Programs for Unity, New Thought, Religious Science, and Integral

Rev. Michael Dowd
presentations for
New Thought / Unity / Religious Science / Integral audiences

Contact Michael Dowd

  • Dowd's 2019 New Thought message (video)

        VIDEO: "Ecology Is the Heart of Theology"

    Rev. Dowd's 31 March guest message at Unity Church of Christianity Houston (Texas).

    Why a deep-time big picture is vital for staying sane, sober, and inspired in chaotic and challenging times. This soulful, deep green message bridges the gap between head and heart and celebrates the convergence of science, inspiration, and sustainability.

    28 minutes

  • Dowd's 2016 New Thought message (video)

        VIDEO: "Evolutionary Gratitude for Challenging Times"

    Rev. Dowd's 13 November 2016 guest message at Unity of Portland (Oregon).

    Note: For those with hearing problems, we have posted an "audio-enhanced" version of this video that, while eliminating the echo of the large hall, also eliminates the sounds of audience response (which is quite moving at times).

    28 minutes

  • Dowd's eastern/integral philosophy interview (videos)

        2015: Michael Dowd speaks of his "pro-future" distinctions in the context of broad concerns as well as the metaphysical/Buddhist worldview set forth in questions posed by Rick Archer, host of the Buddha at the Gas Pump conversation series on youtube (extracts of which have been re-shaped into this 2-episode video series).
  • VIDEO: "Pro-Future or Anti-Future? (1) Eco-Theology"

  • VIDEO: "Pro-Future or Anti-Future? (2) Right Relationship to Reality"

  • VIDEOS of Dowd's Classic New Thought Messages

       

    ABOVE LEFT: At Sedona Integral Group (AZ 2014)  •  ABOVE RIGHT: At Renaissance Unity (MI 2008)
    Click on photos above to access each video on youtube.

  • "Watch Online: Rev. Michael Dowd at Agape International Spiritual Center"

        In June 2009, at the invitation of Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith, Rev. Michael Dowd shared his "sacred side of science" gospel message, "Seven Gifts of Evolutionary Spirituality" at a Wednesday evening service of Agape International Spiritual Center in Culver City, CA. Three cameras captured this 45-minute message. The full video is available here and a 4-minute excerpt can be seen here.

    THE REV. MICHAEL DOWD is a former pastor and sustainable communities organizer, bestselling eco-theologian, and pro-future evangelist whose work has been featured in The New York Times, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Newsweek, Discover, and on television nationally. His book, Thank God for Evolution: How the Marriage of Science and Religion Will Transform Your Life and Our World, was endorsed by 6 Nobel Prize-winning scientists and more than 100 diverse religious leaders.

     
    Michael Dowd, November 2018

    Dowd and his science writer and evolutionary educator wife, Connie Barlow, have spoken to more than 2,500 groups throughout North America since 2002. (See his 2009 presentation at Agape International Spiritual Center here. A four minute excerpt can be seen here).

    A heart-centered and prophetic speaker, Rev. Michael has delivered two TEDx talks and a program at the United Nations. He has also conducted two acclaimed online conversation series: "The Advent of Evolutionary Christianity" and "The Future Is Calling Us to Greatness". His engaging presentations integrate cutting-edge science with a passionate life-affirming spiritual message of hope and possibility. A long-time student of Practical Christianity and Science of Mind and Heart, Rev. Michael's gift is inspiring people of all ages and backgrounds to live as a blessing to future generations.

    In addition to delivering Sunday lessons or special programs at some 175 Unity and New Thought churches and Centers for Spiritual Living, Rev. Michael has also served as keynote speaker at regional and national gatherings: Southeast Unity Regional Conference (October 2006), Southcentral Unity Regional Conference (at Unity Village, October 2007), the annual meeting of the United Church of Religious Science (August 2007), and twice he was theme speaker at the annual Big Sky Retreat in Big Sky, Montana (2005 and 2012).

    ♦ CONTACT MICHAEL DOWD

    published in 2008

    full list of endorsements

    		  

     

  • "Michael's book — a sacred look at cosmic history and emergent creativity from multiple angles — will ignite a revolution in evolution for any reader. Here is a book that promises to deliver and delivers on its promises!" — Rev. Howard Caesar, Senior Minister, Unity Church of Christianity, Houston

  • "Thank God for Evolution is a seminal work. It crosses the great divide between science and religion, by offering a new, all inclusive, science-based, spirit-infused way for us to move together as co-evolutionary participants in the process of creation. It is a gift to all of us." — Barbara Marx Hubbard, President, Foundation for Conscious Evolution; author of Emergence

  • "Michael Dowd is a pioneering voice for a deep spirituality that both celebrates the wisdom of science and is juicy with love, intimacy, and aliveness." — Duane Elgin, author of Promise Ahead and Awakening Earth

  • "A gift to humanity and the Earth, especially at this critical point in human history." — Mary Manin Morrissey, past president, Association of Global New Thought

  • "The universe took 13.7 billion years to produce this amazing book. I heartily recommend it." — John Mather, NASA Chief Scientist, 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics

  • "The science vs. religion debate is over! Michael Dowd masterfully unites rationality and spirituality in a world view that celebrates the mysteries of existence and inspires each human being to achieve a higher purpose in life. A must read for all, including scientists." — Craig Mello, 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine

    		•    


    ♦ Lesson/Sermon Titles

      
  • Since April 2002, Michael and his wife, Connie Barlow (a noted writer of popular science books), have been full-time itinerant evolutionary educators and sacred story tellers.

