirement, then, for the contemplation of wisdom is that we should take complete possession of our minds before anything else does.
— Thomas Aquinas
This week, you’ll discover Aquinas’ respect and appreciation for the quiet, dark, and still path of cultivating your soul.

You’ll explore the second of the 4 Paths of Spiritual Experience, Via Negativa, which includes silence and emptying of the mind as you move into meditation.

Matthew will also walk you through the deep experience of loss and suffering we encounter in the Dark Night of the Soul — and how valuable an experience that can be.

Through the wisdom he’s left behind, Aquinas invites you to an encounter with the God of darkness and the mystery of silence — reminding you that every being is a name for God, and no being is a name for God.

As you discover Aquinas’ teachings on meditation, you’ll see they even line up with the Buddhists’ practice of letting go of your discursive brain — and find rest from your busy mind.

In this module, you’ll discover:

Silence as a doorway to wisdom
How Aquinas is calling us to respect the mystery dimension of what we can actually discuss about God — and not speak glibly and incessantly about the Divine
What it means to know God as the “One Unknown”
Aquinas’ belief that the greatest accomplishment of the human mind is knowing that it does not know who God is
What Aquinas learned when he was struck mute by a mystical experience during the final year of his life

Module 6: Aquinas on the Via Creativa (August 6)

All artists love what they give birth to — the poet loves his poems, the potter her pots, the painter her paintings — how then could God, who is the artist of everything, hate anything?
— Thomas Aquinas
Art and creativity play a significant role in Aquinas’ view of the world and in his theology — indeed, he frequently referred to God as the artist of artists.

This week, you’ll discover how creativity is the work of the Holy Spirit — and how a theology of creativity is a theology of spirit…

These teachings took root within the imagination of Aquinas’ disciple Meister Eckhart, who went on to further deepen understanding of the role of the artist — and of the spirit and creativity — in humanity’s development and expression.

In the Via Creativa (the third of the 4 Paths of Spiritual Experience), the image of God in the human comes to its fullness. Virtues are the habits you choose to cultivate — they create your personality and values, and the character you birth and bring to the world.

You’ll also explore how, with Eckhart and later with Julian of Norwich — both influenced heavily by Aquinas’ teachings — the role of the creatrix, the Motherhood of God, became more richly developed.

And you’ll discover how the beauty that humans are and that humans create is a participation in the overall dance of Divine Beauty in creation…

In this class, you’ll:

Experience how humans become co-workers with God and how our creativity is our way of giving thanks
Become aware of the intrinsic connection between wisdom and creativity
Learn how all created things may be called God’s works of art
Explore the dark side of creativity — why humans can birth great evil, and how, according to Aquinas, one human being can do ten thousand times more harm than a beast
Understand what it means to bear good fruit, why the effects of love should be displayed as well as felt, and the importance of sharing your light — not just being enlightened
Discover how building your character and choosing to walk a path of virtues is the work of creativity and the Via Creativa

Module 7: Aquinas on the Via Transformativa (August 13)

Always rejoice in the good work that you do.
— Thomas Aquinas
In your closing class, Matthew will share how your creative energies can go to work to heal the world — as you respond to Aquinas’ invitation to use your creative impulse for the greater good.

To avoid merely inflating ego, amassing power, or otherwise doing evil, creativity needs a direction — and the final of the 4 Paths of Spiritual Experience, the Via Transformativa, can be your guide.

Your work is born of Spirit with both your inner and outer work finding their fulfilment in justice and compassion. Indeed, justice is the most important of all the virtues, according to Aquinas. And justice and compassion are the best names for God.

Aquinas lays out an entire theology of work — including how the Holy Spirit works through us as we do our good work in the world, giving back to others.

In this final module, you’ll explore:

Why Aquinas teaches that political science is more important than the science of medicine   — and how the common good transcends the individual good of one person
How compassion and justice go together — and how liberation is a synonym for salvation
Ways to develop your prophetic vocation, including the positive role that anger and moral outrage play
How conscience is integral to a life of justice — and why it’s more important to obey your sense of conscience than to obey unjust laws
Why Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. invoked Aquinas in his iconic “Letter From Birmingham Jail”
Why salvation primarily means to preserve things in the good and how this creates a foundation for an eco-theology
How you can arrive at a vision of God through justice, why justice-making is itself a spiritual practice — and how joy and playfulness accompany you throughout this journey

Matthew Fox is a force of good energy and knowledge during this critical time. If everyone were lucky enough to hear his words of wisdom, the world would be in a much better place.
— Kate, Canelo, Arizona

The Reclaiming Original Goodness Bonus Collection
In addition to Matthew’s transformative 7-week virtual course, you’ll receive these powerful training sessions with leading visionaries and teachers. These bonus sessions complement the course and promise to take your understanding and practice to an even deeper level.

Original Blessing: Connect With All of Creation
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Jaih Hunter-Hill

Discover how Christianity once celebrated beauty, compassion, and justice — and provided a path of positive knowledge and ecstatic connection with all of creation. Matthew Fox and Jaih Hunter-Hill (public speaker and mechanical engineer) dive deep into Matthew’s daring view of historical Christianity — and a theologically sound basis for personal discovery of spiritual liberation.

Sheer Joy: Conversations With Thomas Aquinas
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Brian Thomas Swimme

In this powerful dialogue, Matthew Fox and Brian Thomas Swimme (professor, author, and cosmologist) discuss how those who feel called by their faith to take action face a challenging future — and deserve deep wisdom from the past to succeed. Listen as Matthew and Brian unpack the wisdom and direction Thomas Aquinas left behind for becoming courageous and creative in thought, spirit, and action.

