Henry Thoreau’s Walden is one of the great spiritual treasures.
American Unitarianism arose as a rational response to Calvinism at the beginning of the nineteenth century. A generation later Transcendentalism arose as an intuitive corrective to excesses of that classical Unitarian rationalism. Since then Unitarianism, a small but very important stream of Western spirituality, has drifted back and forth, first more toward the rational, and then more toward the intuitive. Most of the twentieth century American Unitarianism, then following consolidation, Unitarian Universalism, has been most distinctively marked by its rationalism. Sometimes to excess. But for the last two decades the corrective has been in full flood, and within that a new spirituality is emerging.
A spirituality I deeply feel that the world needs.
There are multiple dialogues going on within contemporary Unitarian Universalism shaping this emergent spirituality. There are probably four major currents, plus numerous smaller ones. Among the big ones there is a reinvestigation of Christianity and classical Western theism. There is an encounter with the feminist movement and sometimes related to this with contemporary neo-paganism. There is a conversation with several forms of Buddhism, particularly a fascination with Buddhist meditative disciplines. And there are new and exciting conversations with science and particularly with contemporary psychology.
Of course the area I’m most interested in is that conversation between Buddhism and Unitarian Universalism. I actually live it…
Following is an interesting essay about Thoreau and Buddhism. It’s attributed to “Brent Ulbert through Professor Rev. Dr. James Kenneth Powell II.” I’m not sure exactly what that means, although I think Brent Ulbert is the author. While I wouldn’t endorse everything said, it is interesting…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdmFbrPNtlE
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