Union with God (and Maybe Beyond)

The end goal of spiritual development for most great Christian contemplatives is some sort of union with God. But many people find that to feel pretty distant--maybe it's something we can only hope for in heaven. But a recent, major Christian contemplative named Bernadette Roberts offers a more direct pathway not only to union with God (and maybe beyond), but also to direct lifestyle benefits along the lines of what psychologists call "flow." She talks about it using the Eastern terminology of no-self. Dave Schmelzer has found it to be the most helpful spiritual thing he's learned in some time. He'll give a brief introduction to it here and he'll also mention a new, free, 8-week online course about these things that will be starting in February called "Faith Part 2."Mentioned on this podcast:"Faith Part 2," an upcoming, free online course about what good things might come next for people who perhaps have experienced the limits of their early faith instruction. You can get more information and register interest here.The Experience of No-Self, by Bernadette RobertsSpiritual Enlightenment: The Damnedest Thing, by Jed McKennaAn episode of the Ringer podcast Plain English with Derek Thompson called “Why the Voice Inside Your Head Can Sound Like a Jerk” (Sept. 20, 2022)