How to Cultivate a Resilient Heart in Times of Suffering
700 years ago, a woman named Julian of Norwich lived through circumstances closely resembling what we’re experiencing today… a raging, never-ending war, tumultuous social unrest, and, on top of it all, a plague.
During the Black Death, the deadliest pandemic in human history, one in three people died across the globe. Julian endured terrible loss, and it is likely that both her husband and at least one child succumbed to the disease.
Why should we care about Julian in 2020? Because, despite all the sadness and grief she experienced, she was radically optimistic.
Her insights are as relevant today as they were then. And what she discovered can help you live through these difficult times with hope, courage, and a resilient heart.
On Thursday, November 5, mystic scholar Mirabai Starr and spiritual pioneer Matthew Fox will guide you through Julian’s revelations and how they can help you cope today with the illness, greed, corruption, apathy, and racism that permeate our world.
You can register here for Cultivate a Resilient Heart in Times of Suffering: Finding Hope, Courage & Joy in the Truth-Telling Teachings of Julian of Norwich.
In this special 75-minute free online event, you’ll discover:
- What it means to be “oned” to God and connected to divine love
- Julian’s deductive rationale on why God is feminine and is not an avenging, wrathful God
- The reason a thanksgiving prayer transforms our gratitude into compassionate action
- How suffering can be a path to finding joy
- Why the first duty of the soul is to “reverently marvel” and to grow from that awareness to actions of compassion and justice making
Julian learned that it all came down to love. Not the fleeting kind experienced by human beings, but by the divine kind, a supreme power that encompasses everything.
She also maintained that suffering is not punitive, and that while suffering is only “for a time,” joy endures.
You’ll come away knowing that despite our past and present sufferings in a turbulent, violent world in which many are struggling and losing hope, Julian’s wisdom resonates across the ages, as reassuring and as imperative today as it was in 1373: All shall be well.
Live long, love life and be well!
Harold
P.S. In Cultivate a Resilient Heart in Times of Suffering: Finding Hope, Courage & Joy in the Truth-Telling Teachings of Julian of Norwich, you’ll delve into the life of Julian of Norwich, a survivor of the “Black Death,” and see how the transformational power of loss and a deep love of nature can open the gates of our hearts and lead us to liberation and redemption.
We hope you’re able to catch the event as scheduled… however, if you register and miss it, you’ll receive a downloadable recording as soon as it’s available.
About Mirabai Starr
Mirabai Starr is an award-winning author of creative non-fiction and contemporary translations of sacred literature. She taught Philosophy and World Religions at the University of New Mexico-Taos for 20 years and now teaches and speaks internationally on contemplative practice and inter-spiritual dialog. A certified bereavement counselor, Mirabai helps mourners harness the transformational power of loss.
Mirabai’s newest book, Wild Mercy: Living the Fierce and Tender Wisdom of the Women Mystics, was named one of the “Best Books of 2019” by Spirituality & Practice. It’s essential reading for anyone ready to awaken the feminine mystic within and birth her loving, creative, and untamed power into the world.
Mirabai has received critical acclaim for her revolutionary new translations of John of the Cross’ Dark Night of the Soul and Teresa of Avila’s The Interior Castle. She is author of the poetry collection, Mother of God Similar to Fire, a collaboration withiconographer William Hart McNichols, and the award-winning book, God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The transparency of her journey through grief in her memoir, Caravan of No Despair: A Memoir of Loss and Transformation, is a gift to those who are struggling with unimaginable losses.
Mirabai is on the 2020 Watkins List of the “100 Most Spiritually Influential Living People of the World.” She lives with her extended family in the mountains of northern New Mexico.
About Matthew Fox
Matthew Fox is a prolific author of books dedicated to renewing the ancient tradition of Creation Spirituality, including Original Blessing and The Reinvention of Work. 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 awakened 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. A member of the Dominican Order for 34 years, 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 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.
