"One of the great joys of the academic life is to pay homage in a Festschrift to a scholar who has influenced both colleagues and students over years of interaction and friendship both professional and personal. This volume honors a scholar and theologian of historical theology, a theorist and a practitioner of religion and the arts, and a keen analyst of cultural trends both ancient and modern. . . . "[Margaret R.] Miles's prodigious production as a scholar has legendary qualities. Her dozen-plus books alone explore history, patristics, ancient philosophy, art and art history, spiritual formation and religious practice, critical theory, film, ethics and values, personal growth, gender and women's studies, as well as her true academic loves, Augustine and Plotinus. . . . The breadth and depth of her own work and her influence upon others demands an expansive volume, which the editors of this Festschrift unfortunately had to restrict to four categories--Historical Theology, Religion…

What does it mean to become and work as an artist today? What unique challenges do artists face in the twenty-first century, and what skills are required to overcome them? How might art become an expression of spiritual life? In addressing these and other questions, Deborah J. Haynes offers reflections that range from the practical to the deeply philosophical. She explores challenging ideas: impermanence, suffering, and the inevitability of death; the virtues of generosity, kindness, and compassion; and more abstract concepts such as negative capability, groundlessness, and wisdom. Individual chapters are framed by personal stories and images from the artist's work. Beginning Again: Reflections on Art as Spiritual Practice is a personal statement, born from the author's experience as an artist, writer, teacher, and Buddhist practitioner. Haynes writes for artists--and for all exploring the relationship of their creativity to the inner life. For Haynes, making and looking at art can be…

Spirituality and Growth on the Leadership Path: An Abecedary offers lessons not usually taught about leadership, lessons learned over the author's more than thirty years in higher education and nonprofit organizations. Few resources on leadership and administration attend to the inner life of a person in a leadership position. Many of this book's themes are therefore related to the inner moral and spiritual life. Some topics are prosaic, dealing with everyday activities. Throughout the book, "pith instructions" offer simple practical advice about the inner process and core values that may inform the leadership path. Haynes draws on the world's wisdom traditions--philosophy and religion, mysticism and theology, including indigenous beliefs and rituals--as rich resources for reconceiving leadership. This abecedary includes drawings by artist Michael Shernick, which are paired with entries from the "chronicles of experience," etymology and poetry, examples of contemplative practice and…

The title of this engaging work emphasizes that the author lives, works, and creates art in this place--a particular site in the foothills of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The subtitle indicates that place is the arena for investigating engagement with the land and nature, art and creativity, and spiritual life. By exploring the significance of place in our fragmented world and by using her artistic practice as an example, the author hopes to offer readers new definitions of the interrelationship of religion and art. Haynes is the first to examine the intersection of these three themes, which may be variously defined. First, the land and nature provide the literal site for the book, and the language of ecology is woven throughout. In the face of contemporary global crises, Haynes believes that we have a moral imperative to address how we live and work in the physical environment. Second, visual art, creativity, and the creative process are discussed using historical and contemporary…