If Darwin Prayed

These are new prayers for a new age. They spark the spiritual imagination back to life and reorient us to a mystical unity with the universe, Spirit, and all of creation. Emerging out of the conversation between the science of evolution and spirituality, these prayers continually surprise with their earthy wisdom and profound celebration of life. They awaken in us a sacred impulse to evolve in and toward the heart of the divine.

Praise for If Darwin Prayed

“If Charles Darwin had not been in a spiritual muddle because of the in-adequacy of his era’s dominant theology, he might well have prayed with the power and passion of Bruce Sanguin. Some people dismiss Christian theology that embraces scientific evolution as arid. But they have not experienced Sanguin’s deep, earthy, joyous prayers. The outpourings in this book shimmer with mystical connection. Their psychological insights elicit shudders of recognition.They offer direction for our sacred paths.”

—Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun spirituality columnist

“The emergence of evolutionary spirituality is one of the greatest religious advances of our moment in history. Yet it is one thing to embrace the truths of the evolutionary worldview and quite another to allow the spirit of evolution to transfigure one’s being with its glory. In this inspired collection of sacred verses, arising from the depths of his mystic heart, Bruce Sanguin has given us precious stepping stones on the path to our own evolutionary awakening.”

—Craig Hamilton, founder of Integral Enlightenment,
host of Awakening the Impulse to Evolve, EvolutionarySpirituality.com

“My prayers are like meat and potatoes most days—nourishing, yes, yet rather familiar and routine, even when spiced with each day’s particular concerns. The moment I started praying the poetry of this book, I delved into a box of chocolates—delicious and not to be enjoyed too quickly. Related words of scripture help slow the pace and encourage lingering in every liturgical season . . . Bruce Sanguin is speaking to our hearts and minds in fresh ways at a poignant moment in history, helping us move more fully into faith and science for the sake of deeper understanding, healing of creation, and sweet, honest prayer.”

—Moderator Mardi Tindal, The United Church of Canada

“One of the great challenges, for contemporary Christians today, is finding inspiring resources that provide new language and metaphors to tell the Christian story from a twenty-first-century perspective. In Bruce Sanguin’s newest book, you will find just such a resource. I am certain that once discovered, the poetic and touching prayers of this wonderful book will find their place in worship, in children’s Sunday school classrooms, and in our homes.”

—Rev. Dr. Fred Plumer, the Center for Progressive Christianity, U.S.A.

“As an evolutionary biologist who sees the universe as a sacred, self-creating living system, I thrill to the way Sanguin responds to the challenge of Rumi’s God: ‘Be very careful then, My servants, and purify, attune, and ex-pand your thoughts about Me, for they are My House.’ How could God not want humans to grow into ever-greater understanding of the magnificence of Creation through all the historically expanding capabilities of human minds and hearts? These inspiring prayers provide a new and heartfelt liturgical testimonial to the fullness of that Creation.”

—Dr. Elisabet Sahtouris, author of EarthDance: Living Systems in Evolution

“My favourite prayers in If Darwin Prayed are in the sections Season of Emergence and Season of Creation. These new additions to the traditional liturgy ring with humour, hope, and humility, revealing the Grace of unknowing, the scientific reframing of the Trinity, and Life’s quirky strangeness. What’s more, Sanguin’s preamble to each section of prayers in this collection opens up possibilities, suggests new expectations, and deepens one’s whole purpose for prayer. If Darwin prayed like this, I trust he would not only have voyaged on the Beagle but into spiritual discovery that would have renewed him every day.”

—Dr. Marilyn Hamilton, author of Integral City: Evolutionary Intelligences for the Human Hive

“Today, there is no shortage of wonderful books on prayer, but Bruce Sanguin blends wonder, contemplation, and Holy Mystery in prayers that resonate deeply with co-creators embracing their connectedness with all that is. These cosmic prayers for the liturgical seasons are uniquely inspiring for pioneers on the sacred path of conscious evolution, as the prayers evoke a coherence of heart, mind, and soul.”

—Barbara Marx Hubbard, founder of the Foundation for Conscious Evolution,
author of Conscious Evolution: Awakening the Power of Our Social Potential

“Until evolution and the new cosmology become the context of our faith, spirituality, and worship, the wonders of nature as recently revealed by science will remain intellectual abstractions. This is why Bruce Sanguin’s adventurous new book is an important contribution to the current dialogue of religion and science. Surely the great geologist and spiritual master Teilhard de Chardin is smiling on Sanguin’s work.”

—Dr. John F. Haught, Senior Fellow, Science and Religion, Woodstock Theological Center

“The spirit expressed in Bruce Sanguin’s inspired prayers is not just intelligent and innovative, it’s juicy! It transcends the split between charismatic evangelical Christianity and better-reasoned but less-inspiring mainstream Christianity. The living presence of God shines through the words of these intelligent prayers. May that power help Bruce serve the birth of a new dynamic Christianity for a new millennium.”

—Dr. Terry Patten, co-author (with Ken Wilber) of Integral Life Practice

“There are two ways to truly explore an evolutionary panentheistic Christianity. One involves a bunch of books with tons of footnotes and the other is prayer. Bruce’s prayers are composed with the hand of a poet, the heart of minister, and eye-opening sincerity. You just can’t help but lean into the integral vision they inspire.”

—Tripp Fuller, co-founder of homebrewedchristianity.com

“Bruce Sanguin brings such common sense to these fine prayers. I thank God for the way Bruce thanks God!”

—Fr. Richard Rohr, Center for Action and Contemplation, Albuquerque, NM