For All the Saints: William Law, Teilhard de Chardin

Two interesting figures in Christian history are honored today on the Anglican and Episcopal calendars. William Law (1686 – 1761) was a Church of England priest who lost his position at Cambridge because he would not swear an oath of allegiance to the Hanoverian monarch George I. He became known as a teacher and writer and was the author of A Practical Treatise upon Christian Perfection and A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life, both of which influenced revivalists like John and Charles Wesley, George Whitefield, and others. His spiritual writings are still in print.

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ (1881-1955) was a priest, paleontologist, geologist and theologian. He was part of the team that discovered Peking Man (Homo erectus pekinensis). In addition to his writings and field work, he is known for his book The Phenomenon of Man, where he argued that the cosmos and humanity were unfolding and developing toward an ultimate union with Christ, which he called the Omega Point. Thus he incorporated evolutionary theory into both spirituality and culture. He also wrote books The Phenomenon of the Spirit and The Divine Milieu. http://kheper.net/topics/Teilhard/Teilhard-evolution.htm