Richard Rohr on Transformation: Collected Talks: Volume One

In this first volume in a three-part series, Richard Rohr develops aspects of transformation, a recurring theme in his popular presentations.

Talk One: "Jesus: Forgiving Victim, Transforming Savior". If we imitate the way Jesus lived the role of victim, we will be able to live the Christian mystery. Jesus suffers freely but does not pass on the pain. He forgives, which destroys the death that confronts us. He says, “No one else is your problem. You are the locus of conversion and transformation.”

Talk Two: "The Spirituality of Imperfection". The focus of true holiness is giving up control—a journey into letting go. This is the way of descent, a path of owning our weaknesses and allowing God to transform us.

Talk Three: "The Maternal Face of God". Rohr attends to developments in feminine consciousness to consider images of God and their evolution in our own understanding of the Divine, who is beyond gender. He considers aspects of God that can transform the spiritual understanding of both women and men.

Talk Four: "Dying: We Need It for Life". Accounts of near-death experiences provide a springboard for exploring a remarkable pattern found in all faiths. Something has to die to unleash the transformative power in all things.