When I was working with a Jungian analyst, we spent years interpreting my dreams. They were mostly nightmares in which I was pursued by threatening monsters, carrion birds, or mute zombies. I was sure they wanted to destroy me, and because I felt weak, unable to defend myself, I ran. With an enormous amount of reassurance, my analyst finally coaxed me into a new approach: when my demons pursue me, she urged me to stop running, to turn during my... Read more
The human sense of identity is very fragile, especially when we seek it in the wrong places. Whenever I get angry at someone, my spiritual director tells me to enter into that person’s “map.” What does the world look and feel like from that person’s point of view? From within their shoes? Of course, we can never really know the answer to that question, but it’s an exercise in empathy, which I think is crucially important if we are going... Read more
Yesterday was Armistice Day, but most of the nation celebrated it as Veteran’s Day. It was also the 1-week anniversary of the death of René Girard. I spent the day thinking about how appropriate it is to remember Girard on a day that we think about matters of peace and violence and ritualized patriotism. It is also appropriate to remember Girard on a day that we traditionally ignore our scapegoats and victims (as we do every day, but egregiously so... Read more
Pastors have a frequent question when they begin to discover mimetic theory. “That’s great. But how does it preach?” Reverend Tom Truby show that mimetic theory is a powerful tool that enables pastors to preach the Gospel in a way that is meaningful and refreshing to the modern world. Each Wednesday, Teaching Nonviolent Atonement will highlight Tom’s sermons as an example of preaching the Gospel through mimetic theory. In this sermon, Tom reflects upon the life and death of René Girard.... Read more
Show Notes: In the third episode of the RavenCast, Adam talks with Matthew Distefano about his book, All Set Free: How Christ Reveals God and Why That Is Really Good News. We discuss topics like: what Christ reveals about God, violence in the Bible, heaven and hell, how to love your neighbor as yourself, and Atonement. You can keep up with Matthew on his website, “All Set Free” and at the Raven Foundation. Read more
René Girard, the great scholar of scapegoating, passed away on November 4, 2015. He was born in Avignon, France in 1923 but my thoughts keep drifting to Rome, 1907, fourteen years before Girard was born. Because that was the year that Dr. Maria Montessori made a remarkable discovery that seems, in hindsight, to anticipate Girard’s work by fifty years. What Girard discovered was the scapegoating mechanism; what the good doctor discovered was a scapegoat who quite literally could not speak... Read more
(Below is a slightly modified adaptation of a sermon I preached for All Saints Sunday, 2012, based on the Gospel of John, chapter 11, verses 32-44, or “The Raising of Lazarus.”): Friends, there are at least two themes to this familiar Gospel story: resurrection and friendship. How appropriate for All Saints Sunday, when we celebrate our eternal friendship, united in the joy of resurrection in God’s holy reign! I want to suggest that friendship and resurrection are deeply connected. It... Read more
Many scholars have claimed that René Girard’s mimetic theory is one of the most important insights of the 20th century. But those of us who have been highly influenced by René know better. For us, it is not an overstatement to state that René’s explanation of mimetic theory is the most important discovery of human nature in the last 2,000 years. That is, since the Gospels. This morning brought the news that René has passed away at age 91. “Girardians,”... Read more
Pastors have a frequent question when they begin to discover mimetic theory. “That’s great. But how does it preach?” Reverend Tom Truby show that mimetic theory is a powerful tool that enables pastors to preach the Gospel in a way that is meaningful and refreshing to the modern world. Each Wednesday, Teaching Nonviolent Atonement will highlight Tom’s sermons as an example of preaching the Gospel through mimetic theory. In this sermon, Tom explores the death and raising of Lazarus to show... Read more
Show Notes In this episode, I interview the co-founder of the Raven Foundation, Suzanne Ross, to discuss her latest project on Maria Montessori. You can keep up with Suzanne by liking her Facebook page The Maria Montessori Project. We talk about the intersections of mimetic theory and Montessori. Mimetic theory and Montessori’s teaching methods provide ways of transforming cultures of violence into cultures of peace. Read more
Teaching Nonviolent Atonement
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