David Steindl-Rast
Encyclopedia
David Steindl-Rast is a Catholic Benedictine
monk, notable for his active participation in interfaith
dialogue and his work on the interaction between spirituality
and science.
Steindl-Rast was born and raised in Vienna, Austria. He received his MA degree from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and his Ph.D. in experimental psychology from the University of Vienna
(1952). He emigrated to the United States in the same year and became a Benedictine monk in 1953 at Mt. Saviour Monastery in Pine City, New York
, a newly founded primitive Benedictine community. With permission of his abbot, Damasus Winzen, in 1966 he was officially delegated to pursue Buddhist
-Christian
dialogue and started the study of Zen
with masters Haku'un Yasutani
, Soen Nakagawa
, Shunryu Suzuki
and Eido Tai Shimano
.
Steindl-Rast continued creating bridges between Christian spirituality and eastern wisdom and, through interdisciplinary social commitment, contributing to understanding and peace in the world, for instance by co-founding the Center for Spiritual Studies with Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu
and Sufi teachers.
Steindl-Rast's thought has spawned significant research, from the first interfaith symposia (1972) comparing methods of meditation, to the modern scientific research in positive psychology as developed by Robert Emmons, Martin Seligman
and others. Among the findings which have forced changes in the scientific view of spiritual practice are: the role of gratefulness in political and altruistic action, the relationship between gratefulness and happiness and the application of contemplative practice in character development and health. He is a member of the Lindisfarne Association
.
Widely published as a writer, with more than 500 articles and 30 book chapters published, Steindl-Rast was included in The Best Spiritual Writing 1998 and cited in the 2002 volume. His books include Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer, The Music of Silence (with Sharon Lebell), Words of Common Sense and Belonging to the Universe (co-authored with Fritjof Capra
). His most recent achievement is co-founding A Network for Grateful Living, an organization dedicated to gratefulness as a transformative influence for individuals and society.
Lunch With Bokara 2005 episode The Monk and the Rabbi, he stated:
In that same episode, he expressed his belief in panentheism
, where divinity interpenetrates every part of existence and timelessly extends beyond it (as distinct from pantheism
).
In addition he has contributed to numerous works, including:
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monk, notable for his active participation in interfaith
Interfaith
The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...
dialogue and his work on the interaction between spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
and science.
Steindl-Rast was born and raised in Vienna, Austria. He received his MA degree from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and his Ph.D. in experimental psychology from the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
(1952). He emigrated to the United States in the same year and became a Benedictine monk in 1953 at Mt. Saviour Monastery in Pine City, New York
Pine City, New York
Pine City is located in Chemung County, New York, United States. The population was 5,220 at the 2000 census.-Notable Residents:Pat Balok- one of the area's greatest golfers and noted alumnus of Pine City Elementary....
, a newly founded primitive Benedictine community. With permission of his abbot, Damasus Winzen, in 1966 he was officially delegated to pursue Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
-Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
dialogue and started the study of Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
with masters Haku'un Yasutani
Haku'un Yasutani
was a Sōtō Rōshi and the founder of the Sanbo Kyodan Zen Buddhist organization.-Biography:Ryōkō Yasutani was born in Japan in Shizuoka Prefecture....
, Soen Nakagawa
Soen Nakagawa
Soen Nakagawa was a Taiwanese-born Japanese rōshi and Zen Buddhist master in the Rinzai tradition...
, Shunryu Suzuki
Shunryu Suzuki
Shunryu Suzuki was a Sōtō Zen roshi who popularized Zen Buddhism in the United States, particularly around San Francisco. Born in the Kanagawa Prefecture of Japan, Suzuki was occasionally mistaken for the Zen scholar D.T...
and Eido Tai Shimano
Eido Tai Shimano
is a Rinzai Zen Buddhist roshi. He was the founding abbot of the New York Zendo Shobo-Ji in Manhattan and Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-Ji monastery in the Catskill mountains of New York; he retired from that position after 40 years amid controversy.-Biography:...
