Showing results by author "Richard Rohr"

In the first half of life, we are naturally preoccupied with establishing ourselves; climbing, achieving, and performing. But as we grow older and encounter challenges and mistakes, we need to see ourselves in a different and more life-giving way. This message of falling down - that is in fact moving upward - is the most resisted and counterintuitive of messages in the world's religions. Falling Upward offers a new paradigm for understanding one of the most profound of life's mysteries: how those who have fallen down are the only ones who understand "up".

The Trinity is supposed to be the central doctrine grounding Christianity, yet we're often told that we shouldn't attempt to understand it because it's a mystery. But what if we breached that mystery? How might it transform our relationship with God?

We are all addicted in some way. When we learn to identify our addiction, embrace our brokenness, and surrender to God, we begin to bring healing to ourselves and our world. In Breathing Under Water, Franciscan Father Richard Rohr shows how the gospel principles in the Twelve Steps can free anyone from any addiction from an obvious dependence on alcohol or drugs to the more common but less visible addiction that we all have to sin.

We often think of saints as rare individuals whose gifts far exceed our own, and St. Francis is no exception. But for Fr. Richard Rohr, a prolific author and renowned speaker, the life and teachings of this beloved figure offer an authentic spirituality we can all embody.

In his best-selling book Falling Upward, Richard Rohr talked about ego (or the False Self) and how it gets in the way of spiritual maturity. But if there's a False Self, is there also a True Self? What is it? How is it found? Why does it matter? And what does it have to do with the spiritual journey? This book likens True Self to a diamond, buried deep within us, formed under the intense pressure of our lives, that must be searched for, uncovered, separated from all the debris of ego that surrounds it.

Franciscan priest Richard Rohr feels that there is no more challenging spiritual issue than the “problem of the self". Most of contemporary spiritual teaching, he believes, is still trying to inspire and fortify the private self, the autonomous "I". Even much church work is trying to evangelize and sacramentalize what many would call "the false self." Basic transformation is not expected, but merely a new set of beliefs and practices or loyal membership in a new group.

Richard Rohr leads us through the social, political and environmental setting out of which Matthew brought Christ’s radical message of a new world order. He explains Matthew’s challenge to let go of the conventional wisdom that comes with contemporary American culture. Each of seven talks brings us closer to the heart of the Sermon.

In language that Paul might use if he were preaching and writing today, Rohr presents Paul’s all-embracing vision and invites us to enter into the mystery of Christ and be transformed. Rohr breaks new ground by applying up-to-date theories of our universe, integrating them with Paul’s revolutionary thinking about sin, saints and spirituality.

Richard Rohr addresses one of the most vital questions for new and lifelong Catholics. Rohr draws on his own prayer, study and preaching experiences throughout the world to ask "What is good about being Catholic?" This series invites listeners to explore the breadth and depth of their faith. "Most Catholics are not Catholic/catholic enough," says Rohr. Addresses both the shortcomings and strengths of the Catholic Christian tradition.

Rohr reprises his best-selling talks on scripture in this powerful new series. He describes the Bible as a text in travail, containing not just conclusions, but a process that mirrors our own journey (three steps forward, two steps backward). In the three steps forward, Scripture always reveals that we are related to something infinite and that ours is an enchanted and trustworthy universe.

Francis of Assisi is one of the most beloved of all saints. Both traditional and entirely revolutionary, he was a paradox. He was at once down-to-earth and reaching toward heaven, grounded in the rich history of the Church while moving toward a new understanding of the world beyond. Franciscan Father Richard Rohr helps us look beyond the birdbath image of the saint to remind us of the long tradition founded on Francis' revolutionary, radical, and life-changing embrace of the teachings of Jesus.

In this exploration of the central themes of Scripture, Richard Rohr transforms the written word, discovering in these ancient texts a new and vital meaning, relevant and essential for modern Christians. Rohr offers his listeners a Christian vision of abundance, grace, and joy to counteract a world filled with scarcity, judgment, and fear - a vision that can revolutionize how we relate to ourselves, others, and the world.

In this first volume in a three-part series, Richard Rohr develops aspects of transformation, a recurring theme in his popular presentations. Talk One: "Jesus: Forgiving Victim, Transforming Savior". If we imitate the way Jesus lived the role of victim, we will be able to live the Christian mystery. Jesus suffers freely but does not pass on the pain. He forgives, which destroys the death that confronts us. He says, “No one else is your problem. You are the locus of conversion and transformation.”

Two internationally known spiritual guides explore integrating our inner and outer journeys. They challenge us to confront our inner and social violence and bring it to healing and transformation in a sacred and ecumenical context. Rohr and Keating each give insights on awakening to God's friendship, coming to know God and ourselves, growing in love through centering prayer, facing evil around us and our demons within us as well as opening our deep selves to divine therapy which heals our wounds.

In our culture, the “good life” means getting more. This series of retreat talks challenges listeners to subtract--to release whatever hinders us from siding with the cosmic Christ, whether that be in our inner world or our outer world. Father Rohr offers a daring vision which calls us to surrender, to liberation, to making room for real freedom.

In Waking Up, Volume 3, Sounds True publisher and founder Tami Simon speaks with seven teachers about their personal understandings of spiritual awakening - how it takes place, what changes (and what doesn't), and how their experiences can inspire and inform our own realizations.

In retracing the second and third missionary trips of St. Paul, Father Richard Rohr breaks open the life of this saint, recasting him as a mystic and as the first Christian theologian. Rohr presents Paul's revolutionary and all-embracing vision and invites us to enter into the mystery of Christ and be transformed. Rohr breaks new ground by applying up-to-date theories of our universe, integrating them with Paul's revolutionary thinking about sin, saints, and spirituality.

Western civilization is undergoing a crisis of meaning, and the Christian community needs to find new value, identity, and purpose through hope, says Franciscan Father Richard Rohr. In lectures and homilies he describes both the crisis and cure. In the 13th century, he tells us, St. Francis was called by the Lord to “rebuild my Church.” Anguished by the fragmentation in the Church today, Rohr invites us to rebuild the Church in the 21st century.

Boys become men in much the same way across cultures, by integrating, through experience, each of five messages: Life is hard; You are not that important; Your life is not about you; You are not in control; You are going to die. Our culture has done everything in its power, it seems, to move away from this ancient wisdom. Men are lured away to dominate through money, sex, power, consumerism—and never really become men.

Franciscan Father Richard Rohr served as the principal Christian representative at the 2013 Festival of Faiths held in Louisville, KY., sharing the stage with other religious leaders including His Holiness, the Dalai Lama.