Traditional contemplative practices are in right now—and not only with the religious and pan-spiritual types you'd expect. Some self-professed humanists are also taking up forms of “secular spirituality” for holistic health. In the UK and abroad, Sunday Assembliesgather for coffee, pop music sing-alongs, and stimulating meditations on science. At Harvard, the Humanist Hub hosts “secular meditation” events. Now there's even a spiritual practices group for…Harry Potter fans?
It's no parody: Harry Potter and the Sacred Text is a popular podcast that uses “traditional forms of sacred reading” to discover the “hidden gifts” of Rowling's beloved books. At the close of the first episode (each show treats a single chapter from Harry Potter), listeners get a taste of what podcast hosts Casper ter Kuile and Vanessa Zoltan are up to:
CASPER: Each week we're going to use a different traditional sacred practice to engage with Harry Potter, and this week we're going to do Lectio Divina: a traditional Christian practice that literally means “sacred reading” in Latin.
Read Full Article »