MSI Press Blog

  Some friendships are forged in shared doctrine. Others are born in shared longing. The bond between a Sufi Muslim and a Christian Mystic is not built on identical beliefs—it’s built on a mutual reverence for mystery, for love, and for the divine presence that pulses beneath all things. These two paths, though distinct in language and lineage, often meet in the heart’s deepest chamber. 🌌 What They Share Sufis and Christian Mystics both seek union with the Divine—not through dogma, but through devotion. Their practices may differ, but their orientation is strikingly similar: Silence and solitude as sacred ground. Poetry and metaphor as spiritual language. Surrender, not certainty. Love as the highest truth. Both traditions speak of the soul’s journey as one of burning away illusion, of becoming transparent to grace. They honor paradox, embrace suffering as teacher, and trust that the Beloved is always near—even when hidden. 🕊️ A Friendship Beyond Boundaries When a Sufi...

  Religious conversion often evokes images of long personal journeys, doctrinal shifts, or community transitions. But what happens when transformation isn’t gradual, but immediate—ignited by a direct encounter with the sacred? In the language of Mircea Eliade, this breakthrough is called  hierophany : the eruption of the sacred into the profane world, reshaping not just belief, but perception, identity, and purpose.🔍 What Is Hierophany? Hierophany (from the Greek  hieros  meaning sacred and  phainein  meaning to reveal) describes moments when the sacred reveals itself—whether through visions, natural phenomena, ritual acts, or sacred texts. These events break the normal flow of time and space, marking the moment as “other,” saturated with divine meaning. Think Moses at the burning bush, Paul on the road to Damascus, or even less-scripted, deeply personal revelations sparked by dreams, crises, or encounters with beauty so profound it borders on the eternal....

  Arthur Yavelberg, author of the award-winning book,  A Theology for the Rest of Us , was recently interviewed on the Daily Soul Bytes podcast: "Exploring Definitions in Authenticity." This is the essence of Hinduism--that we are all part of the dream of Brahman/God. That needs to be properly understood. It doesn't mean, for example, that we "don't exist" and that we "disappear" when Brahman "wakes up." Having been "dreamt" ("created," to use Western terms) by Brahman, we become part of his consciousness--which is eternal. In that context, when the material part of us recognizes its eternal source, our realization and  Brahman's are two sides of the same coin. Put another way, just because our dreams are "dreams" doesn't mean they don't "exist." Such dreams become a part of us and may even be expressions of our natures and unconscious that, until the dream, of which we are not aware. Yo...