While you are studying, you should also look in to Catholic liberation theology. (I think that’s what it’s called!)

It might comfort your radical soul to know there are indeed Catholics out there who are really making a difference in the world.

so says deb the radical lesbian feminist witch

oops, can you say that on the internet? I’m blacklisted now for sure! :)

My own brand of Gaian rationalism uses an extended version of the Gaia Theory (self-organization and coordinated behavior of a connected system) and assumes it applies in a self-similar fashion to systems both smaller (human) and larger (universe) than Earth.

I take it a bit further to maintain that the universe is both a) understandable in a meaningful way by us and b) more awe-inspiring than any deity devised by humans to date. This assumes that reason and experience take precedence over any authoritative knowledge. That would differentiate it from Continental Rationalism, which seems to prefer mathematical logic and assumed first principles.

Deana, too tired to contemplate Gaian rationalism or much else

So, let me make sure I’ve got my sources right. By Gaian, you’re referring to belief in some form of Lovelock’s Gaia Theory:
http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaia_theory ?
If so, is it mostly the political aspects, or do you also follow the biological and philosophical/religious precepts that go along with it?

And, by rationalism, you’re referring to the Descartes-style belief in reason over experience (empiricism) or spirituality, as described (somewhat similarly) here:
http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/r/rat-cont.htm
and here:
http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationalism ?

There, I just said it again!