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Mission and Activities of the Community of The Mystic Heart

for CMH Founding Event and Subsequent Induction Ceremonies

see below, and click on EVENTS above

Consecration and Induction Ceremony at the Founding of Bro. Wayne's "Universal Order of Sannyasa" (now the Community of The Mystic Heart).  The founding community asked all historical and contemporary figures who have shared this universal intention to join them in consecration of the Order and its Founders.  Members received a saffron cord symbolizing the simple saffron "kavi" robe of the historical sannyasa and the interspiritual pioneers at Shantivanum.

Seventy founders joined in Washington DC on January 9, 2010, at All Souls Unitarian Church to consecrate the founding of Brother Wayne's vision of a "Universal Order of Sannyasa" (now called the Community of The Mystic Heart).  See more on the founding throughout this site and also HERE.

The central mission of the community is in keeping with Brother Wayne's call to advance the message of Interspirituality.  Brother Wayne first envisioned the Universal Order on pages 248-250 of his classic book The Mystic Heart:  Discovering a Universal Spirituality in the World's Religions.  He suggested it as a basic "institution" or "structure" to help carry and express the message of The InterSpiritual Age.

Most simply put, Bro. Wayne defined "Interspirituality" as the kind of spirituality that is so heart-centered, so centered on the recognition of everyone and everything as the interconnected Divine, that any divisive consideration of belief, creed, concepts, dogmas, or exclusive claims are not only secondary concerns but, at worst (as in militant fundamentalism), a kind of immature or even pathological spirituality.

To Bro. Wayne, conventional "interfaith" was a level of consciousness and heart recognizing that, yes, it was important that different experiences and claims about the "who we are", "where we came from", and "where we are going" should search for dialogue, tolerance, understanding and peace.  But he considered this still a level of consciousness and heart unnecessarily caught up in a concern about "who is right" with regard to mental notions of belief or creed.

Beyond interfaith, Bro. Wayne saw "trans-traditional spirituality" as a deeper spirituality-- a spirituality interested more in the wisdom and gifts of all the world's spiritual experiences, statements, celebrations and faiths than those of just one historical tradition.  Trans-traditional spirituality is less concerned about the divisive question of "who is right" but is still unable to completely remove the need for discussing this question.

In "Interspirituality", however, Bro. Wayne recognized a level of consciousness and heart so aware of interconnection (or Oneness) that historical questions of "who is right" in dogma, creed, or belief actually became irrelevant.    This explains why "Interspirituality" is so close to what is also sometimes called "awakened awareness" or "enlightenment".  These are often described as a complete dropping away of the sense of separation.

Regarding the historic unfolding of Interspirituality, it is useful to point out that in 2005-- when Wayne and ISD planned their program on Interspirituality for the Parliament of the World's Religions-- few had even heard of the word.  However, when you Google "Interspirituality" today you find countless references.  The mission of those connected to Bro. Wayne has always been to aid this evolution.

As of 2010 the discussion of what the Community of The Mystic Heart can "Be" and "Do" is a wide open question, under discussion by the emerging membership.

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(For an additional note on the history of the word "Interspiritual [ity]" see http://multiplex.isdna.org/interspi.htm.   Since being coined by Bro. Wayne in 1999, it has had four different spellings.   At the CMH website we opt for "interspiritual [ity]", capitalized when used as a proper noun).

Left to Right:   Alyson Davis, honored as Interspiritual "Sage" addresses CMH founding; Five "Interspiritual Sages" named at the CMH founding:  from above, left:   Fr. Bede Griffiths, Huston Smith, Brother Wayne Teasdale, Fr. Thomas Keating, Alyson Davis; CMH co-founder Loch Kelly and Kurt Johnson visited Fr. Keating after the founding at St. Benedicts Abbey, Snowmass, Colorado:  Loch and Fr. Thomas; Tim Miner visited Huston Smith along with Rev. Dr. Gena Rose Halpern of CIC-USA:  Huston and Gena.

Message to the Founders from Sufi leader Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee:

"What is important is that we not fall short of the original vision."

CMH Education and Nurturing—Inward and Out

The CMH realizes that it cannot exist meaningfully without nurturing both an internal conversation and one that reaches outward concerning the wider vision of Interspirituality.  To meet this need, an Education Circle is being established (to which any and all members are welcome to contribute).  It is anticipated that all the teaching capabilities within the expanding CMH community will be mobilized across a number of discussion areas.  Immediate attention will be paid to a community-wide discussion and processing about the meaning of the Nine Elements of a Universal Spirituality, which have become the basis for the CMH "Vows".

As to the wider discussion, to date the Order has identified at least six “conversations” its members wish to explore with each other as CMH community and activities expand.  These conversations might characterize CMH gatherings and retreats: 

12. The conversation about spiritual deepening and maturing (the mystic  heart, inquiry, pointing out, dharma, nonduality, embodied spirituality etc.) 

2. The conversation about sacred service and activism 

3. The conversation about the arts as a bridge to higher consciousness and awareness

4. The conversation among traditions, especially between those more broad and ‘universal’ and those (like indigenous and shamanic paths) which are mandated to keep their own integrity and “ways” to integrate these into the larger inter-subjective discussion

5. The conversation about the growth and evolution of CMH itself as an international organization

6. The conversation about how an individual grows as a member of CMH, how they engage others in conversation about Interspirituality and CMH, as well as how local and regional communities of UOS might be seeded, nurtured, sustained and learned from, especially with a mind to the freedom of groups and constituencies to experiment with a "living the life" that suits their life circumstances and the spiritual traditions and cultures in which they are rooted

Yahoo Discussion Group

The "Universal Order of Sannyasa" (now known as the Community of The Mystic Heart) has a “Yahoo Group” for discussion and exchange among UOS members. You can join by emailing the following address: Sannyasa-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.  The Yahoo Group has been a useful way for members to share reflections and materials in an informal way.  There are also photos and artworks there.  The CMH hopes to create a more direct, and appropriately monitored, modality for discussion and sharing among the CMH membership here at the website.  In the meantime, remember that the Yahoo Group is not a moderated discussion group.  The quality and relevance of posts is completely dependent on the participants.  Similarly, your thread may or may not elicit responses simply because of which members are utilizing the Group at the time of your post, or thereafter. 

Community of The Mystic Heart Events 

Reports and Photos

Now that the Community of The Mystic Heart is growing with speed and regularity you can see more information and reports about our various events by clicking on EVENTS at the top of this Program page of simply clicking HERE.

Rev. Timothy Miner (right) and other co-founders of WCIC

The World Council was a key partner is facilitating the CMH founding

Community of The Mystic Heart Recognitions 

Reports and Photos

In 2011, the Community of The Mystic Heart inaugurated its Diane Dunn and Christer Lundin Recognitions.  These recognitions, awarded annually or irregularly, are given to CMH members who have shown outstanding innovation "at the frontier of the interspiritual enterprise" is establishing new projects, programs and institutions.  See the roster of Diane Dunn and Christer Lundin Recognitions HERE.

Diane Dunn and Christer Lundin, long-time ISDnA and CMH Members who are the founders of the Paz y Luz interspiritual center in the Sacred Valley of Peru.  Their pioneering work in the model for CMH's annual recognitions.