State of the Website (5) May 31, 2009

[Matt Henry]

Hello friends,

Thank you for being present as a part of the Creation Spirituality Communities website - it is a "place" that continues to unfold and grow in fascinating ways. It's delightful to see people join the site almost every day; some have regarded CS as the definition of their faith for many years, while others have stumbled (or Googled) upon these ideas and convictions which are the foundation of the site and its intentions.

In this brief update, I wanted to do two things. Firstly, to point you towards some discussions/pages concerning the functioning of the website, which may be of interest and use. Secondly, I wanted to gently nudge all those whose profiles are adorned with a "Photo coming soon" placeholder to upload a photo...

So, to do the second thing first... about the profile photos. One of the most enjoyable things about visiting a new member's profile is seeing a smile. Our online acquaintancing [it should be a word!] is very limited by the medium itself. One of the few things available to is is to offer a picture, if possible. Some folks change their picture quite frequently, which is great, too. But I'd go a step further and say that in a Creation Spirituality context, we ought to deliberately be as physically present as possible: CS is a spirituality which emphasizes the importance of our bodies, our physical selves ("The soul is more like God when united to the body than when separated from it." [Aquinas]). So if you can - nobody will force you - do upload a photo of yourself. Not only will it bless the community with that much more beauty, but it is a reminder that Creation Spirituality is not merely a head-trip, a disembodied or intellect-only spirituality; CS is also sensual and celebrates our earthy bodiliness [that actually is a word - I just looked it up ;) ].

And now the first thing last... here are some links to other places in this site which concern the use of the site itself... which can be confusing, I concede.

About the site / Frequently Asked Questions

Difference between a Blog, Discussion, Community etc.

A suggestion on a practice of being present to the community

A place to suggest website etiquette

General Suggestions and Questions for the website


Thanks again for making this site what it is.
Peace and blessings to you,

Matt

[Marian Van Eyk McCain]

[Susan Coppage Evans]

Wonderful Matt- I love your gentle nudgings. Also - the new picture and principle on the front page is delightful.

[John Powell]

Link for definitions of blog, etc., is not working. How about that gentle nudging, Susan?

[Matt Henry]

Thanks John - a small typo in there managed to fix it. Thanks for the nudge.