“REPORT ON
THE DAVID TACEY FORUM, 6th APRIL 2008
Spirituality Hi-jacked?
“Brilliant” was the consensus view of more than 150 people who packed the
crypt at St Patrick’s on Church Hill on April 6 to attend Catalyst for Renewal’s
first forum of the year and listen to David Tacey pose the question: Are
Religion and Spirituality drifting further apart? And brilliant it certainly
was.
Had the religions lost their monopoly spirituality? he asked. Had it been
hijacked by the secular world and become just a buzz word? There was meat in
every minute of his lecture and there were challenges too. The religions
had to stop being defensive, he said, and seek a “creative” relationship
with the “secular spirituality” of the times.
David Tacey, the author of eight books and 85 published essays on psychology,
spirituality and cultural studies, is Associate Professor in the School of Arts
and Critical Enquiry, at La Trobe University in Melbourne.
He told his Catalyst audience that it often seemed that the spiritual and the
religious were separating categories of Australian experience. “People
often say they want spirituality without religion,” he said. “The young
especially make this claim. Many Australians see spirituality as liberating and
empowering, and religion as limiting and oppressive.
“This is certainly the emphasis in secular society, where religion is heavily
discounted and seen as irrelevant to the spiritual quest. But in addition to
needing wings to fly, we also need roots to connect us to the earth, to the past
and to community. I can understand the contemporary demand for wings without
roots, but both are needed in a balanced spiritual life. We need to
resolve the tension between spirituality and religion, lest the one becomes a
personal experience only, leading to isolation and loneliness, and the other
becomes a routine performance, involving tradition and history but having no
existential purchase on the human soul.”
THE FULL TEXT OF DAVID TACEY’S ADDRESS CAN BE FOUND ON THIS WEBSITE UNDER THE
“CATALYST FORUMS” BUTTON
Peter Golding, Catalyst Reporter”
FORUM
WITH BISPOP GEOFFREY ROBINSON DD SUNDAY, 18th NOVEMBER 2007.
Some photos from our Catalyst Forum with Bishop Geoffrey
Robinson DD who led a discussion on his new book, “CONFRONTING POWER AND SEX
IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH: RECLAIMING THE SPIRIT OF JESUS” in the Mosman
Community Centre on Sunday, 18th November 2007.
Fr Michael Whelan, sm, Francois Kunc and Marea Donovan
responded, commenting on some of the issues raised in the book
and then the conversation,
which was moderated by Geraldine Doogue, was opened up to all who were present
about two hundred and fifty all up.
Comments describing the afternoon as interesting,
informative and enjoyable has been the feedback.
And as Denise Playoust, the Catalyst Member who was the main organiser of
the Forum said in a letter to Bishop Geoffrey, Geraldine, Fr Michael, Francois
and Marea:
“Congratulations on yesterday. You all kept the tone
positive and hopeful without ignoring the hard questions. I have had a lot of
good feedback today. Sometimes good people become disheartened because they feel
that "I am the only one in step", events like yesterday make them
realise that they are part of a community which is very much alive and tuned to
the teachings of Jesus”.
So thanks to all of you who were able to attend the Forum.
Keep an eye on the website for future Forums,
Reflection days, Catalyst dinners and your nearest Spirituality in the Pub
venue.
