關於這一集
Persistence pays off! After 15 months of correspondence I was able to catch the big fish: Jorge Ferrer. Jorge is the author of Revisioning Transpersonal Theory and Participation and the Mystery. Participation and the Mystery might be the best integral book I have read since Sex, Ecology and Spirituality because of its overview of both the theory and the application of integral. One of my main drives of this podcast is to help understand integral better. Prior to immersing myself in the integral community, I was largely unaware of many of the pivotal books and thinkers that shaped that which is defined as integral. My introduction was through Ken Wilber’s writings but transpersonal theory includes and goes beyond his work. Aware of an apparent chasm between Ferrer’s and Wilber’s integral worldview, who better to ask than Jorge himself? Can these different perspectives co-exist?
His newest book, Love and Freedom: Transcending Monogamy and Polyamory, continues his reputation as a trailblazer. Love and Freedom offers a radical shift to our understanding of relationships: relational freedom. He argues for “…the value of holding a pluralist stance when contrasting monogamy and polyamory -one that underscores the benefits of having a greater diversity of relational choices (thus supporting relational freedom) while maintaining the grounds for critical discernment within and among the relational styles.” Love and Freedom offers a transcending alternative to the mono-poly war: novogamy. Novogamy provides the relationship spectrum that is needed in the 21st century. It allows individuals the “freedom to love whom you want, how you want, and as many as you want, so long as personal integrity, respect, honesty and consent are at the core of any and all relationships”, as Wendy O-Matik beautifully summarizes. Love and Freedom is the quintessential integral (postsecular) relationship book because it gives a fully blossomed vision of what love may be for present and future integralists: “A freer essence of romantic love waits beyond the promises, expectations and delusions of the Romantic Love myth from a bygone era. Once the deceptive spell of monocentric romance is dissolved, a different and more creative love can emerge—perhaps even a finer love that is meaningful, vibrant, and real beyond what one imagined to be possible.”
There are so many transformative ways that a shift in our thinking could affect things like spirituality and relationships. The first thing that comes to mind is the Catholic church. 50% of 2.6 billion Christians are Catholic linked to a mythic worldview where women cannot be priests and practitioners are not raised with a healthy relationship to their bodies or sexuality. Jorge explains his perspective on priests and pedophilia and what changes he would make to the church.
A big thanks to Jorge for not only being a guest but for being instrumental in connecting me to guests like Michael Lerner, David Loy and David Nichol for the Growing Down podcast. I have found through our correspondence that he was the embodiment of the ideas he praised in his book, which is the hallmark of integral for me. It was an honor and a blessing to have him as a guest. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did! As Jorge is fond of saying: Onward!
You can find out more about Jorge Ferrer here: https://www.jorgenferrer.com
