the center for spiritual resiliency
In September 2024, The Center for Spiritual Resiliency was launched when we held our first event, “Becoming Good News in a Weary World.” 27 people representing a wild diversity of spiritual traditions participated. The event began with drumming and prayerful singing from Francisco “Doc” Velarde of Taos Pueblo, welcoming us in.
Francisco then spoke to the topic of spiritual resiliency—our theme & thoughline for the day—by sharing an oral history of Taos Pueblo’s successful 74-year journey to reclaim their sacred Blue Lake from the US Government. Te Martin then brought us together with “music of the movement / music of the moment,” giving us a taste of this work, teaching easy-to-learn songs of hope & justice to equip us with resiliency as we move deeper into spaces and places which may require movement building and creative cultural resistance.
TiLT set up the schedule and framework for the day, and the Spirit filled up the space! The day was filled with music, heart, wisdom and deep dialogue, all shared within a container of incredibly supportive community. The wineskin was filled with new wine.
In the morning session, Todd Wynward shared the vision of what TiLT was launching this day: the Center for Spiritual Resiliency, an interfaith, experiential life lab for adult spiritual formation that might equip us with tools and practices to develop the capacity for creative cultural resistance and to nurture the communities of contrast so needed in today’s world. Wynward then described one of these practices,“Cultivating Prophetic Imagination,” and led participants in small groups to reflect on and dialogue about how cultivating prophetic imagination—keeping the vision of beloved community and covenanted kinship alive within us—can equip us with narratives of hope, solidarity and transformation in the face of some of the dis-locating, divisive, destructive and despair-oriented narratives of dominant culture.
Through two different panels of speakers before and after lunch, a dozen allies representing wildly diverse religious & spiritual traditions shared powerful personal stories and found common ground in which to plant seeds of personal growth and bioregional social change. Each panelist was encouraged to speak for ten minutes about the following three questions: 1) how do they aspire to act and embody good news in a weary world? 2) how do they draw on their spiritual tradition to give them resiliency for the long haul? 3) what deeper level of spirituality and community are they hungry to have in their lives, as they look toward an uncertain future?
In the afternoon session, Anita Amstutz led participants into a deep exploration of Sabbath, as a practice for release, restoration, resilience and creative cultural resistance. Through a ceremony of candlelight and music, participants entered into an experience of holy rest and an opportunity to release what burdened them. Participants in small groups then reflected upon some juicy quotes inviting a deeper understanding of Sabbath as a practice that can defend against narratives of modern culture’s tendency toward constant commodification and worry and work, obsession with efficiency and productivity, and toxic messages of conditional worth. Sabbath reminds us weekly that it is God who is in charge, rather than us; and that our divine worth is not defined by our work or allegiance to the demands of an Empire-based economy.
Home-cooked, hand-prepared meals delighted participants, and spontaneous conversations and connections over shared food flowed freely throughout the day. Music bookended the experience, and friends who just a few hours earlier had been strangers left together, feeling strengthened for the days ahead. Peace, potential and promise hung in the air.
In-Person & Online Courses
The Center for Spiritual Resiliency offers a variety of week-long intensives, weekend retreats, evening meetups and online courses. Here’s a sampling of courses we have offered in the past:
20 pillars: assets to strengthen your spirit in trying times
What pillars can best support, sustain and guide present-day prophetic people? Being poised and passionate to be a spirit-led change agent does not make you resourced and ready. Remember: we are in a marathon, not a sprint. To play at this level, to do this kind of God-sized work, we’ll need to cultivate life-supports far different from those offered by our dominant society which encourages unrooted individualism, frenzied re-activism, personal advancement & conspicuous consumption.
wading into the watershed way
An in-person retreat in early February celebrating Candlemass was followed by an eight-week online course, highlighting the marks of the Watershed Way as we learn to re-locate ourselves and become people of place.
ancient scriptural disciplines for transformative living today
The paradigm and practice of disciplines like sabbath, shmita, wilderness sojourn, radical hospitality and covenanted kinship: learn how these ancient technologies can be much-needed guides to direct and transform our lives today.