Recently I had a phone call from a neighbor, inviting me out
for a golf date. I don't really play golf, so I had to decline, but we
had not spoken for a while, so I extended the conversation to ask about his
summer plans and what his kids would be doing in the fall. Then, I suggested
that he and his wife might find some interest in some of the things we are
doing at Central Presbyterian Church. I offered to bring them to one of
our church services and to introduce them to our Senior Pastor.
"Jim, thanks," said my neighbor, "but you
have to understand that I am spiritual, but not religious, and my wife feels
the same way. But, thanks for asking."
Later, I wondered about my neighbor's response. What
does it mean to be "spiritual, but not religious"? Does it just
mean not being denominational?
I remembered that my neighbor once told me that he finds God
in the sunsets, in walks on the beach, in vistas from mountain tops.
Clearly, for him, God is in nature. But does that mean that people who go
to church ---- people who are "religious," like me, are sort of like
monastic hermits who never see beyond their church building? Does he
think we don't also see God in the sunset? As if we don't realize that
God is in nature when we read the psalms, the creation stories, and throughout
our deep religious tradition.
Being privately spiritual but not religious just seems like
eating only snack food. There is nothing challenging about having deep
thoughts all by oneself. For me, what is interesting is doing this
work in community, where other people might call me on something I
propose, or even disagree with me. I think that where life with God gets
rich and provocative is when we dig deeply into a tradition that we did not
invent merely for ourselves.
Couldn't one say that being privately spiritual is rather
self-centered? That such people may find ancient religions dull, but find
themselves uniquely fascinating?
So, what difference would it have made if my neighbor had
said he is religious, not merely spiritual? In my view he
would be saying he had been shaped by "a mighty cloud of witnesses,"
sharing the wisdom and faith of many generations. That he is someone
brave enough to encounter God in a real human community. Aware that when
we least expect it, we can suddenly wonder why we're here and where we are
going. Church can give us a way to work that out. And when life gets
scary, he would want the company of someone "religious" holding his
hand, saying a prayer and simply putting up with him, just like we try to do in
church.
I know that some people are not going to be comfortable with
traditional church buildings or theological traditions. To understand the
ritual of worship in a traditional church setting requires some prior learning
---- some familiarity with Scripture and basic theological concepts. But,
perhaps as youths they never learned these basics.
What might be meaningful to Christians not educated
in the traditions and formalities of traditional worship? Perhaps they
need immediate personal experiences ---- concrete and visible experiences,
rather than abstract theology and Scripture readings.
Nearly 30% of Americans say they have no religious
affiliation, according to a Gallup survey. But more than 90% of Americans
still believe in God, or in a universal spirit, according to Gallop research,
even as fewer claim a particular religious "brand" or denominational
identity. While more people are opting not to align themselves
with one religious denomination or tradition, their interest in faith remains
keen. Some folks just don't like the aura of past-founded religious
denominations, where the church looks to outsiders like it is a club. In
short, a new emphasis today seems to be on personal good works and personal
holiness, with less emphasis on church participation..
This growing disinterest in theological dogma and abstract
tradition, reminds one of earlier cycles in American religious practice.
One in particular is the 19th century Transcendentalist Movement, which some of
us remember puzzling over in college literature courses.
Transcendentalism is a cluster of ideas in literature and
philosophy that developed in the 1830's and 1840's. The Enlightenment had
come to new rational conclusions about the natural world, mostly based on
experimentation and logical thinking. However, the pendulum was swinging
to a less rational, more intuitive, more in touch with the senses, way of
thinking. As one of these spokesmen said, "God gave humankind the
gift of intuition, the gift of insight, the gift of inspiration ---- why waste
such a gift?"
Among the core beliefs of Transcendentalists was an
"ideal spirituality" that transcends the physical and empirical and
is realized only through the individual's intuition, rather than through the
doctrines of established religions. Transcendentalists longed for a more
intense spiritual experience. Some of the major figures in the movement
were Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman and Emily
Dickinson.
They were strong believers in the power of the individual
---- they were champions of individualism. They believed in the ability
of mankind unassisted, to realize almost anything.
Transcendentalism, in fact, is said to really have begun as
a religious movement, an attempt to promote the idea that humankind is capable
of direct experience of the holy. It was a reaction to the Unitarian
rationalist view that the truths of religion are arrived at by a process of
empirical study and by rational inference from historical and natural
evidence. William Henry Channing (1810 - 1844) viewed Transcendentalism
as a pilgrimage from the "idolatrous worlds of creeds and rituals to the Temple
of the Living God in the soul."
However, Orestes Brownson, a contemporary of Emerson thought
he saw "transcendental selfishness" in such views. "Are
all things in the universe to be held subordinate to the individual soul?
Shall a man take himself as the center of the universe, and say all things are
for his use, and count them of value only as they contribute something to his
growth or well-being? According to this system, 'I am everything; all
else is nothing, at least nothing except what it derives from the fact that it
is something to me.' "
In the end, don't we need to be both spiritual and
religious? I find that each strengthens the other. But they both
take some work. Some people may think the heavy lifting is just in the
theology of church participation. However, being "spiritual"
isn't always easy. Sometimes finding God in nature is a struggle. Do you
remember Hurricane Sandy?! Did you find God in that event?
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These thoughts are brought to you by CPC's Adult
Spiritual Development Team, hoping to encourage you to pursue some
personal growth this summer at CPC.
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