SUNDAY LECTURE | Introduction to the Enneagram with Brooke Summers-Perry

Dear Ones -

This week in Ordinary Life spiritual director Brooke Summers-Perry gave an overview/introduction to the Enneagram. There is no text of her talk but she did provide the presentation slides she used. You can access them by clicking here. I tried to take as many notes as possible and will be grateful to rewatch the time when it is available in a few days on the Ordinary Life website. I really appreciated Booke’s light-hearted and engaging way of presenting a wealth of information in a limited amount of time.

If you are interested in more individual time or direction with Booke you can do so by clicking here or by contacting her directly at 713-569-5844. I myself consult with a trained spiritual director on a regular basis and find it invaluable. On the third Saturday of every month she hosts a free monthly practice group for growth-minded folks. For more information, click here.

To register for the upcoming day-long event with Enneagram expert, Suzanne Stabile, click here. You can find out full details on the Ordinary Life website.

Our podcast, “In Between,” can be accessed through the Ordinary Life web site.

If you would like to know how to make a contribution to Ordinary Life, click here for video instructions.

Be well and much love,

Bill Kerley

In order to view or download the presentation slides, click here.

In order the view or download the announcement slides, click here.

If you would like to download or just listen to today’s talk, you can use the audio player below.

To watch the video of today’s talk, use the YouTube link below.

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SUNDAY LECTURE | God: The Problem

ORDINARY LIFE - Thoughts and Ideas to Help You Live a Happier Life

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Summary of Ordinary Life for September 3, 2023

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Dear Ones -

If you are puzzled or curious about the wisdom and use of the Enneagram, I hope you will attend the introduction that spiritual director Brooke Summers-Perry will be doing in Ordinary Life this coming Sunday, September 10. If you attend this, you will see how the Enneagram is used as a tool for spiritual growth and relationship enhancement.

To register for the upcoming day-long event with Enneagram expert, Suzanne Stabile, click here. You can find out full details on the Ordinary Life website.

This week in Ordinary Life I offered another reflection on the phrase in the Lord’s Prayer - “Our Father.” I called the time -

“God: The Problem”

I got the title from a book by Gordon Kaufman who taught that culture, language, and social organization are the means by which we engage reality, create meaning, and locate ourselves within the vastly wider cosmic context of existence. When we start to go public about rethinking all our religious beliefs in light of our growing understanding of the cosmos, we will likely find that we live in a smaller cognitive community. I spoke also briefly of two of the main types of theology: revealed theology and natural theology. And, how both Fredrick Buechner and Peter Mathiessen have influenced my thinking about the impossibility of knowing God.

That’s a brief summary of this week’s time in Ordinary Life.

The audio version of the talk has some significant differences from the text I spoke from. You can find the text of the talk, the presentation slides and the audio version of the talk using the links below.

Our podcast, “In Between,” can be accessed through the Ordinary Life web site.

If you would like to know how to make a contribution to Ordinary Life, click here for video instructions.

Be well and much love,

Bill Kerley

In order to read or download the text version of the talk, click here.

In order to view or download the presentation slides, click here.

In order to view or download the announcement slides, click here.

To download or listen to today’s talk, use the audio player below

In order to watch the video of today’s talk, use the YouTube link below.

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WEEKLY PODCAST | In Between.140

Happy Birthday to Bill!

This man, the one pictured below with Jesus in his eye, is 86 today! We are so lucky to have kept him around this long and to have been graced by his teachings, jokes, and magic tricks….ahem…miracles.

Today’s topic is unconditional love and human belonging. Light and not light at once. Have you experienced unconditional love, and if so, how? Do you experience belonging, and if so, where? How might we extend circles of belonging to the very edges so that our net is wide enough to include all?

I hope you get some food for thought, and thanks for listening.

WEEKLY PODCAST | In Between.139

There are old ideas that can inspire new thinking.

There are old ways that continue to evolve, thus remaining perpetually new.

Today we talk about the mystical Jewish idea of G-d. In the Christian tradition, we have to problem writing out the name G-O-D and often assign it a corporeal form and specific gender. The mystical Jewish G-d, however, is both formless and boundless. It is more verb than noun, more presence than entity.

A few beautiful ideas:

1. One of the 13 attributes of G-d is compassion and mercy, or rahamim. Very close to the Hebrew word for “womb” it is often described as “womb love.” G-d is a cosmic womb.

2. G-d is unpronounceable, unknowable, but also entirely knowable because it is everywhere all the time. This omnipresence is “the breath of life” or ruah.

3. YHWH, which we spell out and pronounce as YA-WAY, echoes the sound of an in-breath and out-breath.

4. Breath, the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, is the very life force of the entire planet. We are “interbreathing.” To understand this is to understand the tender reality of interconnectedness.

5. The Kabbalah is not a book to buy but a way to study, best done with a teacher or through contemplative practice.

I hope you enjoy this chat, and that you continue to wrestle with and evolve your understanding of the great mystery.