296. Rev. Michael Dowd

Rev. Michael Dowd is a bestselling evolutionary theologian and pro-future evangelist whose work has been featured in The New York Times, LA Times, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Newsweek, Discover, and on television nationally.  His bridge-building book, Thank God for Evolution, was endorsed by 6 Nobel Prize-winning scientists, noted skeptics, and religious leaders across the spectrum. Michael and his science-writer wife, Connie Barlow, have spoken to more than two thousand groups across North America since 2002. Michael has delivered two TEDx talks and a program at the United Nations. In 2010 he interviewed 38 Christian leaders across the theological spectrum, all of whom embrace an ecological, evolutionary worldview and are committed to a healthy future, as part of a series, titled, “The Advent of Evolutionary Christianity.” Most recently, he interviewed 55 experts on climate change, peak oil, and sustainability, as part of an online conversation series, titled, The Future Is Calling Us to Greatness. Dowd’s passion for proclaiming a pro-science message of inspiration — what he calls “the Gospel of Right Relationship to Reality” — has earned him the moniker ‘Reverend Reality’ as he speaks prophetically in secular and religious settings alike about the generational evil of anti-future / anti-Christian policies and the necessity of co-creating a just, healthy, and sustainably life-giving future for humanity and the larger body of life. Websites: MichaelDowd.org TheGreatStory.org PostDoom.com Huffington Post blog: huffingtonpost.com/rev-michael-dowd Facebook pages: facebook.com/RevMichaelDowd Important video. According to Michael, "the single most important thing I’ve created in my lifetime": Ten Commandments to Avoid Extinction: Reality's Rules Key quote:  “God is reality with a personality, not a person outside reality. If you don’t get personification, you can’t possibly understand the world’s myths and religions — and you’ll surely miss what God is telling us today through scientific evidence.  Few things matter more than this in a world of ecological degradation and climate chaos.  Anyone who doubts this need only watch one or two of the Hollywood star-studded ”Nature Is Speaking” videos that have gone viral in recent months.” ~ Rev. Michael Dowd Transcript of this interview. Interview conducted 6/13/2015 YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Buddha at the Gas Pump Interview 00:04:12 - Reality as Lord 00:08:11 - Personification of Gods and Goddesses 00:11:49 - The Perspective of Atheists and Secular People 00:15:29 - Shifting the Course 00:19:32 - Ethics of Nature Conservation 00:23:25 - The Intimacy of Nature's Destruction 00:27:40 - Personification of Nature and Relationships 00:31:17 - The Reality of Relationships and Naming the Powers 00:35:05 - Personification of Cities and Corporations 00:39:27 - Interpreting Life Generously 00:43:16 - Universal Consciousness and the Decline of Civilizations 00:47:08 - Book Recommendations: Overshoot, Afterburn, and Collapse Now and Avoid the Rush 00:51:10 - Pro-Future Responsibility and Deep Time Eyes 00:55:11 - Regaining Humility and Sacred Eyes 00:58:59 - Honoring Time, Nature, and Mystery 01:03:06 - Embracing Life's Impermanence 01:06:54 - Perspectives on Death and Afterlife 01:10:29 - Exploring the Innate Capacity for Past Life Memories 01:14:17 - The Connection Between Mystical Experience and Changing Societal Systems 01:18:19 - Spiritual Awakening and the Environment 01:22:53 - Returning to a Mutually Enhancing Relationship 01:26:56 - The Shift in Consciousness and Creating a Healthy Human-Earth Relationship 01:30:53 - Shifting Environmental Conditions 01:34:41 - The Best and Worst of Humanity in a Changing World 01:38:32 - The Future of Solar Power and the Threat to Business Models 01:42:26 - Judging our actions by whether they are pro-future or anti-future 01:46:11 - The Great Reckoning and the Great Homecoming 01:50:11 - Finding Joy and Meeting the World's Needs 01:53:31 - Building Trusted Community 01:57:28 - Check out BATGAP.com for past and future