Spiritual psychologist and author Dr. Bruce Davis, Ph.D., is challenging a culture he says equates success with wealth and achievement, arguing that the relentless pursuit of material comfort distracts people from what truly fulfills them: love. Davis, who guides retreats at Silent Stay Retreats in Montecito, CA and Assisi Retreats in Assisi, Italy, and has written nine books, points to St. Francis of Assisi as a model for reordering priorities.
“Francis gave up wealth, privilege, and comfort because he discovered something more lasting,” Davis says. “When he stopped running away from his soul, from the great love inside, his life was transformed. Consequently, when he had plenty, his heart smiled. And when he had nothing, his heart still smiled.” Davis contends that many people chase possessions to numb an underlying sense of emptiness. “Most of us spend our lives running from this love, keeping ourselves busy in pursuit of the small pleasures and comforts of this world,” he says. “We use them to numb and distract ourselves from the uncomfortable feeling that something essential is missing.”
The implications extend beyond personal well-being. Davis's perspective suggests that consumer-driven lifestyles may be a symptom of spiritual disconnection, and that addressing that root cause could shift how individuals approach work, relationships, and consumption. Rather than advocating asceticism, he recommends making more room for love. “Do not focus so much on what you think you should give up. Love more instead!” says Davis. “Giving up everything is no guarantee of finding the soul. Instead, love first, second, and third.” He adds that when people discover a deeper love, “the things of this world inevitably begin to lose their hold on us. We find less need to chase material pleasures and a growing desire to live for love and love alone.”
Davis's message carries particular weight given his background. He holds a doctorate from Saybrook University and has guided retreats worldwide since 1983. His 1977 book, “The Magical Child Within You,” was among the earliest works devoted to nurturing the inner child. He and his wife, Ruth, lived for 12 years in Assisi, Italy, where they founded the Assisi Retreat Center, which CNN and Travel & Leisure magazine ranked among the top 10 meditation retreats in the world. His book The Love Letters of St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi explores the saints' enduring messages of love, simplicity, and inner peace.
As economic pressures and material comparisons intensify, Davis's argument offers a counterpoint: that lasting satisfaction may come not from accumulating more but from loving more. His retreats, detailed at Assisi Retreats in Assisi, Italy, put that principle into practice, and his work suggests that reorienting life around love could reshape both individual choices and cultural values.
