A Homily in the Church of Baseball

  I love this game. I really do.  For instance, I love the shape, the geometry of the game—so clean, so precise,  60 feet 6 inches exactly from the pitcher’s mound to home plate.     I love the beauty of...

Forgive the Unforgivable?

This article, a revised version of an essay from Conversations About Forgiveness guide, ponders what, if anything, is unforgivable. What would you have done? In Simon Wiesenthal’s now classic book, The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness, he shares...

The Wisdom of Cherishing Sentient Beings Everywhere

Jacques Verduin is a subject matter expert on mindfulness, restorative justice, emotional intelligence, and transforming violence. A father, community organizer, and teacher, he directs "Insight-Out" (now known as GRIP Training Institute) which helps prisoners and challenged youth create the personal...

Inviting a Larger Conversation About How Religion Can Be Faithful to Its Purpose Today

In our society, there is a longstanding dedication to religious traditions and institutions. At the same time, a diverse range of people are exploring new forms of spiritual identification and practice. This reflects the changing nature of faith and spirituality....

Decades of Chronicling Spirituality in Everyday Life

I have been so inspired by the lives and work of Frederic and Mary Ann (whom I have come to know through my work as a program officer at Fetzer) for "tracking down the sacred in the nooks and crannies...

Adventurous Civility: Courage in a Time of Division

“Speaking together differently so that we might learn to live together differently” is what The On Being Project’s Civil Conversations Project (CCP) seeks to model during this time of deep polarization in public life. We recently caught up with CCP...

Facing the Really Hard Things: Meet Andy Hanauer and the One America Movement

Andy Hanauer, CEO of One America Movement, works within and among religious communities to combat toxic polarization in the US. OAM brings people together across political, racial, and religious divides to work together to address issues in communities across the...

Provocative Encounters Increase Appreciation on College Campuses

Groundbreaking new research from our partner, Interfaith Youth Core (now Interfaith America), finds that a high level of trust and goodwill—despite deep differences—emerges when college students have positive and provocative encounters. Because of the Fetzer Institute’s history encouraging and facilitating...

Faith and Healthy Democracy Report Explores How American Evangelical Christians Might Contribute to Healing Divides

As part of our efforts to engage all segments of American society, the Fetzer Institute collaborated with the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, to understand the current state of democracy...

COFG – The Origins and Evolution of Fetzer’s Sacred-Centered Community

---The Origins and Evolution of Fetzer’s Sacred-Centered Community---   ---The Early Days: John Fetzer’s Intent and Initial Development--- Early on, in the 1960s and 70s, John Fetzer gathered every Monday night with a group of advisors and friends to engage in contemplative practices. This experience guided his early efforts to fund the intersection of science and spirituality, and to cre