New report documents spiritual innovation in surprising places
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Sharing Spiritual Heritage, a report out from the Fetzer Institute, documents an undercurrent of spiritual innovation that has implications for leadership. The report addresses both the need to honor the rich teachings of historic faith and wisdom traditions while applying them creatively in today’s time.
Based on several years of research and conversation, Sharing Spiritual Heritage reveals how the relationship between religious institutions and spiritual seekers is being reimagined. It aims to aid in a conversation about the needs of the next generation of seekers and spiritual formation to support them.
Michelle Scheidt, a senior program officer at the Fetzer Institute notes, “For three decades, social research has been charting a slow but steady decline in religious belonging. Those who are leaving—or who are not joining—may still desire religious and spiritual guidance, and we are seeing this need and interest crop up in other places. This is what we’re interested in. This is what we’re tracking both within religious and spiritual contexts and within the popular culture.”
Contributors to Sharing Spiritual Heritage represent various organizations and backgrounds: rabbis working in innovative Jewish communities, Catholic sisters with decades of contemplative community life, and lineage holders from multiple spiritual traditions. Together, they advocate honoring the longstanding wisdom within and beyond religious traditions, while meeting contemporary needs for spiritual growth and support.
Stakeholders across various traditions and organizations have named spiritual heritage work as an emerging sector in need of cultivation. They have made recommendations for the future, which include “weaving” the network; developing its infrastructure; and continued innovation.
Of interest to those working at the edges of their religious traditions, seminary faculty, denominational leaders, interspiritual and multifaith teachers, and nonreligious seekers, the free report is available to all for downloading at fetzer.org/sharing-spiritual-heritage.
The Fetzer Institute is helping build the spiritual foundation for a loving world. It works with thought leaders to develop programs, research projects, convenings, and funding collaborations in the sectors of faith, spirituality, democracy, education, and organizational culture. Learn more at fetzer.org and sign up for their newsletter at fetzer.org/subscribe.
Contact:
Amy Ferguson
Fetzer Institute
[email protected]
(269)-375-2000
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