.
Steindl-Rast continued creating bridges between Christian spirituality and eastern wisdom and, through interdisciplinary social commitment, contributing to understanding and peace in the world, for instance by co-founding the Center for Spiritual Studies with Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
and Sufi teachers.
Steindl-Rast's thought has spawned significant research, from the first interfaith symposia (1972) comparing methods of meditation, to the modern scientific research in positive psychology as developed by Robert Emmons, Martin Seligman
Martin Seligman
Martin E. P. "Marty" Seligman is an American psychologist, educator, and author of self-help books. His theory of "learned helplessness" is widely respected among scientific psychologists....
and others. Among the findings which have forced changes in the scientific view of spiritual practice are: the role of gratefulness in political and altruistic action, the relationship between gratefulness and happiness and the application of contemplative practice in character development and health. He is a member of the Lindisfarne Association
Lindisfarne Association
The Lindisfarne Association is a group of intellectuals of diverse interests organized by cultural historian William Irwin Thompson for the "study and realization of a new planetary culture"...
.
Widely published as a writer, with more than 500 articles and 30 book chapters published, Steindl-Rast was included in The Best Spiritual Writing 1998 and cited in the 2002 volume. His books include Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer, The Music of Silence (with Sharon Lebell), Words of Common Sense and Belonging to the Universe (co-authored with Fritjof Capra
Fritjof Capra
Fritjof Capra is an Austrian-born American physicist. He is a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California, and is on the faculty of Schumacher College....
). His most recent achievement is co-founding A Network for Grateful Living, an organization dedicated to gratefulness as a transformative influence for individuals and society.
Religion and Mysticism
During LinkTV'sLink TV
Link TV is a non-commercial American satellite television network providing "diverse perspectives on world and national issues." It is carried nationally on DirecTV and Dish Network. Link TV was launched as a daily, 24-hour non-commercial network in 1999...
Lunch With Bokara 2005 episode The Monk and the Rabbi, he stated:
- The religions start from mysticism. There is no other way to start a religion. But, I compare this to a volcano that gushes forth ...and then ...the magma flows down the sides of the mountain and cools off. And when it reaches the bottom, its just rocks. You'd never guess that there was fire in it. So after a couple of hundred years, or two thousand years or more, what was once alive is dead rock. Doctrine becomes doctrinaire. Morals become moralistic. Ritual becomes ritualistic. What do we do with it? We have to push through this crust and go to the fire that's within it.
In that same episode, he expressed his belief in panentheism
Panentheism
Panentheism is a belief system which posits that God exists, interpenetrates every part of nature and timelessly extends beyond it...
, where divinity interpenetrates every part of existence and timelessly extends beyond it (as distinct from pantheism
Pantheism
Pantheism is the view that the Universe and God are identical. Pantheists thus do not believe in a personal, anthropomorphic or creator god. The word derives from the Greek meaning "all" and the Greek meaning "God". As such, Pantheism denotes the idea that "God" is best seen as a process of...
).
Selected writings
- 1984, Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer: An Approach to Life in Fullness, N.J. Paulist Press 1984. ISBN 0-8091-2628-1
- 1991, Belonging to the Universe: Explorations on the Frontiers of Science and Spirituality, coauthored with Fritjof CapraFritjof CapraFritjof Capra is an Austrian-born American physicist. He is a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California, and is on the faculty of Schumacher College....
and Thomas Matus, Harper San Francisco, ISBN 978-0-06-250187-5 - 1995, Music of Silence: A Sacred Journey through the Hours of the Day, coauthored with Sharon LeBell, Ulysses Press, 2. Ed. 2001, ISBN 1-56975-297-4
- 1996, The Ground We Share: Everyday Practice, Buddhist and Christian, coauthored with Robert Baker AitkenRobert Baker AitkenRobert Baker Dairyu Chotan Aitken Roshi was a Zen teacher in the Harada-Yasutani lineage. He co-founded the Honolulu Diamond Sangha in 1959...
