The following list is the highly recommended non-science Religion 2.0 reading and book list for members and visitors to assist them in learning more about the essential spirituality and ideas at the core of the spiritual side of Religion 2.0.
Section 1: The Essence and Processes of Direct Spiritual Experience
A.) To better understand the essence and processes of direct spiritual experience in western spirituality be sure to read:
- Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality Presented in Four Paths, Twenty-Six Themes, and Two Questions by Matthew Fox
- The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature, Centenary Edition by William James
- The Urantia Book: Indexed Version by Uversa Press
- The Essential Zohar: The Source of Kabbalistic Wisdom by Rav P.S. Berg
Please note that Religion 2.0 contains an emerging set of new ideas about spirituality found in evolution.
B.) To better understand the essence and processes of direct spiritual experience in eastern spirituality be sure to read:
- Life Divine - U.S. Edition by Sri Aurobindo
- God Speaks by Meher Baba.
C.) To better understand the safeguards needed for safe and healthy direct spiritual experience in both forms of spirituality absolutely read:
Spiritual Safeguards essential reading on where problems can arise for anyone involved in spiritual growth or any spiritual organization. Also see the Ethical code for Religion 2.0 regarding our Life and Spirit facilitators and their ministry.
Section 2: The Art of Better Living
The following books cover key integral, spiral and collaborative problem solving perspectives and skills many in our community value and use.
- The Tao of Democracy: Using Co-Intelligence to Create a World That Works for All by Tom Atlee, Rosa Zubizarreta
- The Promise of Mediation: The Transformative Approach to Conflict by Robert A. Baruch Bush, Joseph P. Folger
- Facilitating With Ease! A Step-By-Step Guidebook with Customizable Worksheets on CD-ROM by Ingrid Bens, Ingrid Bens
- The Skilled Facilitator by Roger Schwarz
Section 3: Religion 2.0 Practices
Religion 2.0 fosters collaboration for the collection, creation and sharing of effective spiritual practices. These practices are sometimes selected from the best practices and wisdom of other spiritualities. Sometimes they are created from a process that includes, transcends and synthesizes the best practices and wisdom of other spiritualities in a new form.
Click here for all of the Five Levels of Practice of Religion 2.0?
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The Marriage of Sense and Soul : Integrating Science and Religion by Ken Wilber
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A Theory of Everything: An Integral Vision for Business, Politics, Science and Spirituality by Ken Wilber.
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Spiral Dynamics: Mastering Values, Leadership, and Change (Developmental Management) by Don Edward Beck, Christopher C. Cowan
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Guided Meditations: For Developing Calmness, Awareness, and Love by Bodhipaksa
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Wherever You Go, There You Are : Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life by Jon Kabat-Zinn
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Integral Consciousness and the Future of Evolution by Steve McIntosh. It is the a basic one introduction to the Integral worldview. In the first part of the book, McIntosh depicts the rise of integral consciousness both as an innate structure of human consciousness and as a leap in the evolution of culture, drawing especially from the work of developmental psychologist Clare Graves as expressed in Spiral Dynamics. It explores the application of integral concepts to global governance; it also provides a fresh take on the theory and practice of integral spirituality, and what the author calls the "Integral Reality Frame" and the "Directions of Evolution."
Section 4: Integrative Interfaith, World Religions and Interfaith Activities
To gain a broad overview of Integrative Interfaith, World religions and additional ceremonies rituals and prayers that can be used in our spiritual community read:
- The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions by Huston Smith
- Sourcebook of the World's Religions: An Interfaith Guide to Religion and Spirituality (Sourcebook of the World's Religions, 3rd ed) by Joel Beversluis
- Interfaith Wedding Ceremonies: Samples and Sources by Joan C. Hawxhurst
- Sacred Ceremony: How to Create Ceremonies for Healing, Transitions, and Celebrations by Steven Farmer
- For Praying Out Loud: Interfaith Prayers for Public Occasions by L. Annie Foerster
Section 5: The New Universe Evolutionary Worldview
The New Universe Evolutionary Worldview is being adopted by individuals, groups and organizations at an ever increasing pace. The reason is simple. The Universe Evolutionary Worldview conveys many tremendous survival, sustainability and quality-of-life success advantages on all who know about it and use it.
The following lists will lay out a few of the authors and thinkers behind the expansion of the Universe Evolutionary Worldview. Many, but not all of the facts, aspects and perspectives of the Universe Evolutionary Worldview have also been previously known as the Great Story, The Evolutionary Epic, The Big History, The Science Creation Myth and the Universe Story.
