The Spirituality of Compassion

Compassion is not a sentiment but it is making justice and doing works of mercy. Compassion is not a moral commandment but a flow and overflow of the fullest human and divine energies

Matthew Fox Cited in The Mystical Hours

Brother Teasdale adds this description of Fox’s earlier works and one of his central themes throughout his many books…

Former Dominican priest matthew Fox is the founder of Creation spirituality, which “integrates the wisdom of Western spirituality and global indigenous cultures with the emerging post-modern scientific understanding of the universe and the awakening artistic passion for creativity which reveals the interconnectedness of all life.

His book, A Spirituality Called Compassion, identifies the practical virtue of compassion: sacred action in the world that affects individuals, communities and the natural world. IF we are in a meaningful relationship with the Divine, not simply fulfilling a perfunctory religious obligation– if religion is more to us than a superficial social function– then we realize that compassion has to be implemented. It has to affect the suffering of others.

More still, this compassionate action is inspired by the deepest spiritual forces in us, the intermingling of the Divine and the human capacities of love-in- action.”

I have spoken about my gratitude and long association with the movement or the network of Creation Spirituality and the lasting impact of Fox’s writings on me before…

Brother Teasdale remarks serve to reinforce the importance of the criticism of modern or popular religious attendance and practice, and how an active sense of compassion is necessary before anyone could claim a genuine, mature sense of belonging to any form of meaningful Christian witness in our world.

One of the qualities of this network of ideas and ideals that came to be called Creation Spirituality (not to be, in any way, confused with Creationism!) was the willing affirmation of other streams of wisdom and inspiration that can be found among the indigenous teachings, as well as the other Western religious traditions. Later on, Fox broadened his outreach, and appealed to science and the arts, and to the Eastern wisdom traditions as well.

In my view, one of the most cogent reasons that Creation Spirituality as a movement that has kept it from being more be widely adopted, since there is no shortage of source material, is stolid denial and stubborn resistance among the Christian churches to admit to their myopia;

to their reliance on a theology of control, and the acceptance of a laissez faire capitalism that threatens the planet’s very existence! It is also a main reason for the decline of religion itself!