Sea of Faith Christchurch Group

At our next meeting on Friday 28  August, Hugh will present to us the recently released paper on this topic and lead discussion on it. The following comes from the paper’s introduction.

It is vital to understand that human civilisation is an integral part of the ecological systems of the planet.  The present approach to economic and financial affairs is fundamentally inconsistent with strong sustainability and an alternative is required.  A new economics is proposed that has market mechanisms that work to maximise community wellbeing and the happiness of individuals within the limits of ecological principles.  It is based on a quite different set of underlying human ethics and values, and involves major shifts in human behaviour.  Reforms in political structures and institutions are also required on the path to strong sustainability.  It is argued that New Zealand should adopt the principles of strong sustainability and adopt them even if many other countries are not yet doing so.

The presentation is inherently optimistic but the turbulence, hardship and drastic changes that are described may startle. The issues raised must be considered with great urgency.  Although attainment of strong sustainability will take many years, initiatives to begin the process are needed now.

Our next meeting, on Where do we get our sense of right and wrong from? Stephen Pinker wrote an article in the New York Times looking at the evolutionary basis of morality.  We will discuss this article.  Follow the link yourselves and read online. (Thanks to Margaret Feist of the Dunedin Sea of Faith group for the idea.)

An outsider, looking at how infrequency the topic of death occurs in the Sea of Faith, would conclude that we must all be very young.  Lloyd Geering famously declared that man has no immortal soul, and it has since become common knowledge, at least within the Sea of Faith, that the notion that we humans have a soul in the sense of an indestructible, non-bodily essential core goes back to Plato rather than the New Testament.

But where does this Enlightened rationality leave us personally and existentially?  Does death trouble us? Do we avoid it, have we come to terms with it, does it deeply question the meaning and significance of our life? And where does religion come in? Does it have any relevant wisdom about death (and hence about life, too) for us today?

Marion, who started attending our group recently, will present some teachings on death from a Buddhist perspective. There will be opportunity for discussion, but it would be helpful if one or two people could also present briefly (maximum 15 minutes), so that we have a diversity of views to stimulate the discussion.

At our next meeting, on Friday 10 July, Laurie will talk about his journey with Eugen Drewermann. Although a sensation in Europe, Eugen Drewermann is almost unknown in the English-speaking world. Laurie tells the story of how he came to be so interested in him and influenced by him. A Roman Catholic theologian who has been forbidden to teach, preach, celebrate the mass, or even to receive the mass, he seeks to incorporate insights from existentialism and depth psychology into a contemporary understanding of religion. In recent times, he has worked on articulating religious affirmations in dialogue with modern science, most recently neurobiology.

Our next meeting, on Friday 26 June, will be a mid-winter celebration. Bring some finger food and (optionally) a memory that you have of Christmas (or of mid-winter!). We’ll try to make sure that the room is warm and cosy and appropriate for reflecting on the annual renewal of life, the emergence of light out of darkness, and stories of the birth of the divine Child among us.