. Shambhala PublicationsShambhala PublicationsShambhala Publications is an independent publishing company based in Boston, Massachusetts. According to the company, it specializes in "books that present creative and conscious ways of transforming the individual, the society, and the planet". Many of its books deal with Buddhism or related topics...
, ISBN 1-57062-219-1 - 1999, A Listening Heart: The Spirituality of Sacred Sensuousness, Crossroad, ISBN 0-8245-1780-6
- 2002, Words of Common Sense for Mind, Body and Soul, Templeton Foundation Press, ISBN 1-890151-98-X
- 2008, Common Sense Spirituality. The Crossroad Publishing CompanyCrossroad Publishing CompanyThe Crossroad Publishing Company is a New York-based publishing house for books on spirituality, religion, and wellness. The company is the American branch of the global, 200-year old Herder family publishing group, with headquarters in Freiburg, Germany and Barcelona, Spain...
, ISBN 0-8245-2479-9 - 2010, Deeper than Words: Living the Apostles' Creed, Doubleday Religion, ISBN 978-0-307-58961-3
- 2010, David Steindl-Rast: Essential Writings, selected with and Introduction by Clare Hallward, part of the Modern Spiritual Masters Series Edited by Robert EllsbergRobert EllsbergRobert Ellsberg is the editor-in chief and publisher of Orbis Books, the publishing arm of Maryknoll.-Birth and Early Years:Robert is the son of Carol Cummings and the American military analyst and whistleblower, Daniel Ellsberg. In 1975, at age 19, he dropped out of college, intending to spend a...
, Orbis BooksOrbis BooksOrbis Books, is an American imprint of the Maryknoll order, that has been a small but influential publisher of liberation theology works, founded by Nicaraguan Maryknoll priest Miguel D'Escoto with Philip J. Scharper in 1970. It was the first to publish Gustavo Gutiérrez's seminal work A Theology...
, ISBN 978-1-57075-888-1
In addition he has contributed to numerous works, including:
- Introduction, Words of Gratitude for Mind, Body, and Soul, by Robert A. Emmons and Joanna Hill
- Afterword, Benedict's Dharma: Buddhists Reflect on the Rule of Saint Benedict, by Norman Fischer, Joseph GoldsteinJoseph GoldsteinJoseph Goldstein is one of the first American vipassana teachers , co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society with Jack Kornfield and Sharon Salzberg, contemporary author of numerous popular books on Buddhism , resident guiding teacher at IMS, and leader of retreats worldwide on insight and...
and Judith Simmer-Brown, edited by YifaYifaVenerable Dr. Yifa, Ph.D （依法法師） is a Taiwanese Buddhist nun, scholar, and writer. Ordained by the Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Order in 1979, Yifa holds a law degree from the Taiwan National University, a masters in comparative philosophy from the University of Hawaii and a doctorate in religious studies...
, and Patrick HenryPatrick HenryPatrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786... - Foreword, Living Buddha, Living Christ, by Thich Nhat Hanh
Further reading
- Henry, PatrickPatrick HenryPatrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786...
et al., Benedict's Dharma: Buddhist Reflect on the Rule of Saint Benedict, Riverhead BooksRiverhead BooksRiverhead Books is a division of Penguin Group .Notable books and major bestsellers published by Riverhead include Journals by Kurt Cobain; The Art of Happiness by His Holiness the Dalai Lama; The Color of Water by James McBride; Native Speaker, A Gesture Life, and Aloft by Chang-rae Lee; Fever...
, New York, NY, pp. 222. - Lafevere, Patricia, "Spirituality of gratefulness begins with existential ‘Wow!’ at God’s giving," National Catholic Reporter, December 8, 2000 (http://natcath.org/NCR_Online/archives2/2000d/120800/120800v.htm)