Replies

William James argued in “Does Consciousness Exist?” that consciousness isn’t anything at all; there’s no thing as consciousness. Rather, consciousness is a function akin to an algorithm. This is similar to ANW noting that the fundamental nature of reality is experience as opposed to Aristotle’s ousia, matter, stuff, substance. I appreciate Dr. Kling’s attention to “creation out of no-thing,” as something emerges by experience.

Thank you, Scott, for sharing. I, too, have danced with the paradox of creatio ex nihilo throughout my life.

Peace,
Jace

Hi, Gordon.

Thank you for describing the Judaic approach to written/oral scripture as polyphonic. Iconography is often understood to be poly-processual, but not “the” written word in the Christian tradition — the Holy Roman Empire loved their order!

“…traditional Christian theology took a tragic turn when it chose Caesar
over Jesus…But the deeper idolatry, of the fashioning of God in the image of the Egyptian, Persian, and Roman imperial rulers, was retained” — ANW

Thank you,
Jace

Hi, Charles.

The term salvation evokes consideration of redemption for me. From an apostolic perspective, if I am to be saved I need to do something to redeem myself. From a mystical perspective, redemption connotes a felt interconnectedness, security irrespective of the present’s experiential valence — surrendering through the movement of concrescence. I remember comparative mythologist Joe Campbell sharing a pre-Christian mystical interpretation of returning to the Garden of Eden and needing to pass between two menacing gatekeeper gargoyles assessing the felt openness of one’s heart before they would allow the prodigal being to eat from the Tree of Eternal Life, the 2nd tree in the Garden. Redemption, salvation is about relationship, relating, hesed in my book as opposed to conditional love, mode of doing/achievement. Thanks, Charles!

Best,
Jace

I found Rabbi Artson’s presentation to model a processual essence, feeling into the ancestral story of the Judaic people, people of Judah. The historical, actual events by which cultural process and/or ideology are experientially informed, developed was so very well articulated. An inspirational presentation, indeed. Such attention is often met with “how dare you?!?” in the Christian tradition as if the plebeians don’t well enough know themselves through their own experience. History is integral to speculation. Without considering successive application in successive contexts, one is simply purporting vapid and invalid ideology.

Thanks, Jason, for pointing out the constructive aspect of creativity (as opposed to its destructive quality), the amplification of as opposed to the breaking away from — beautiful!

Peace,
Jace

Thank you, Jason, for the essay!

I appreciate the attention to application of Divine aims that Dr. Davis gets at. All too often I experience attention to Jesus’ what-ness to be guiding most theological discussions (not so much in this community thankfully!) which eliminates his role in expressing, living, etc. which is not an easy task. To paraphrase Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault (contemporary Christian mystic), there are a lot of sharp corners in this world, and loving ain’t easy!

Warmly,
Jace

Hi, all.

Joe Campbell also provocatively said that vegetarians don’t eat meet because they are afraid of death. While a brilliant comparative mythologist, we all evince and experience contrast — and at times, I’ve experienced Joe as a bit arrogant, myopic. As someone who has studied Joe’ Campbell’s canon and who is also a vegetarian, he seems to have missed the mark in that deep appreciation for life often emerges by having surrendered, lived through the felt sense of dying as denoted in many religiospiritual accounts of deep personal transformation. Last note on vegetarianism/Christianity — Saint Francis of Assisi was a vegetarian!

Thank you for sharing and for receiving!

Peace,
Jace

Hi, all.

Jumping in to this discussion a bit late…

Wonderful of you, Rolla, to share your heartfelt and reason-informed journey — as well as the link, the title evokes a heroine’s/hero’s journey vibe for me, and resonates with my appreciation for pluralism and for exploring within/direct experience, as well as the application of boons retrieved in the service of wholeness.

While I do not identify as a Christian (anymore), I love Jesus’ teachings particularly the beatitudes/parables/koans, and endeavor to remember that he, too, was a heretic. I like imagining Jesus flipping off the Romans as he rode into town on what became known as Palm Sunday (e.g., James Reho, Tantric Jesus, 2017).

I’ve appreciated your presence throughout this certificate program, and am grateful to be learning by your sharing and through this community.

Peace & Grace, or Bust.
Jace

Thank you, Dr. Kling. I appreciate you sharing, reminding me of this detail — that an Initial Aim is a synergy of multiple EOs woven by God.

In light of God not having created the EOs, God seems more akin to a demiurge, middle management per se compared to the principle of Creativity.

