This book investigates the state of civilization in the 21st century, which is characterized by the transformation of Western Civilization into Global Civilization and the resulting Great Recession, triggered by the financial crisis in the United States in 2008. Since the state of former Western Civilization is steadily worsening, the question is rising whether civilization is sustainable at all. To answer this question, 20 authors, members of the International Society for the Comparative Study of Civilizations (from several countries and continents) investigate the aspect of human spirituality, and whether its actual level of development is able to steer the sustainable development of civilization? The authors investigate the complexity of the current state of world civilization and the Planet, concluding that western societies entered the Second Great Crisis of Civilization, and reminding that the First Great Crisis took place after the fall of Rome I in 476 CE, and lasted till the Italian Renaissance, which means almost 1000 years. This book offers spirituality 2.0 as a possible "tool" for people to behave wisely in order to sustain our civilization. This new spirituality 2.0 contains a set of complementary best values of current eight civilizations, which should lead to tolerant (less-conflict driven) human behavior and wise decision-making. The book finally defines Wise Civilization and paths of its implementation, under the condition that people will be not only knowledgeable, but wise and inspired mainly by right spirituality.

This book investigates the state of civilisation in the 21st century, which is characterised by the transformation of Western Civilisation into Global Civilisation and the resulting Great Recession, triggered by the financial crisis in the United States in 2008. Since the state of former Western Civilisation is steadily worsening, the question is rising whether civilisation is sustainable at all. To answer this question, 20 authors, members of the International Society for the Comparative Study of Civilisations (from several countries and continents) investigate the aspect of human spirituality, and whether its actual level of development is able to steer the sustainable development of civilisation? The authors investigate the complexity of the current state of world civilisation and the Planet, concluding that western societies entered the Second Great Crisis of Civilisation, and reminding that the First Great Crisis took place after the fall of Rome I in 476 CE, and lasted till the Italian Renaissance, which means almost 1000 years. This book offers spirituality 2.0 as a possible tool for people to behave wisely in order to sustain our civilisation. This new spirituality 2.0 contains a set of complementary best values of current eight civilisations, which should lead to tolerant (less-conflict driven) human behaviour and wise decision-making.The book finally defines Wise Civilisation and paths of its implementation, under the condition that people will be not only knowledgeable, but wise and inspired mainly by right spirituality.

This book aims to examine sustainability and spirituality philosophically with ethics as the balancing force. The goal is to reveal the important intersection between sustainability and spirituality by using spirituality as the invisible guiding hand in the quest for sustainability. The editors and contributors examine old social and economics dilemmas from a new perspective in order to provide alternative approaches to economic and social development. The enclosed contributions cover a broad range of topics such as sustainable development and human happiness, contemporary spirituality, environmental ethics and responsibility, and corporate social responsibility. In addition, the title features real-world case studies and discussion questions that inspire self-reflection and theoretical and empirical deliberation in academic courses and business seminars. Contemporary approaches to economic and social development have failed to address humankind's abiding need for spiritual growth. For material development to be sustainable, spiritual advancement must be seen as an integral part of the human development algorithm. While the policy makers and governments can play their respective role, each one of us has to consciously adopt spirituality and sustainability as a way of life. This book will rely on the spiritual power of individuals to heal themselves and the environment. Featuring interdisciplinary perspectives in areas such as science, marine biology, environmental policy, cultural studies, psychology, philosophy, ecological economics, and ethics, this book will provide extensive insights into the complimentary fields of spirituality, sustainability and ethics.

This volume provides an account of the surprising ‘in-breaking’ of spiritual life that persists in our culture, despite the best efforts of atheist spokespersons and secular theorists. Spirituality in its varying forms is irrepressible, resisting our attempts to exclude it by continuing to seep through the cracks and leak through the gaps. When it is allowed to manifest itself through the Christian faith-tradition, it has the power to surprise, transform and renew everything it touches. This volume contains a series of case studies, each of which describes the inner-functionings and out-workings of the spiritual life as a transformative point of contact between God, world, society and self. Each chapter contains high-level inquiry, drawing on best-practice scholarship that is deeply aware of the needs and opportunities that confront 21st-century society.

A leading scholar, cultural historian, and Catholic priest who spent more than fifty years writing about our engagement with the Earth, Thomas Berry possessed prophetic insight into the rampant destruction of ecosystems and the extinction of species. In this book he makes a persuasive case for an interreligious dialogue that can better confront the environmental problems of the twenty-first century. These erudite and keenly sympathetic essays represent Berry's best work, covering such issues as human beings' modern alienation from nature and the possibilities of future, regenerative forms of religious experience. Asking that we create a new story of the universe and the emergence of the Earth within it, Berry resituates the human spirit within a sacred totality.

Academic Paper from the year 2022 in the subject Theology - Miscellaneous, , language: English, abstract: This paper presents a symbiotic relationship between humanity and the ecosystem. The solution to this problem comes from the spiritual state of man. The methodology used in the paper is a transformative approach to the ecological challenges faced in the 21st century. The approach will use a theoretical lens to formulate interpretations from the ontological perspective that call for action agendas for reform and change. The first part of the paper deals with what God has done in creation through what theologians call common grace. The second part deals with man’s duty and responsibility toward creation. The third gives some implications of the destruction of the creation to the ecosystem, animals, and humans. This will be seen through the carbon cycle and water cycle. The findings of this paper are that humanity needs to rethink the growth in population without the growth and maintenance of the other areas of the ecosystem. Therefore, we have to learn from God and imitate him in His creation process.

What happens when our developed knowledge does not support human activities in politics, economy, culture, and infrastructure today? The solution lies in knowing what wisdom is and willingly applying it to most of humanity’s activities, transforming a chaotic civilization into a wise one. A merely knowledge-rich society cannot sustain its civilization without being wise and willing to learn and apply this essential human virtue in practice. This book investigates the issues of human cognition with regards to current issues surrounding globalization and civilization in such a way as to define wisdom not only as an art, but as a science too. Its investigation emphasises the learning of wisdom at schools and colleges, and stresses that its application in practice should be as commonplace as arithmetic.