Network of Spiritual Progressives
Encyclopedia
The Network of Spiritual Progressives (NSP) is an international political and social justice
movement based in the United States
that seeks to influence American politics
towards more humane, progressive
values. The organization also challenges what it perceives as the misuse of religion by political conservatives and the anti-religious attitudes of many liberals. In the international sphere, the NSP seeks to foster inter-religious understanding
and work for social justice.
The NSP was founded in 2005 by Rabbi Michael Lerner
, who serves as co-director of the organization with Cornel West
and Sister Joan Chittister
. More than 1,200 activists attended each of the group's conferences in Berkeley
, California
(July 2005) and Washington, D.C.
(May 2006).
As of December 2007, the NSP had chapters in 31 states as well as Toronto
, Canada
; Melbourne
, Australia
; and in Costa Rica
.
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
movement based in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
that seeks to influence American politics
Politics of the United States
The United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
towards more humane, progressive
Progressivism
Progressivism is an umbrella term for a political ideology advocating or favoring social, political, and economic reform or changes. Progressivism is often viewed by some conservatives, constitutionalists, and libertarians to be in opposition to conservative or reactionary ideologies.The...
values. The organization also challenges what it perceives as the misuse of religion by political conservatives and the anti-religious attitudes of many liberals. In the international sphere, the NSP seeks to foster inter-religious understanding
Religious pluralism
Religious pluralism is a loosely defined expression concerning acceptance of various religions, and is used in a number of related ways:* As the name of the worldview according to which one's religion is not the sole and exclusive source of truth, and thus that at least some truths and true values...
and work for social justice.
The NSP was founded in 2005 by Rabbi Michael Lerner
Michael Lerner (rabbi)
Michael Lerner is a political activist, the editor of Tikkun, a progressive Jewish interfaith magazine based in Berkeley, California, and the rabbi of Beyt Tikkun Synagogue of San Francisco.-Family and Education:...
, who serves as co-director of the organization with Cornel West
Cornel West
Cornel Ronald West is an American philosopher, author, critic, actor, civil rights activist and prominent member of the Democratic Socialists of America....
and Sister Joan Chittister
Joan Chittister
Sister Joan D. Chittister, O.S.B., is a Benedictine nun, author and speaker.She is a member of the Benedictine Sisters of Erie, Pennsylvania, where she served as prioress for 12 years. Sister Chittister writes a web column for the National Catholic Reporter, "From Where I Stand"...
. More than 1,200 activists attended each of the group's conferences in Berkeley
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
(July 2005) and Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
(May 2006).
As of December 2007, the NSP had chapters in 31 states as well as Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
; Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
; and in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
.
Basic tenets
The Network of Spiritual Progressives was founded based on three basic tenets:- Changing the bottom line in America.
- Challenging the misuse of religion, God and spirit by the Religious Right.
- Challenging the many anti-religious and anti-spiritual assumptions and behaviors that have increasingly become part of the liberal culture.
Changing the Bottom Line in America
Today, institutions and social practices are judged efficient, rational and productive to the extent that they maximize money and power. That's the old bottom line. The NSP advocates a new bottom line: that they should be judged rational, efficient and productive not only to the extent that they maximize money and power, but also to the extent that they maximize love and caring, ethical behavior, ecological sensitivity, kindness, generosity, non-violence and peace, and to the extent that they enhance our capacities to respond to other human beings in a way that honors them as embodiments of the sacred, and enhances our capacities to respond to the earth and the universe with awe, wonder and radical amazement.Challenging the misuse of religion, God and spirit by the Religious Right
The NSP seeks to educate people of faith to the understanding that a serious commitment to God, religion and spirit should manifest itself in social activism aimed at peace, universal disarmament, and social justice with a special focus on the needs of the poor and the oppressed. This involves a commitment to end poverty, hunger, homelessness, inadequate education and inadequate health care all around the world. The NSP also advocates nuclear non-proliferation, environmental protection and repair of the damage done to the planet by 150 years of environmentally irresponsible behavior in industrializing societies.Challenging the many anti-religious and anti-spiritual assumptions of liberal culture
The NSP also seeks to challenge the extreme individualism and "me-firstism" that permeate all parts of the global market culture. It also encourages people in social change movements to distinguish between their legitimate critiques of the Religious Right and their illegitimate generalizing of those criticisms to all religious or spiritual beliefs and practices. It also wants to help social change activists, and others who identify with liberal and progressive movements, to become more conscious of, and less afraid to affirm, their own inner spiritual yearnings and to reconstitute a visionary progressive social movement that incorporates the spiritual dimension, of which the loving, spiritually-elevating and connecting aspects of religion has been one expression. This is not meant to imply, however, that secular progressive movements are not also expressions of community, and even expressions of a kind of secular belief and spirituality (faith in the working class, oppressed communities, historical materialism, enlightenment, humanity or progress for example).Further reading
- Michael LernerMichael Lerner (rabbi)Michael Lerner is a political activist, the editor of Tikkun, a progressive Jewish interfaith magazine based in Berkeley, California, and the rabbi of Beyt Tikkun Synagogue of San Francisco.-Family and Education:...
, The Left Hand of God: Taking Back Our Country from the Religious RightThe Left Hand of God (book)The Left Hand of God: Taking Back Our Country from the Religious Right is a 2006 book by Rabbi Michael Lerner. In it, Lerner argues that that in order for progressive politics to survive in America, liberals must develop a respect for progressive forms of religion that can provide inspiration and a...
(New York: HarperCollins, 2006). ISBN 0-06-084247-4. - Jim WallisJim WallisJim Wallis is an American evangelical Christian writer and political activist. He is best known as the founder and editor of Sojourners magazine, and of the Washington, D.C.-based Christian community of the same name....
, God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get ItGod's PoliticsGod's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It is a 2005 book by author Jim Wallis. The book focuses on the role of religion in politics, and critiques both the so-called "religious right" and the "secular left". His criticism includes quotations from the Bible, as he...
(New York: HarperCollins, 2005). ISBN 0-06-055828-8.
External links
- Network of Spiritual Progressives
- The Tikkun Community, parent organization of the Network of Spiritual Progressives