  • Find out what science and spirit leaders have to say about them and their programs.

  • Read endorsements from New Thought ministers and church members.
    		•   

     

    "Can you believe that Michael Dowd had a large audience of Unity ministers begging for more? His message of oneness was recognized by this New Thought gathering to be the message that will bring the world to its senses and it so related to their own mission. We highly recommend him to any group that will open their minds and allow the possibility that we are all ONE in this universe, therefore all connected in our desire for love and peace. Michael's presentation — which shows how science and religion are compatible and how evolution and creation are entwined — is dynamic, highly informative, and goes from scientific knowledge right to the heart."
    — Rev. Ron Neff, 2006 Southeast Unity Region Conference Chairman.

    		  


    Michael Dowd presenting at Big Sky Retreat, 2012

    VIDEO & AUDIO CLIPS OF MICHAEL DOWD

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     "Beware of Idolatry of the Written Word" 

      Unity of Davis, CA (2011)  

    45 minute AUDIO
     


     "Big Integrity" 

      interviewed by Terry Patten in the
      Beyond Awakening teleseries (2011)  

    62 minute AUDIO
     


     In Conversation 

      with Barbara Marx Hubbard
       (2011)  

    42 minute AUDIO
     


     "The Scientific Basis of Compassion" 

      Unity of Portland, OR (2010)  

    20 minute AUDIO
     


     "Evolutionize Your Life" 

      Unity of Woodinville, WA (2010)  

    30 minute AUDIO
     


     "Gratitude: An Evolutionary Celebration" 

      Unity of Bellevue, WA (2009)  

    25 minute AUDIO
     


     "Evolutionary Transformations" 

      Mountainside Ctr Spiritual Living, Placerville CA (2009)  

    22 minute AUDIO
     


     "Seven Gifts of Evolutionary Spirituality" 

    Agape Spiritual Center, Culver City, CA (2009)

    45 minute VIDEO
     


     "The Evolutionary Gospel" 

    Renaissance Unity, Detroit MI (2008)

    20 minute VIDEO
     


     "Thank God for Evolution!" 

    Unity of Marin, CA (2008)

    30 minute MP3 AUDIO
     


    "The Gospel According to Evolution"

    Unity Church of Christianity (Houston) 2006

    32 minute FULL-LENGTH LESSON MP3 AUDIO

     "The Great Story" 

    Unity of Woodinville, WA (2006)

    40 minute MP3 AUDIO
     


    "The Big Picture"

    Unity Church of Dayton, Ohio, 2004

    (3:00 mins) VIDEO SHORT

    "Community Creativity"

    Unity Church of Dayton, Ohio, 2004

    (2:00 mins) VIDEO SHORT

    "The Cosmic Century Timeline"

    New Thought Unity Center of Cincinnati, 2003

    (2:30 mins) VIDEO SHORT

    "The Making of an Evolutionary Evangelist"

    Christ Way Community Church of Denver, 2004

    (2:00 mins) VIDEO SHORT


    "Celebrating Our Differences"

    Christ Way Community Church of Denver, 2004

    (2:00 mins) VIDEO SHORT

     

     More VIDEO clips and full-length AUDIO programs
    are accessible through the companion website
    for Michael's book: Thank God for Evolution

     


    Lesson/Sermon Titles and Descriptions


    ♦ "The Future Is Calling Us To Greatness"

    Michael Dowd shares the spiritual gifts of a mainstream evolutionary and ecological worldview, while highlighting the gravest cross-generational challenges of our time: human-caused climate change and excessive medical interventions that interfere with the natural process of elder death.

    LONGER DESCRIPTION: We each have experienced times of trouble that threaten to overwhelm our individual lives. In such times, a vision of possibility is essential. The same holds for the punctuations in history when whole societies face troubles of an immense and uncharted variety. Truly, we here and now have arrived at such a time. Humans, unwittingly, have become a planetary force. We are changing, irreversibly, the very climate of our world. Henceforth, any actions we take as individuals and societies will be done in the new light of climate change. What vision will carry us forward through such times and inspire us to work together? How shall we frame the need to shed our business-as-usual outlook on life and take on a new vision of possibility that can unite us as a species in joyful self-sacrifice and service? What vision will charge us with a sense of heroic purpose that the future is, indeed, calling us to greatness?

