This work below was never finished, but was replaced eventually by
the Way of the Fool.  That fact does not invalidate what was written here.
Strange Fire just needs to be understood to be an earlier iteration of a
work that was undergoing constant metamorphosis in my soul
over many decades of my biography, before coming to
rest in the Way of the Fool and other later works.



STRANGE FIRE

- the Death, and the Resurrection,

of Modern Civilization -

by

Joel A. Wendt

 

- This is a book in process (about 60% completed), in which it is laid out in a much broader fashion, how
our very age is swept up in patterns of social change whose historical roots go quite beyond the present
moment.   These processes unveil the activity of what are essentially spiritual powers, lying both
within the human individual soul, and without it.   There is an invisible world, and by our
 participation in it (and in the social world), we unfold remarkable forces of creation. -
 

contents

 
program notes Concerning the general structure and purpose of the book.

the gift of the word:  A poem about the miracle of the Word as used in discourse and writing.

overture An in depth examination of the basic social realities of modern life.

do: (matins/2a.m.) a state of consciousness yet outside the Mystery:Signs of SpringThe metamorphosis of one civilization into another as seen in the imagery of the succession of seasons.

do-re: consciousness in movement toward the Mystery, "I am the true vine":pragmatic moral psychology The interelationships of thinking, feeling and the conscience, as these play a role in social existence and meaning formation.

re: (lauds/sunrise) the consciousness enters into the contemplation of the glory of the Mystery:the Age of Confusion An exploration of some details of the end of the Winter of our civilization and what this can tell us about the nature of Spring.

re-mi: consciousness finds the seed of Mystery within itself, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life":the practice of wisdom An examination of the process of reflection and its role in tradition and in the coming social future.

mi: (prime/6a.m.) consciousness at the Gate of the Mystery: the Abyss of Aloneness The hallmark of the purpose of our time - this central alchemical trial of individual transformation.

mi-fa: consciousness finds the Light of Itself, "I am the Door": discoverying individual insight The no longer hidden divine potential latent in individual human thinking.

under construction

fa: (terce/9a.m.) consciousness steps throught the Gate of Mystery on the wings of conscience: the Descent into Shadow Encountering the mystery of evil within the own soul, and  the mastery of the soul through the elevation of the spirit

fa-sol: consciousness offers itself up in sacrifice to the Mystery "I am the bread of life": the grace of love - the experience of metamorphsis in the biography  The I-am as a source of love in the world, and the world as the source of love in the I-am

sol: (sext/miday)

sol-la: "I am the good shepard"

la: (none/3p.m.)

la-ti: "I am the light of the world"

ti: (vespers/sunset)

ti-do: "I am the resurrection and the life"

do: (compline/before retiring)