In a culture of accumulation and hoarding, many are experiencing a growing exasperation with owning things that, as it turns out, aren't necessary. Could the "sharing economy" help restore spiritual calm?
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Feces can be a powerful thing, but not in the way that you might gather. Before becoming a father, Omid Safi thought love was something you feel or experience, the everyday ritual of changing his daughter's diaper taught him about a love that's stronger than shit.
Rather than grieve for the loss of “normalcy,” a mother of a child with refractory seizure disorder chooses to exult in her being exactly the way she is. Weaving in the Four Noble Truths, she marvels at the gifts of intimacy, false notions of power and control, and the hope and humor that follows.
A powerful lesson on the allure of the ego and the mystery of love expressed through the mythology of the Lord of the Rings and the poetry of Rumi.
We all want to be of service, to be needed and of use to others and to ourselves. Parker Palmer tells the playful story of a neighbor who takes this to an extreme.
What if we overcame our tribal impulses and told stories that grew our imagination as a people?
Sometimes it takes a fire hydrant turning into a geyser to remind us that there is somebody there to fix it. In seeing all of the people around us who make systems and services work, we begin to understand what it takes to make a community thrive.
We crave community and intimacy. But, are we looking for it in the wrong places — in our phones and mobile devices rather than in each others' eyes? With Rumi as his guide, Omid Safi on needing less digital connection and more rejuvenation of heart and soul.
Our conversation on the inner life rebellion inspires a 23-year-old singer-songwriter to write a song that embodies the rebellious energy she senses within herself and her generation. Take a listen; it's a treat.
Making connections can be "life-giving" but they can also reinforce "damaging divides." Courtney Martin is reminded of the vitality of human bonds — and the chasms that remain in this hypernetworked world.
After hearing Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai on the radio, a middle-aged woman from the Midwest reflects on her own life and the courage to choose hope in the face of despair.
In a culture of curated sharing, the intimacy of human touch can be daunting — even for a pastor. An essay on how the practice of laying on of hands is a quiet and necessary rite that ought to become part of our story again.
We build all sorts of enclosures to protect us and keep our loved ones safe from harm. But in column in poetical form, we are tasked with being vulnerable and opening those gates.
In a world where we feel more connected to friends on social media friends than our next-door neighbors, an argument that finds hope in Halloween and its ability to bring community together — even if only for a few magical hours.
A powerful essay on the responsibility of raising black sons in America. Against the forces of injustice and the brutal truth of racial inequality, a scholar and a mother finds hope in community and the knowledge that "together we create gardens of possibility in the parched earth."
Inspired by the simplicity and power of Naomi Shihab Nye's story, here's a list of five simple things we can do to help with healing the heart of democracy.
As many of us Americans approach the July 4th weekend, Parker Palmer proposes an Interdependence Day to remind us that "we're all in this together."
A student of agriculture applies the lessons from permaculture to our increasingly polarized political climate. Just as there are plant guilds, she writes, we can create people guilds too.
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