Mysticism and Nature

Dear Colleagues,

The ecological crises that we are experiencing around the world from an increased occurance of natural phenomena such as fires, droughts, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons, and so on, cannot be ignored any longer: the future of the Earth and her children is at stake. Scientists have been predicting these natural castrophic events for decades based on data collected over the last century. Yet, there are people and institutions who are not willing to acknowledge this urgent call to action, for many different reasons. It is from this point that this Special Issue on Mysticism and Nature draws its significance. That is, we are in urgent need of finding new ways in which to address the impact of climate change and global warming for human and non-human beings living on Earth.

We are pleased to welcome the submission of your recent work to this Special Issue, addressing how any authentic mystic (for instance, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Nhat Hanh, the XIV Dalai Lama, Francis of Assisi, Blake, Thoreau, J. Muir, A. Schweitzer, Einstein, Merton, E. Cardenal, L. Boff, de Chardin, R. Panikkar, T. Berry, G. Snyder, B. Lopez, W. Berry, A. Naess, Ruether, McFague, M. Fox, Rohr, Pope Francis, K. Armstrong, and Starhawk, among many others) examined at least one major environmental, spiritual, or eco-justice issue through contemplation or criticism (for example, animal rights, land rights, indigenous rights, ecofeminism, overpopulation, global diseases, healing and reconciliation, war and peace, interfaith and ecumenical meeting, etc.). The overall focus of this Special Issue is to examine their spiritual legacies on what sort of eco-wisdom is available to us in the twenty first century. The purpose of this Special Issue is to bring together the work of scholars from different fields of research in a cross-cultural and interdisciplinary way. The aim is to expand on the existing literature currently available and to make clear why these mystics from different cultures and religious traditions were involved in raising awareness on the importance of living in harmony with nature by taking mindful steps to living more sustainably. We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, potential authors submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200 to 300 words summarizing their intended contribution, sent to the Guest Editor. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review. Samples can be found on our website of recent publications of Religions, such as 'Mysticism and Social Justice', or 'Spanish Mysticism', each of which I had the great fortune to edit and contribute to myself. All published articles are freely and publically accessible.

We look forward to receiving your scholalrly contributions.

Prof. Dr. Cristobal Serran-Pagan Y Fuentes
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• ecological spirituality
• ecofeminism
• deep ecology
• indigenous rights
• animal rights
• land rights
• holism
• panentheism
• pantheism
• cosmic interdependence
• anthropocentrism
• animism
• conservationism
• creation spirituality
• New England transcendentalism
• goddess movement
• nonviolence
• stewardship
• vegetarianism