November 19, 2008
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![temptation_of_christ[1]](http://x7a.xanga.com/578f165242133221369073/s173659097.jpg)
God and the devil were walking down the street.
God suddenly spotted a splendid ball of light
just laying on the ground.
He picked it up, in wonder and said,
“Look! This is the Truth, right here and now.
The devil snatched it from his hand and said,
“Here, give that to me….
I’ll organize it for you.”
\
I was reading blogs the other day and saw an interesting question.
It went something like this:
What is meant when someone claims to be
“Spiritual but not Religious”
the one comment to the post said this….
“It means the same thing as “democratic but not a voter”
“It means you like the idea, but your’re not ready to commit.”
I like the comment above because within it’s narrow core philosophy it demonstrates, in part, why many people profess to be ….”spiritual but not religions”.
Some religious organizations push religion as if it were a business idea, and they are making a sale…to you the consumer … their agenda is to give you hope, but not enough assistance to actually help you find god…thus keeping you as a member of the congregations that always will need to come back next sunday hungry for more.
Religions preach to you that the goal of enlightenment is unattainable for the average human within their life times. Grrrrrr
Not exactly what Jesus tried soo hard to tell us…..
Jesus said, “Whoever drinks from my mouth will become like me; I myself shall become that person, and the hidden things will be revealed to him.”
In a sense they feed you a fish, but they don’t teach you how to catch the fish for yourself.
This is a very old practice indeed.
If the sum total of all the spiritual experiences a religion can provide you with is nothing more concrete than mere ideas about god…then join a religion and let people sell you on their beliefs….and you will live in poverty.
But if a religion does not merely tell to believe in god, but instead helps you achieve the state of consciousness that will enable you to experience god for yourself….then maybe they haven’t strayed off the path, and can be very helpful.
For an example of this I would recommend reading
http://www.xanga.com/mourning2dancing
“Spiritual but not religious”
Can mean many things to different people
Many today recognize that the major religions of the world no longer represent the spiritual values of their founders, and this realization has turned them away. A Christian perhaps may feel this, yet still maintain their faith that Jesus’s message is a legitimate and powerful spiritual teaching. By incorporating his teachings into their everyday lives they find the inner peace of the path. To me these people are the real Christians alive today.
Still others, having established a deep and abiding personal connection to God, have found the inner peace which flows in abundance from this eternal source. These fortunate few feel no need to label themselves. They need no minister or priest to given them what they already have. …let me find that quote that expresses this so well…
Jesus said,
“Congratulations to those who are alone and chosen,
for you will find the kingdom.
For you have come from it, and you will return there again.”
I am very interested to hear from you all
How does the idea
“Spiritual but not Religious”
relate to you personally?
![temptation_of_christ[1]](http://x7a.xanga.com/578f165242133221369073/b173659097.jpg)
Comments (28)
I’ve stopped saying to people who ask where I go to church, “spiritual but not religious,” because in my circles that gets a lot of eye rolling. Instead, I just say I am a recovering Catholic… and that I’ve cut out the middle man and simply dial direct as the connection is much clearer and stronger this way for me.
That just seems to either confuse, amuse, or fascinate, which are reactions I prefer to eye rolling (as I am the Empress of the Eye Roll, and no one does it better). :rolleyes:
That said, I would join Steve’s church in a heartbeat. I would follow him as he went from congregation and congregation to absorb his brand of “religion,” like the Deadheads of yore followed Garcia (well… minus the acid). He is my favorite preacher, and it thrills me that he affects the youth around him so much and well… what a different experience I would have had growing up if one of the priests who taught me had been remotely like Steve. I don’t even know his denomination other than Christian, but he is the reason I am able to relate the best parts of religion. I know I totally laid it on thick, but I seriously mean every world. Bottom line, he does good stuff.
More and more, I am freeing myself from the guilt of my religious upbringing (at this point in my left, stemming mostly around the “how can you raise your children to be godless?” echoes in my mind) and do not so much feel the need to attend a church. I do feel a personal pressure (not a negative pressure, just a realization) that I need to do more to expose my children to spirituality.
I’m sort of babbling here, but I’m just going to go with it.
I agree that the world seems to be shifting more toward spirituality and away from religion. I visualize a world movement of spiritual realization each night before sleep, like a bomb of enlightenment… like a prayer. I truly feel that if, by mass miracle, the whole world simply dropped their religious affiliations and just found a path to their creator in a personal way… then every single other negative issue on the earth would melt away.
But I’m just a housewife in NJ (well, barista-housewife). And I’m probably insane as well, so… take my thoughts for what their worth.
:sunny:
Well I’m not really sure what I believe. I try not to categorize myself but the best thing you could probably try to say is agnostic. I don’t like the idea of organized religion and I have trouble accepting the bible, but I think it would be ignorant of me to deny any higher power, so yeah I guess I’m agnostic then.
