ChristoPaganism: An Inclusive Path
Posted On : January 22nd, 2010
Tags: ChristoPaganism, common threads, Inclusive, Joyce, Nature, pagans and christians, Path, Religion, religious diversity, River, Spirituality
BLENDED PATHS: REVOLUTION OR EVOLUTION? Have you ever questioned the nature of religion? Would you like to explore more inclusive modes of spirituality? You are not alone. In this exciting age of religious diversity, more and more Pagans and Christians are incorporating each other’s practices into their own belief systems. These intrepid believers are forging hybrid spiritual paths that borrow from both earth- and scripture-based religions, daring to defy the status quo of spirituality. Everything you once knew about religion is about to change. Noted scholars Joyce and River Higginbotham invite you to participate in the fascinating dialogue surrounding the nature of faith and the evolving spiritual needs of our world. With balance and depth, the authors delve into the origins, ideologies, and common threads of Christianity and Paganism. This powerful book culminates in a series of compelling interviews with fifteen individuals who share ways in which they honor a un…
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This is the first book I’ve read that uses Ken Wilber, Spiral Dynamics and James Fowler to help Christians and Pagans to understand their religions and the value of an inclusive path. I like the authors’ own identity of the different levels of the evolution of the self/consciousness/faith: They call it mythic tangible, mythic literal, mythic rational, mythic global, mythic archetypal, and mythic avatar. They see it as the change of your understanding of myths of your religion. When one is on the last three levels you become more inclusive of other views and that is why they see ChristoPaganism as an inclusive path. Inclusivity to the authors means that you can accommodate other spiritual practices in your own path, like earth-based religious rites and Christian liturgy. Their deconstruction of Christian beliefs is an eye opener and should be studied by all Christians. The authors include a series of questions under the heading; My Journal, to help the reader with his/her own understanding and growth. It might not be a comfortable read to many readers, but if you’re serious about your spiritual growth in Christiaanity or Paganism, this is a book for you. I have their other two books on order and I am looking forward to read more of their insights.
I was at first daunted by this book which challenged me theologically but then I realized most of the ideas about the historical Jesus and the cosmic universal Christ I agreed with. I do think the section about the birth of Jesus and trying to relate Jesus to Johoshua Ben Pandira was contrived but the main dilemma here was the question of the birthright of the historic Jesus and what always interested me more was the spiritual Christ who is indeed part of the focus of this book. The sections on the interviews were fascinating and held my interest more than anything. Besides that I liked the exercises which make you think. Overall a very good book on a subject which needs to be talked about. As a progressive christian I have taken most of my beliefs from Christianity and Wicca both and I will continue to study this book
This is a great book on the controversial subject of Christopaganism. The authors interviewed a lot of Christopagans/Christian Witches for this book. They also have a good section on the different stages of faith, and another good section on putting the Christian and pagan wheels of the year together. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the subject.