In a sense within the Religion 2.0 movement we consider these individuals below important and originating Universe Evolutionary Worldview teachers. Among these various individuals there are significant differences in approach, emphasis as well as content and, not all of the individuals below hold all of the Universe Evolutionary Worldview perspectives expressed in the Religion 2.0 movement.
The Leading Contemporary New Universe Evolutionary Worldview and/or Progressive Evolution Books and Authors:
Here are the most current new books, materials and authors helping to define, expand and disseminate the New Universe Worldview and its progressive evolution perspectives
1.) EarthDance: Living Systems in Evolution
2.) View from the Center of the Universe by Joel Primack and Nancy Abrams. (The books View from the Center of the Universe Along with The Universe Story by Brian Swimme (just below,) constitute one of the most accurate and complete statements of the common and shared cosmology and new genesis story currently held within the New Universe Worldview. These two books are essential initial must reads to grasp the scope of the new Universe Worldview.)
3.) The Universe Story: From the Primordial Flaring Forth to the Ecozoic Era--A Celebration of the Unfolding of the Cosmos by Brian Swimme. (It is the Genesis Story that we use in our organization.)
4.) Evolution's Arrow: The Direction of Evolution and the Future of Humanity, by John Stewart. (This also is an essential New Universe Worldview read summarizing the key elements of progressive evolution.)
5.) Thank God for Evolution! How the Marriage of Science and Religion Will Transform Your Life and Our World by Michael Dowd and Connie Barlow. (If you have a Judeo-Christian background this is easy fast read that will provide many of the New Universe Worldview perspectives.)
6.) The Universe Principles of Sustainability of , by Lawrence Wollersheim (See both Parts 1 and Part 2 of the Universe Principles of Sustainability as well as the key links on those pages. The Universe Principles of Sustainability are a statement of the values and ethical guidelines found within universe progressive evolution.)
7.) The Evolutionary Epic, Science's Story and Humanity's Response, by Russell Genet, Brian Swimme, Linda Palmer and Linda Gibler. (A great series of essays exploring various aspects of progressive evolution and the perspectives held within the New Universe Worldview.)
8.) Maps of Time, An Introduction to Big History by David Christian (and his CD lecture series called Big History. This book and the CDs provide a multi-disciplinary look at all of the universe's evolution including all human history. This work is finally being taught in progressive universities around the world.)
9.) Integral Consciousness and the Future of Evolution, Steve Mcintosh. (Good look at the evolution of human consciousness through history.)
10.) Conscious Evolution: Examining humanity's next step, Barbara Marx Hubbard.
11.) A Brief History of Everything, Ken Wilber. (The evolution of the Universe for individuals coming from or appreciating an integral perspective.)
12.) Evolutionaries, Carter Phillips. A great and well written history of the evolutionary movement heavy on the philosophy and spiritual aspects, but weaker on evolutionary science and cosmology of the evolutionary universe.
The New Universe Evolutionary Worldview and Progressive Evolution Earlier Thinkers and Authors
Here are the older books and authors that helped to define, expand and disseminate the original parts and perspectives of the New Universe Worldview and progressive evolution:
1.) The Self-Organizing Universe: Scientific and Human Implications of the Emerging Paradigm of Evolution, Erich Janstch. (Lots of deep advanced science on progressive evolution.)
2.) Design for Evolution: Self-Organization and Planning in the Life of Human Systems, Erich Janstch.
3.) The Future of Man, Teilhard de Chardin. (This was one of his many books on aspects of progressive evolution. He is considered one of the founding founders of the New Universe Worldview.)
4.) Process Theology, David Ray Griffin and John B. Cobb. (The Christian focused marriage of science and spirituality and progressive evolution.)
5.) The Great Work, Our Way into the Future by Thomas Berry. (Progressive evolution and the future sustainability of our planet. Thomas Berry was one of the earliest advocates of many of the perspectives of the New Universe Worldview.)
6.) The Life Divine, Sri Aurobindo, (He was an Oxford Scholar who discusses the progressive evolution of life and spirit in the universe. He is also considered one of the founding sources of some of the perspectives of the New Universe Worldview in the areas of spirit and consciousness.)
New Books Coming out Soon on the Perspectives of the New Universe Worldview and Progressive Evolution
There are currently 3-4 new books close to release about aspects of the New Universe Worldview and progressive evolution. One of those books is The Universe Manifesto, How the New Universe Worldview Re-Aligns Everything, by Lawrence Wollersheim.
(Please note: The list of New Universe Worldview authors and leaders above is not intended to be a complete list and if we have inadvertently missed anyone who also should be on this list please let us know.)