Process Thought 101: The Star Thrower
Probing Process-Relational Worldviews For Newcomers
| WHAT? | Learning Circle |
| WHEN? | August 4 – August 25, 2025 Meets weekly on Mondays 8:30 – 9:30 AM Pacific / 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM Eastern |
| WHERE? | Online Via Zoom |
| WHO? | Terry Goddard |
Want to learn more about process thought? Join our learning circle, as we read and discuss together various essays and books on important themes to process thought. Our reflections will be guided by the Twenty Key Ideas of Process Thought.
Like many of you I do not have a formal background in process thought. My seminary program did not include readings in process theology. However, through various offerings from the Cobb Institute and Process and Faith and Open Horizons I have received a good and welcome introduction to process thought. My interest has grown with my increased knowledge of process. My hope is that this learning circle with provide a place for those of you, like me, who are new to process to read and discuss the books and essays of process theologians and philosophers.
No prior knowledge of process thought is required.
Upcoming
Meets weekly on Mondays at 8:30 – 9:30am Pacific, August 4 – 25, 2025
The next book for the learning circle is a little different from our normal list of readings. In August we will read a book that is a blend of science, nature writing, and spirituality. The book of essays is Loren Eiseley’s The Star Thrower. Eiseley’s essays bring together the Process Thought of Alfred North Whitehead and the nineteenth-century transcendentalism, of Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson. He connects these two philosophies in a series of essays that evince his compatibility with transcendentalism’s affinity for nature and portrays them as forerunners of Process Thought.
Whiteheadian thought as open and relational is evident throughout the essays. Moreover, Eiseley shares the belief with process thinkers that all of life, all “actual entities,” to use Whiteheadian language, experience and have value. With transcendentalists and process thinkers, Eiseley affirms that nature has significant importance and value for itself. His writing style (poetic prose) on nature and life conveys a pathos, a solemn sentiment, and a spiritual sense that few writers do.
Dr. Eiseley’s autobiographical passages are . . . descriptions of numinous encounters – some joyful, some terrifying. After reading them, I get the impression of a wanderer . . . a solitary who feels more easily at home with animals than with his fellow human beings.
–W.H. Auden, Introduction to The Star Thrower
About the Facilitator
Terry Goddard is a retired professor of history and religion. He has a MA in history from Loyola University Chicago and a PhD from Chicago Theological Seminary. He has served on the Cobb Institute board and as Director of Educational Offerings. Currently, Terry offers ongoing book discussions for Process & Faith and the Cobb Institute.
Terry lives in Little Rock, Arkansas with his wife, Miriam, and their companion – Ollie. Terry is an avid reader of topics in science, nature, philosophy, and religion. He writes a blog on those topics and more. Terry also offers courses at a senior life long learning center in Little Rock. More importantly, Terry and Miriam love the outdoors and spend as much time as possible exploring the beauty of Arkansas’s rivers and mountains – kayaking and sauntering.
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