The Story of Our Time

Table of Contents Prologue:We're Living in a Spiritual Springtime........................................i Introduction: Spiritual Principles Guiding Our Evolutionary Leap..........v Part One: The Nature of Consciousness I. Consciousness is a potentiality set in motion by an organic process......3 The independent investigation of reality unleashes our potential. 1. Our Inherent Urge to Understand Reality...................................5 The call The question of consciousness Consciousness changes with experience The search for truth expands our consciousness II. Love is the underlying force of evolution .......................................19 Love is a unifying force meant to carry evolution to its highest level possible. 2. Attraction Alters the Course of Civilizations..............................21 Altruistic love changes everything The love ethic The force of attraction writ large Love eliminates all forms of prejudice III. Justice maintains the inherent balance of life...............................37 Equitable and just relationships evolve with the increase of social complexity. 3. Culture and the Evolution of Justice.............................................39 Culture as a medium for growth Cultural evolution in historical perspective The pattern of collective evolution Justice as the cornerstone of an ever-advancing civilization Part Two: The Nature of Transformation IV. Unity is the result of the conscious confrontation of opposing forces............................................................................57 Transformation is necessary for growth and evolution. 4. Opposition as the Catalyst for Transformation..........................59 The polarity principle The necessity of adversity The dark night of the collective soul A world giving birth Part Three: The Nature of Reality V. Reality is one, and global harmony is inevitable.............................75 Since conscious evolution is purposeful, world peace is a promise waiting to be fulfilled. 5. Spiritual Forces Guiding Us Toward Unity..................................77 Reality as a continuum Uniting the One and the many A global transformation of consciousness is under way Beyond political peace, world unity is the goal VI. Revelation is continuous and progressive.....................................93 The release of spiritual energies inspires the evolution of civilization. 6. The Mystery of Divinity...................................................................95 A holistic view of the Creator Re-visioning religion The missing chapter in the story of religion Humanity's coming of age VII. Consciousness evolves toward wholeness and unity...................113 Science and religion are two knowledge systems that are part of the same whole. 7. The Inherent Harmony of Reason and Faith.............................115 Did Darwin discover divinity? A hidden wholeness removes the boundaries Welcoming the interfaith, interspiritual age A bridge across the ages and traditions Epilogue: The Global Movement of Our Time - Building a Culture of Oneness...............................................133 Appendix I: A Timeline of Humanity's Conscious Evolution................141 Appendix II: A Meditation for Living in Oneness..................................153 Acknowledgments............................................................................................157 Notes.........................................................................................................159 Index........................................................................................................183