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"Connie Barlow and Michael Dowd are gifted troubadours who celebrate the new evolutionary epic. As they travel endless freeway miles and speak to the full spectrum of humanity, their passionate presentations are igniting a new and exciting synthesis of science and faith."
— Brian Swimme, Professor of Cosmology, California Institute of Integral Studies
Click for our most recent
♦ REPORT OF OUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS
♦ ITINERARY
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On
April 25, 2002, Connie Barlow and Michael Dowd embarked on an itinerant ministry
of sharing "the Great News of the Great Story" and to help foster the Great Work.
We shed most of our possessions, and now travel in a van as at-large inhabitants
of North America and ambassadors of the grand sacred story of cosmos, Earth,
life, and humanity. We are teaching (Connie has a science writing background)
and preaching (Michael was a United Church of Christ pastor) "the marriage
of science and religion for personal and planetary wellbeing."
From April 2002 through July 2006 (and continuing), we have lived entirely on the road, presenting talks, workshops, kids events, and church sermons at some 550 venues in 43 states and 3 Canadian provinces.
Here is a sample of the variety of presentations we have given: From April 2002 through December 2003, we presented talks, workshops, sermons, guest lectures, and/or facilitated experiential processes at:
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54 Unitarian Universalist churches or fellowships
24 colleges and universities
18 Christian churches (half UCC/Congregational,
and the rest Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopal, Lutheran, and Mennonite)
19 Catholic churches, retreat centers, and convents
16 spiritual centers (nondenominational)
13 nature/environmental centers, botanical gardens, and zoos
13 Unity / New Thought / Religious Science churches
11 living rooms
8 Montessori schools and teacher gatherings, and 1 public elementary school
6 conferences
3 high schools (1 private, 1 public alternative, 1 BIA)
5 campus ministries
3 Quaker meetings
1 Buddhist dharma group
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For the latest report of our travels, click: TURTLE
TOUR TRAVEL LOG
For a list of our upcoming speaking engagements and workshops, click: ITINERARY
Click here to see
an article on Michael and Connie's traveling
ministry that was published in the October 2002 issue of Research News
and Opportunities in Science and Theology.
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"The Wonder of Evolution" (article in Unitarian Universalist World)
The cover story of the spring 2006 issue of the national magazine of the Unitarian Universalist Association features the work of Connie Barlow and Michael Dowd — "itinerant evolutionary evangelists" — in bringing a sacred understanding of evolution into Unitarian Universalist circles, where it powerfully bridges the spiritual and philosophical diversity inherent in this liberal faith tradition. |
Click here to read our
biographies and lists of writings.
Stories of Awakening
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The most moving way to glimpse the kinds of awakenings that happen when people are deeply moved by a sacred telling of the 14-billion-year evolutionary cosmos is by way of anecdotes. Sample this richly illustrated compendium of vignettes gleaned from Michael's and Connie's 5 years on the road evangelizing "The Great Story". |
| We have 3 MAJOR GOALS while on the road:
♦ To share
the Great Story (also known as the Universe Story or Epic of Evolution)
with those who have never heard it before, or who have not yet fully experienced
its magnificence. Churches and colleges (the latter via campus ministries
or invitations to present guest lectures in classes or larger colloquia) are
our primary venues thus far. We are also presenting to students in primary
and secondary schools and religious education programs.
♦ To network
with those who are already celebrating the Great Story, participating in discussion
circles, creating rituals, and bringing the story to others.
♦ To provide and consistently update a central website: www.TheGreatStory.org that millions can use to find and post educational and inspiring materials on how mainstream science can be interpreted in sacred understandings of the universe, and to produce and disperse high quality DVDs on The Great Story.
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Our commitment
is to take the Great Story message wherever we are invited — regardless
of a group's ability to pay — so long as we or our hosts can find
us free housing: a guest room in a private home or cabin or dormitory. Because
we are living out of a van, any abode will seem like luxury to us! Typically, we earn enough money selling books after sermons and other presentations to adults on weekends and on weekday evenings that we can offer our services to K-12 schools and colleges entirely free of charge during weekdays. To reduce energy
use and travel costs, we are working region by region.
If you would
like more information on our programs and HOW TO INVITE US into your region,
click PROGRAMS AND PRESENTATIONS.
See also our
ITINERARY, or click on our MISSION STATEMENT.
Periodically
we file trip reports in our TURTLE TOUR TRAVEL LOG
(highlights of our travels) in order to share what we are learning, who we
are meeting, how we are coming to appreciate the ecological and cultural richness
of this North American continent ("Turtle Island"), and, overall,
what fun we are having! We'll report on who is doing what and where —
including shared wisdom for teaching, preaching, living, ritualizing, and
celebrating the Great Story.
ON-LINE FREE AUDIOS of our TALKS
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MICHAEL DOWD
"The Gospel According to Evolution"Unity Church of Christianity in Houston (Mar 2006)
32-minute MP3 AUDIO |
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CONNIE BARLOW
"Celebrating Evolution"Second Unitarian Church of Omaha (May 2006)
30 minute MP3 AUDIO
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BARLOW & DOWD JOINT SERMON
"Cosmos, Mysticism, & Reverence for Life" First Unitarian Society of Denver (July 2006)
46 minute MP3 AUDIO
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MICHAEL DOWD sermon
"The Epic of Evolution" Unitarian Universalists of Hendersonville, NC (2006)
30 minute MP3 AUDIO
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CONNIE BARLOW sermon
"What Is Our Cosmic Task?"Unitarian Universalist sermon (2005)
20 minute MP3 AUDIO
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MICHAEL DOWD sermon
"The Great Story" Unity of Woodinville, WA (2006)
40 minute MP3 AUDIO
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CONNIE BARLOW sermon
"An Evolutionary Celebration of Death"Unitarian Society of Hartford, CT (2006)
28 minute MP3 AUDIO
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