God (as I understand and not necessarily as ANW would articulate) seems to be the energy of actualizing — suprajectivity, that which intends concrescence. The Primordial and Consequent Natures aren’t God per se, but rather required aspects of everlasting Creativity, by which God and Universe perpetually engage in a mutually amplifying converse process, mutually amplifying synergistic disruptiveness of the other.

I find it quite interesting and alluring that ANW barely wrote about The Suprajective Nature of God.

Its a wonderful to wonder…

Thanks, again!

Hi, Dr. Kling.

Thanks for following up, for offering another resource upon which to reflect. I agree that God is the means by which Initial Aims are presented for concrescence, and also recall learning either from Drs. McDaniel and/or Dr. Davis in the previous classes for this certificate program that Initial Aims/Eternal Objects are not created by God. By that learning, I conceptualize God as the source/ground of Creativity and (metaphorically speaking) the Shepherd of Novelty. The subject-suprajective actualization of an Initial Aim (i.e., subjective aim), however, is outside of God’s power and knowing (as suggested in Week #3’s assigned reading) — thus requiring the perpetual harmonization of factuality and potential, i.e., order. Novelty is informed and lured by an intrinsically valued, felt intention of a concrescing occasion’s own becoming. I thus understand the Ground of Novelty to not be God, but rather the subject-supraject, the contrast of call and response, which I conceptualize as a paradoxical wild stillness. Thanks, again, for the ongoing process!

Gratefully,
Jace

Hi, Bill.

Thanks for connecting. I appreciate Matthew’s precision as well. Have you encountered his formulation of Descartes’ Cogito Ergo Sum as evidentiary to a, proverbially stated, “bad trip?” Quite interesting to consider that for the last 400 or so years Western thought has been significantly influenced by one individual’s unintegrated, psychic disorganization! I look forward to connecting with you more.

Warmly,
Jace

Hi, Dr. Kling.

No, this submission emerged by feeling through my experience of the readings, and drawing upon inspiration from books I have read throughout my journey and practice.

All of the writing I have posted throughout my certificate process has emerged organically as follows:

I approach the discussion forum without any intention, allowing a posting to emerge by tending my felt experience of the course material — sometimes even spending hours tending my process until clear concepts emerge (at least to me as I’m writing them).

These postings are then used to inform my reflection paper at the end of the course. That is to say, when I start writing the reflection paper, I dive into the tohu v’vohu and feel my way through choshech into felt knowing, wisdom, da’ath. By this approach, I have purposefully set an intention to create rather than achieve a priori goal.

It’s been a deeply generative process for me — intellectually, as I grapple with a relatively novice understanding of Whitehead, as well as personally, as I shape and use my own voice humbly yet also resolutely.

Thanks for reaching out, for checking in.

Jace

Hi, Dr. Kling.

Thanks for the resource — I look forward to reading your article, and I’m excited to discover how our respective journeys resonate even further!

Somewhat relatedly, by your expressed interest in exploring exceptional experiences, I’ll be at a workshop in Ojai in a few weeks at which you can learn more here:
https://www.grof-legacy-project-usa.org/Ojai-Breathwork-Landing%20Pagerin-

Please feel free to share with other folks from the Cobb Institute (and elsewhere) who may be interested in exploring exceptional experience — e.g., Matthew Segall, Andrew Davis, Andrew Schwartz, etc.

Hope to connect with you in VT sometime!

Gratefully,
Jace

Thank you, Charlene. I, too, am grateful to be in a position of sharing and learning through this community!

Dr. Davis,

Thanks for sharing these great resources. I’m hoping to explore Epperson and Iain McGilchrist this spring, with the Eastman text snuck in there, too, somehow. Here’s my late winter lead in…

Peace & Gratitude,
Jace

Hi, Dr. Davis.

I imagine God “as a single and everlasting, non-perishable event (as in Whitehead)” capable of prehensively experiencing perishing of actual occasions — physical as well as hybrid physical prehensions, negatively prehending the former and positively, the latter in that doing so, respectively, maintains everlastingness and amplifies compassion.

Then again, the source of Eternal Objects, which I’m conceptualizing as The Impulse of Creativity within each actual occasion — the agential divine basis of their factualization intending themselves into existence — lures me to consider as to whether the developing center of The Suprajective Nature of God would allow for an understanding of God as “everlasting series of divine events.” As Jay McDaniel said in Introduction to Process Thought and Practice: “the choosing does the choosing” (Class #4).

Thank you for the follow up. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this course, and am grateful for the opportunity to play with my writing, with expressing my ideas, and for learning from my peers as well.

Peace,
Jace