I reported in Saturday’s DM that I had participated in a “Healthy Masculinity” Summit on Friday. My participation consisted of a talk entitled “What is Healthy Masculinity?” followed by a panel with four other presenters whose names were John Lee, Daniel Ellenberg, Bryan Reeves and Mikey Brackett. Steve Stein was the sponsor of the entire conference that ran from Thursday through Saturday.
I think the overall topic and timing of the conference was notable and spot on. Living in a world where manhood is distorted and under the thumb of people like the current richest man in the world and the current holder of the White House, necessarily raises important questions of “What is healthy masculinity?”
The “Elders Panel,” consisted of myself at 84 years old, Lee at 74, Daniel at 71 and two hosts, 51- and 39-year-old respectively. In my one-hour talk that preceded the panel, I spoke to the seven archetypes of the Healthy Masculine that I name in my book on the topic.
Each panel member was asked to speak a few minutes to lead off the discussion. I led off by focusing on the “Father Sky” archetype and the price men and society in general have paid for being instructed in the modern era that the universe was a machine.
How this wreaked havoc with men’s sense of self, how we had to hunker down and were set up for soul damage in work and relationships, locked into little outlet for our deepest passions, whether of anger or joy. Set up for war on which we are still spending our talents and treasure imagining how to kill ourselves more effectively.
And how today’s science offers a whole new invitation in telling us how vast and creative the universe actually is.
Other panel members made these points: How a binary (my word has often been dualistic) way of seeing the world is “antiquated.” How we need to put aside the term “masculinity” with language about masculinities.
How so many men are cut off from their bodies and can’t feel—out of touch with their heart and guts and genitals. Set up to go to war. The need to reconnect with our feelings. How “masculinity not grounded in humanity is not masculinity.” How Thomas Moore had spoken earlier of “monster boys” who are running the world.
We learn to “embrace aging” from examples of older men. For one person, that older man was Robert Bly. Another person spoke of “refiring and not retiring” (I think I coined that term actually). For this person care was the key. How do we choose to care for people including younger people, mentees in our lives?
People are diverse—in spite of the current war against DEI. There is an internal DEI we all need to pay attention to. The Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity we show toward ourselves really matters. “People show up differently, breathe in and breathe forth what is with grace.” Make room for complexity in oneself. We are strong and weak in different ways. Shame only applies to parts of oneself.
A 51-year-old spoke to how there is an elder hunger in the world today. He too is “starving” for elders. But the word “elder” has become a negative thing, our culture discards its elders, puts them out to pasture.
He posed two questions: “What is the difference between ‘older’ and ‘elder”’ since not all old people are elders. And “Why the hunger for elders today?” (to be continued in the video)
See Matthew Fox, The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors to Awaken the Sacred Masculine.
And Fox, The Return of Father Sky: A Cosmic Mystery for Kids of All Ages.
And Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox, Occupy Spirituality: A Radical Vision for a New Generation, pp. 149-172.
And Fox, Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality.
And Fox, Creation Spirituality: Liberating Gifts for the Peoples of the Earth.
And Fox, Trump & The Maga Movement as Anti-Christ.
To read the transcript of Matthew Fox’s video meditation, click HERE.
Banner Image: An excerpt from The Return of Father Sky by Matthew Fox.
Queries for Contemplation
Do you agree that “healthy masculinity” is an important topic to explore today? Do you recognize a “hunger” for elders today? Why is this the case?
Recommended Reading
The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors to Awaken the Sacred Masculine
To awaken what Fox calls “the sacred masculine,” he unearths ten metaphors, or archetypes, ranging from the Green Man, an ancient pagan symbol of our fundamental relationship with nature, to the Spiritual Warrior….These timeless archetypes can inspire men to pursue their higher calling to connect to their deepest selves and to reinvent the world.
“Every man on this planet should read this book — not to mention every woman who wants to understand the struggles, often unconscious, that shape the men they know.” — Rabbi Michael Lerner, author of The Left Hand of God
The Return of Father Sky: A Cosmic Mystery for Kids of All Ages
The second book in the Father Fox’s Fantastical Fables series, The Return of Father Sky helps boys and girls to celebrate a new relationship with the masculine by way of Father Sky, whose return excites joy and wonder and possibility that enlarge the soul to welcome others and all creation. Written in a rhyming Dr. Seuss-like style, this full-color, beautifully illustrated book, written by world- renowned theologian Matthew Fox weaves together modern science and classic spirituality in a whimsical, entertaining format to illustrate important truths to readers aged 4 and up. With artwork curated from illustrators around the world, this book expresses the joy and wonder of all peoples and cultures, planting seeds of respect, cooperation and hope to work together for the healing of our planet.
Occupy Spirituality: A Radical Vision for a New Generation
Authors Adam Bucko and Matthew Fox encourage us to use our talents in service of compassion and justice and to move beyond our broken systems–economic, political, educational, and religious–discovering a spirituality that not only helps us to get along, but also encourages us to reevaluate our traditions, transforming them and in the process building a more sacred and just world. Incorporating the words of young activist leaders culled from interviews and surveys, the book provides a framework that is deliberately interfaith and speaks to our profound yearning for a life with spiritual purpose and for a better world.
“Occupy Spirituality is a powerful, inspiring, and vital call to embodied awareness and enlightened actions.”
~~ Julia Butterfly Hill, environmental activist and author of The Legacy of Luna: The Story of a Tree, a Woman, and the Struggle to Save the Redwoods
Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality
Matthew Fox lays out a whole new direction for Christianity—a direction that is in fact very ancient and very grounded in Jewish thinking (the fact that Jesus was a Jew is often neglected by Christian theology): the Four Paths of Creation Spirituality, the Vias Positiva, Negativa, Creativa and Transformativa in an extended and deeply developed way.
“Original Blessing makes available to the Christian world and to the human community a radical cure for all dark and derogatory views of the natural world wherever these may have originated.” –Thomas Berry, author, The Dream of the Earth; The Great Work; co-author, The Universe Story
Creation Spirituality: Liberating Gifts for the Peoples of the Earth
Fox’s spirituality weds the healing and liberation found in North American Creation Spirituality and in South American Liberation Theology. Creation Spirituality challenges readers of every religious and political persuasion to unite in a new vision through which we learn to honor the earth and the people who inhabit it as the gift of a good and just Creator.
“A watershed theological work that offers a common ground for religious seekers and activists of all stripes.” — Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice.
“I am reading Liberating Gifts for the People of the Earth by Matt Fox. He is one that fills my heart and mind for new life in spite of so much that is violent in our world.” ~ Sister Dorothy Stang.
Trump & The MAGA Movement as Anti-Christ: A Handbook for the 2024 Election
Matthew Fox tells us that he had always shied away from using the term “Anti-Christ” because it was so often used to spread control and fear. However, given today’s rise of authoritarianism and forces of democracide, ecocide, and christofascism, he turns the tables in this book employing the archetype for the cause of justice, democracy, and a renewed Earth and humanity.
From the Foreword: If there was ever a time, a moment, for examining the archetype of the Antichrist, it is now…Read this book with an open mind. Good and evil are real forces in our world. ~~ Caroline Myss, author of Anatomy of the Spirit and Conversations with the Divine.
For immediate access to Trump & The MAGA Movement as Anti-Christ: A Handbook for the 2024 Election, order the e-book with 10 full-color prints from Amazon HERE.
To get a print-on-demand paperback copy with black & white images, order from Amazon HERE or IUniverse HERE.
To receive a limited-edition, full-color paperback copy, order from MatthewFox.org HERE.
Order the audiobook HERE for immediate download.
