A New Reformation Book

CHRISTIAN STUDIES / CREATION SPIRITUALITY "This is a deep and forceful book. . . . With prophetic insight, Matthew Fox reveals what has corrupted religion in the West and the therapy for its healing."--(Bruce Chilton, professor of religion, Bard College, and author of _Rabbi Jesus: An Intimate Biography_) "One of the great prophetic voices of our time."--(David C. Korten, author of _When Corporations Rule the World_) "Insightful and profound. History will name Fox one of the great Christian spirits of our age."--(John Shelby Spong, author of _A New Christianity for a New World_) In 1517, Martin Luther, disgusted with the corruption then reigning in the Catholic Church, nailed on the door of Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, 95 theses calling for a Reformation. During Pentecost week 2005, former Dominican priest Matthew Fox reenacted Luther's call, posting at the same Castle Church a new set of 95 theses calling for a reawakening of the Christian spirit and a repudiation of the authoritarian, punitive tendencies that prevail in modern churches today. Fox's theses not only condemn the deep corruption in the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, made evident by the pedophile scandal and the recent canonization of Josemaría Escrivá, a fascist admirer of Hitler, but also speak to the rising influence of Christian fundamentalism in the United States and the loss of inspiration and resulting apathy that have emptied churches of all denominations. Fox says, "At this critical time in human and planetary history, when the earth is being ravaged by the violence of war, poverty, sexism, homophobia, and eco-destruction, we need to gather those who offer a future that is one of compassion, creativity, and justice to speak their conscience as never before. Religion ought to be part of the solution, not the problem." His 95 theses call for a New Reformation, a radical transformation that will allow us to move once again from the hollow trappings of organized religion to genuine spirituality. MATTHEW FOX, a member of the Dominican Order for thirty-four years, was expelled by the former cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI), who was chief inquisitor in the Catholic Church. Matthew Fox is the foremost proponent of creation spirituality, based on the mystical teachings of early Christian visionaries such as Hildegard von Bingen, Meister Eckhart, and Saint Thomas Aquinas. He is the author of twenty-six books, including _Original Blessing_ and _The Coming of the Cosmic Christ_.