Some of the most powerful influences on our lives are the ones we never consciously choose. They show up in the stories we’re told, in the systems we grow up within, and in the assumptions we learn to accept as normal. Gerald L. Deloney’s Gravity: The Story of Our Becoming calls these hidden forces distortions; forces that fragment coherence and keep us from living in rhythm with truth and dignity. What makes them so challenging is that we often inherit them without even knowing it.
The first distortion is identity shaped by supremacy. Many of us are born into societies that quietly rank human worth. Race, class, gender, and culture become markers of who “belongs” and who doesn’t. Even if we never say it out loud, we absorb these signals—who gets centered in history books, who gets opportunities, whose voices are heard. Supremacy distorts identity, pushing us to see ourselves or others through fractured lenses. It tells us that belonging is conditional, when in fact dignity should never be up for debate.
The second distortion is scarcity. From childhood, we are trained to believe that there is not enough—enough money, enough opportunity, enough success to go around. This scarcity mindset fuels competition instead of community. It convinces us to hoard, to distrust, to see others as threats rather than allies. Scarcity is powerful because it feels like common sense, but as Deloney shows, it is actually a story written to sustain systems of inequality. Sacred economy, in contrast, reminds us that reciprocity, sharing, and enoughness are woven into the fabric of creation.
The third distortion is faith captured by empire. Spiritual traditions, at their best, connect us to rhythm, memory, and coherence. But history shows how empire has used religion as a tool of control. Instead of liberation, distorted faith became hierarchy. Instead of belonging, it enforced exclusion. Many people carry wounds from this distortion without realizing how deep it runs. The result is spiritual disconnection, where the very thing meant to restore coherence becomes a source of fracture.
These three distortions: supremacy, scarcity, and empire-shaped faith, do not only belong to the past. They show up in our present lives, in the language we use, the choices we make, and the systems we participate in. The challenge, Deloney argues, is to notice them, to name them, and then to practice refusal. We refuse when we honor dignity in every person. We refuse when we embrace generosity instead of scarcity. We refuse when we reclaim faith as rhythm, song, and community instead of hierarchy.
Gravity: The Story of Our Becoming reminds us that inheritance does not have to mean destiny. Distortions may be passed down, but they can also be confronted and transformed. By recognizing what we have inherited, we gain the power to author something different. That is the sacred work of restoration: choosing to write new stories where coherence is possible.
Gravity: The Story of Our Becoming is available now on Barnes & Noble, Google Books, Draft2Digital, Kobo, Lulu, and IngramSpark.