    Note: Dowd presented an hour-long and illustrated version of this program in February 2014 at Seaside Center for Spiritual Living, Encinitas CA. A shortened audio version of that talk is available online under the title, Legacy Consciousness.


    ♦ "Ecology Is the New Theology"

    "Ecology is the new theology," suggests Michael Dowd. "Big history is the new Genesis. Those who fail to understand that evidence is modern-day scripture, and that the world we live in is an honorable world, betray God and humanity in the most egregious of ways."

    Note: Note: Michael presented aspects of this topic in 2011 at Unity Center of Davis (CA), "Beware Idolatry of the Written Word", and in 2013 at First United Methodist Church of Boulder (CO), "God Is Back! (Prophets Too): Evidence As Modern-Day Scripture". Also: audio and video of 2013 sermon at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Santa Fe.


    ♦ "Soulful Science: Honoring Your Inner and Outer Nature"

    How can a "soulful science" worldview help us live happier, more on-purpose lives and enjoy healthier, mutually enhancing relationships? What is an evidence-based approach to inspiration and how might we ensure that our legacy, individually and collectively, is a sweet one? These and other questions will be explored by America's evolutionary evangelist, Rev. Michael Dowd, whose bestselling, bridge-building book, Thank God for Evolution, was endorsed by 6 Nobel Prize-winning scientists and by religious leaders across the spectrum.

    Note: Dowd presented this theme in 2013 at Unity Church of Christianity (Houston, TX)


    ♦ "Stone-Age Instincts / Space-Age Temptations"

    An evolutionary worldview helps us face the fact that our Stone-Age instincts are now out of sync with modern temptations (fast food, feel-good substances, gaming, internet porn). Thanks to evolution, we learn that there is nothing to be ashamed of in admitting and seeking help in recovering from unhealthy habits that can plunge us into substance and behavioral addictions.

    Note: Michael Dowd's 2012 TEDx talk, "Why We Struggle Now" includes the core material that constitutes this message.


    ♦ "Gratitude: An Evolutionary Celebration"

    Alternative title: "Deep-Time Guidance, Real-Time Gratitude"

    AUDIO of 2009 sermon by this title, delivered by Dowd at Unity of Bellevue, WA

    Scientific discoveries are fascinating for revealing the magnificence of Earth and Cosmos, but can they also help us cultivate our spirituality? In this dynamic and soul-filled presentation, Rev. Dowd draws upon sciences as diverse as paleontology, astrophysics, geology, and evolutionary brain science to help us nurture a grateful heart.


          


      

    Michael's book is endorsed by 6 NOBEL LAUREATES, other scientists, and religious leaders across the spectrum

    Visit the Thank God for Evolution website for

  • samples of audio and video clips from Rev. Dowd's media interviews and live presentations

  • links to NEWS REPORTS of the book and Dowd's ministry, including articles published in New York Times Magazine and Washington Post.

  • Rev. Dowd's BLOG: "The Evolutionary Evangelist"

  • link for purchasing the book


    • ♦  Contact Michael Dowd


    ♦ PRAISE for Michael's work, by ministers and others in UNITY / NEW THOUGHT contexts.

    ♦ PRAISE for Michael's 2008 book

    ♦ PUBLICITY PHOTOS


    Scheduling Presentations and Fees

    ♦  Contact Michael  

    Michael is passionate about these topics. For guest sermons/lessons, he gratefully accepts whatever compensation a congregation typically offers guest ministers.

    In addition, Michael likes to present a FREE powerpoint, evening talk during the week immediately following the Sunday service. We carry our own portable screen and high-lumen digital projector to use for the evening follow-up program, so the only thing you need to provide is an adequate room and voice amplification. Because book and DVD sales following the presentation are usually substantial (we make the table self-serve, so no assistance is required for that either), we suggest you publicize the event as FREE (or on a love offering basis) and consider it as an opportunity to attract newcomers from the wider community.

    FOR LARGER VENUES, especially those that require him to travel by air, we are happy to negotiate fees that will work for your group.

    Rev. Dowd generally schedules appearances on a region-by-region basis to minimize transportation time, costs, and energy. To learn when Michael will be in your region, click for his YEAR AT A GLANCE ITINERARY.

    Michael and Connie's itinerant lifestyle is made possible by a commitment to voluntary simplicity and the generosity of those who open up their homes to them for a few days or longer. Depending on whether we are also presenting for other organizations in your town or city, we may ask you to locate HOME HOSPITALITY for us for the night preceding a morning service or that follows an evening workshop. Click here for a handy list of information on our HOME HOSPITALITY needs. We intend this list to supply prospective hosts with all the information they need to feel comfortable in extending us an invitation.


    ♦ PUBLICITY PHOTOS


    WWW www.TheGreatStory.org

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