Global Justice & Cosmic Oneness: Wisdom in Action
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Jerry Maynard

Jerry Maynard, priest and Catholic worker activist, has said that we must not let external forces stop us from giving birth to global justice and cosmic oneness. Follow along with this powerful dialogue as Jerry and Matthew discuss how to embrace Thomas Aquinas’ wisdom and get to work.

Thomas Aquinas in the 21st Century
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Adam Bucko

Absorb the wisdom of Matthew Fox and author Adam Bucko (co-author of Occupy Spirituality and The New Monasticism) as they discuss how Thomas Aquinas’ wisdom offers us a roadmap for spirituality in action — and can help us overcome today’s specific elements of greed, despair, and the threat of extinction.

Join the Global Community

Reclaiming Original Goodness offers some of the most advanced online teachings available, within a thriving, global community of learning and practice.

Join fellow students and practitioners to support and inspire each other as you integrate the teachings and practices Matthew Fox will share in this powerful training.

You’ll be part of an international community that’s on the leading edge of a global movement of people manifesting a world grounded in principles of cooperation, harmony, and reverence for all of life.

Here’s What You’ll Receive

Seven 90-Minute Class Sessions With Matthew Fox

Experience a unique opportunity to be mentored by and learn from Matthew Fox — renowned spiritual pioneer and author of over 30 books that have sold millions of copies — from the comfort of your own home. Each class session includes a live streaming video option and guides you to discover specific skills and abilities to cultivate compassion, courage, and resilience to meet life’s greatest challenges. Course sessions are on Thursdays at 5:00pm Pacific.

Seven Video Recordings of Class Sessions

After each class, the video will be available for you to download or stream in high-quality format. You’ll never have to worry about missing a session, and you can watch anytime and anywhere — on any connected device and at your convenience.

Seven Audio Recordings of Class Sessions

After each class, the audio will be available for you to download in high-quality MP3 format. You’ll never have to worry about missing a session, and you can listen anytime and anywhere — on any connected device and at your convenience.

Seven PDF Transcripts of Class Sessions

In addition to the high-quality videos and MP3 audios, you’ll also receive the entire class transcription in PDF format after each session is completed. You can then review, print, and highlight the most important insights and practices you were given.

Seven 30-Minute Interactive Group Practice Sessions

With live class attendance, there will be a 30-minute optional interactive practice session directly following each class. You’ll be placed in an intimate group with several other participants on the conference call to interact, share, and do additional practices with, to help further integrate the weekly lessons. Practice sessions are available for live attendance only, not recorded for playback. If you’re unable to attend the calls live, the Facebook online community group allows you to connect with each other and find alternative times to interact.

Interactive Exercises and Questions for Each Lesson

Between class sessions, you’ll have the option of completing related exercises, practicing new tools, and answering questions to accelerate your learning and integrate each week’s lesson.

Online Community

Our exclusive Facebook online community is the perfect place to continue your discovery process after each class. Here, you can continue the discussion about your course materials and interact with your fellow students to take your exploration to an even deeper level.

The Reclaiming Original Goodness Bonus Collection

Original Blessing: Connect With All of Creation
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Jaih Hunter-Hill
Sheer Joy: Conversations With Thomas Aquinas
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Brian Thomas Swimme
Global Justice & Cosmic Oneness: Wisdom in Action
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Jerry Maynard
Thomas Aquinas in the 21st Century
Video Dialogue With Matthew Fox and Adam Bucko

An Unprecedented Opportunity to Join the Reclaiming Original Goodness Virtual Training

We feel honored that Matthew Fox has chosen to partner with The Shift Network to offer this exclusive LIVE online training. This is a unique opportunity to interact directly with a renowned spiritual pioneer and author of over 30 books, whose powerful insights and pioneering work are helping us heal and transform ourselves and our world.

If you’re serious about discovering St. Thomas Aquinas’ spiritual legacy of hope, then you owe it to yourself, your loved ones, and our world to take this one-of-a-kind training.

About Matthew Fox

Matthew Fox is a prolific author of books dedicated to renewing the ancient tradition of Creation Spirituality. This earth-based mystical tradition is feminist, welcoming of the arts and artists, honors Indigenous wisdom, works with science, and is committed to interfaith approaches and eco, social, and gender justice.

Matthew’s effort to reawaken the West to its own mystical tradition has sparked awareness of Hildegard of Bingen, Meister Eckhart, and the mysticism of Thomas Aquinas, as well as the wisdom tradition that nurtured Jesus. His work helps reconnect science and spirituality by honoring the sacredness of the cosmos and interacting with contemporary scientists who are also mystics. He believes that “by reinventing work, education, and worship, we can bring about a nonviolent revolution on our planet.”

Matthew received his doctorate summa cum laude in the History and Theology of Spiritualities from the Institut Catholique de Paris. He was a member of the Dominican Order for 34 years, and he established an Institute in Culture and Creation Spirituality that operated for seven years at Mundelein College in Chicago, and for 12 years at Holy Names College in Oakland.

He founded the University of Creation Spirituality in Oakland, California in 1996, and was president and professor until 2005, when he left to create a pilot project to reinvent the educational experience for inner-city teenagers.

Matthew is a recipient of many awards, including the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award; other recipients have included the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, and Rosa Parks. He is a visiting scholar at the Academy for the Love of Learning in Santa Fe, New Mexico.