interviews Michael's wife Connie Barlow split this video into two segments, edited it a bit, and added text and graphical annotations. In this first segment, Michael Dowd speaks of his "pro-future" distinctions in the context of broad concerns as well as the metaphysical/Buddhist worldview set forth in questions posed by Rick Archer, host of the "Buddha at the Gas Pump" conversation series (extracts of which have been re-shaped into this video). YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - The Evidential Reformation and the Greening of Religion 00:01:58 - The Demonic Nature of the Economic System 00:04:04 - The Power of Metaphors and Analogies in Shaping Perception 00:05:43 - The Importance of Our Concepts of God 00:07:29 - The Miracle of Nature and the Atheist Perspective 00:09:09 - The Emergentist Perspective 00:10:09 - The Perspective on Emergent Creativity 00:11:44 - Global Weirding and Its Impact on Climate Patterns 00:13:32 - The Path of Factual Faith 00:15:19 - The Unsustainable Economic System and Destruction of Nature 00:17:03 - The Voice of Nature and Ecological Principles 00:19:03 - The Most Important Book of the 20th Century 00:20:55 - The Universe Becoming Aware of Itself 00:22:29 - The Three Ways of Thinking and the Importance of Personification 00:23:47 - The Power of Personification 00:25:08 - The power of personification 00:26:25 - Personification: Creating Meaning through Symbols 00:27:56 - The Relationship Between Reality and Myth 00:29:34 - The Personification of Integrity and Anti-Future 00:31:22 - Powers and Principalities as Corporate Personhood and Evil 00:33:20 - Personification and Subtler Strata of Creation 00:35:34 - Spiritual Experiences and Nature 00:37:51 - Interpreting Reality through our Lenses 00:39:30 - Life's Conspiring on My Behalf 00:41:15 - Catabolic Collapse: The Decline of Civilizations 00:43:04 - Evolutionary Imperative: Going Through Collapse 00:44:34 - Cleansing the Doors of Perception and Universal Truth 00:46:55 - The Limitations of Nature and Ecological Reality 00:48:45 - The Intrinsic Infinity of Creation 00:50:55 - Rediscovering Humility in the Face of Nature 00:52:59 - Humility and Seeing the Sacred in All Beings 00:55:04 - [BLANK_AUDIO] In this second segment, Michael Dowd speaks of his "pro-future" distinctions derived from ecological sciences. Rick Archer, host of the "Buddha at the Gas Pump" conversation series, poses questions of broad interest as well as topics central to Buddhist and metaphysical worldviews. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Living in Right Relationship to Reality 00:01:44 - Honoring Time, Nature, and Mystery 00:03:37 - Living in Humility and Deep Intelligence 00:05:29 - The Paradox of Mortality 00:07:06 - Gratitude and Trust in the Future 00:08:42 - Cherishing the Gift of Life 00:10:22 - The Triple Idolatries of Religion 00:12:09 - Focusing on Practical Truths 00:13:48 - Practical Truth and Social Coherence 00:15:36 - The Unforeseen Benefits of Knowledge 00:17:47 - The Importance of Environmental Responsibility 00:19:33 - Honoring the Limits of the Ecological System 00:21:50 - Honoring Nature's Limits 00:24:05 - Expanding Consciousness and Global Cooperation 00:26:24 - Urgency for Change 00:28:04 - David and Goliath: The Fall of the Petrochemical Industry 00:30:01 - The Need for Biocracy in Law and Medicine 00:31:53 - The Rise and Fall of Civilizations 00:33:36 - Challenges in a contracting civilization 00:35:19 - The Impact of Climate Change on Civilization 00:36:58 - The Unpredictability of Emergence and Future Surprises 00:38:37 - Pro-Future Technologies and Anti-Future Technologies 00:40:29 - Judging our actions based on their impact on future generations 00:42:14 - Shifting the Economy and Evolving Ecological Wisdom 00:43:45 - The Great Reckoning and the Prodigal Species Coming Home 00:45:23 - The Great Disruption and the Birth of a New World 00:47:06 - Finding Joy and Compassion 00:48:57 - Finding Your Calling and Making a Difference 00:50:21 - Supporting Organic and Sustainable Agriculture 00:52:01 - Being a Participant in Life 00:52:49 - Technical Difficulties