Introduction to Process-Relational Thought & Practice 2025

Live Session Info

Dates: January 22 – February 26, 2023
Times: Wednesdays, 5:00 – 6:30 PM Pacific

Course Summary

The process-relational tradition can be imagined as a vibrant and growing tree. The roots consist of the key ideas in Whitehead’s philosophy; the trunk consists of general ideas that flow from his philosophy and that can be understood by people from many walks of life; and the branches consist of applications of these ideas in personal life and community development, as guided by four ideals that are shared by process-relational thinkers: whole persons, whole communities, a whole planet, and holistic thinking.

This course covers all three areas: roots, trunk, and branches. It provides the foundation and framework for all the other courses in the certificate program. It begins with an elaboration of the tree as a guiding metaphor and some of the key ideas and core values shared by process thinkers. The focus will then turn to an introduction to the basic ideas of process-relational philosophy. And it will conclude with an exploration of process practices. Its aim is to provide an overview that can serve as a springboard for further study and action.

Course Description

Process thinkers belong to many different cultures and live in many different regions of the world: Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, North America, and Oceania. They include artists, philosophers, farmers, homemakers, parents and grandparents; people from different religions; and people without any religious affiliation. Most of the scholars in the movement are influenced by the perspective of the late philosopher and mathematician, Alfred North Whitehead. His thinking embodies the leading edge of the intellectual side of process thinking and is a catalyst for further thinking.

The tradition of process thinking can be compared to a growing and vibrant tree, with blossoms yet to unfold. The roots of the tree are the many ideas developed by Whitehead in his mature philosophy. They were articulated most systematically in his book Process and Reality: An Essay in Cosmology. The trunk consists of more general ideas which have been developed by subsequent thinkers from different cultures, adding creativity of their own. These general ideas flow from Whitehead’s philosophy but are less technical in tone. The branches consist of the many ways in which these ideas are being applied to daily life and community development. They include applications to a wide array of topics, ranging from art and music to education and ecological civilization.

In our introduction we will cover all three areas: the roots, the trunk, and the branches, giving you a sense of the whole.

We will also explore the question “What is it like to be YOU?” as a path toward understanding Whitehead’s process-relational vision. Whitehead understood that you are an example of the process-relational world, not an exception to it. You arise out of the same deep relational processes and principles which give rise to all that is. While you are genuinely unique as an individual, you are also importantly like every other actual creature who has ever been or ever will be. Therefore, the better you understand the deepest dimensions of yourself, the more deeply you can understand your world, and also the reverse.

As we look deeply into ourselves we discover that we arise out of our relationships with everything around us. These relationships are not limited to the people we know or encounter. Literally, we are made of star dust. We are children of the universe, part of the vast world of nature which nurtures us. But especially, of course, we emerge out of our relationships with the people in our lives, and out of our own choices. Compassion is therefore a central value of process-relational thought and practice. As McDaniel’s piece, “What is Process Thought?” shows, process-relational thinkers are deeply concerned with values. We are concerned with nurturing compassion, creative transformation, community building, justice, and protecting the natural world of which we are a part.

Course Outline

• Session 1: Introduction to the Process-Relational Tradition
• Session 2: The Non-Existence of the Future & The Universal Existence of Freedom
• Session 3: Reality as a Relational Process
• Session 4: Process-Relational Power
• Session 5: Creativity, Freedom, and God
• Session 6: Applications & Ecological Civilization