Relating to your question, I’m not religious in the organized sense. I don’t follow a religion that has set rules and such for me, but I still believe in SOMETHING other than us. We couldn’t have just appeared one day, nawmean? It’s all too complicated for me to imagine, but yet I accept that there’s probably something “higher”
All is Zeitgeist, perhaps, the spirit of the times, and religion v. spirituality can end up being a defense against the other as easily as either can become an excuse. So much has turned into a cliche, that it is a journey just to discern between the wheat and the chaff, as it were.
Many things exist, this I know against the nothing that I know. How can one define the undefinable? It is possible to experience the undefinable, and when that occurs it is beyond the scope of religion, beyond the kith of self-reflecting mirrors. It is that transparency, that experience, which takes one beyond that boundary to boundlessness where anything becomes possible.
Religion v. spirituality. As soon as the question is answered, one has made one’s definition.
Blessings~
Much along the lines of what you have said. I have a personal relationship with God. I attend churches off and on, but my relationship with God is not dependent on that.
i think denomination (if one subscribes) is a private thing
but i believe in one spirit for all human beings.
i believe in life force energy -what turns day into night and changes the seasons, etc etc…i believe in nature…
and i as usual will quote thomas paine when i state
“the world is my country
and my religion is to do good”
that pretty much sums up my political and call it religious or not but call it goodness in action views.
i term myself an originial christian do as he did not as they say to think the spirit of God can only be accessed by a robe or head of some denomination is sin itself sadly that in has stunted the growth of the masses what really p&%##@ me off is through out the ages the essence of the personal message & teaching has been expounded upon & diluted to the point of manipulation tatics & guilt tithes new agers take the message add their spin & claim it as their own strokes of brilliance & make millions to line their own pockets it’s a situation as old as the resurrection i believe it’s time for an encore to set the records straight “turn over a rock & there i will be” beck
First of all, I am humbled and deeply honored.
Secondly, the line “I’ll organize it for you” is brilliant!
Third, for me, religion is how I publicly express my spirituality. So for me, “spiritual but not religious” pretty much equates to saying, “I’m a believer, but I don’t live like it.” Which strikes a blow to the very core of what it means to “believe.” In all honesty, in my experience it’s much more likely that someone will be “religious but not spiritual” than “spiritual but not religious.”
BE blessed.
~Steve
@JennyG -
My friend, you bless me greatly! I am both humbled and deeply honored by your words. Keep recovering!
:wave::sunny::wink:
Being Spiritual is something else than Religions.
Religion divides people, believing something unites them.
:love:
People forget that Jesus, if he ever really did exist, was a reformer. He wasn’t creating a new religion, he was reforming Judaism. That was 2000 years ago. If people think that in 2000 years a religion doesn’t need a little brush up and revitalization, they’re sadly mistaken. People change, societies change, things change from generation to generation… as soon as someone dies or is born there’s a change. To expect religion to be the same thing to everyone is to expect that it will always be summer or ice will never melt. The only constant is change. A religion that does not change to suit its constituents is broken.
yeah, i’m pretty much with sean there.
:/
@JennyG -
“More and more, I am freeing myself from the guilt of my religious upbringing (at this point in my left, stemming mostly around the “how can you raise your children to be godless?” echoes in my mind) and do not so much feel the need to attend a church. I do feel a personal pressure (not a negative pressure, just a realization) that I need to do more to expose my children to spirituality.
Yes, and how does one do that?
“”bring god into the lives of your children”
when faced with exactly that quandary you express so well,
the premise of my teaching goals was primarily based on my experience….
to know god is paramount,
and to do this one must experience god directly.
The precondition of necessity is to achieve a state of presence from which you can hear his voice…. is a state of deep momentary consciousness, with your attention focused on the felt moment of immediate experience combined with a sincere absence of any focused intention so that no information is distorted by your thoughts or expectations.
I regret not doing better, giving it more energy and attention…
Guiding my children to this state was no simple task, yet it was a joyful one.
I spent moments being present with them, to enjoy the feeling, and unite in sharing it together …I felt that more ”time” they dwelled in momentary conscious the better, for it would provide them opportunities to be in a position to choose….
I thought it important of them to be curious and excited about allowing their lives to become magically entertwined with the conscious energy field (my incomplete model of god)
….Perhaps allowing them glimpses, seeing one layer deeper, into the love and peace that is buried behind the wall of our normally temporal minds…This, I hoped, would open the way for them to be able to make the choice of life itself through choosing a conscious way to experience their own existence.
This is a process in motion….and it is interesting …
shifted in a sence, for now I understand I am the really student…
And I have a lot to learn
:sunny:
so… take my thoughts for what their worth.
Solid gold
Your thoughts below remined me … the formula is universal and not just for my kids
This path that I try to point to is within our ability to choose…
make it OUR intentional prayer to god…get 10,000 monkeys…and do it now!!
I agree that the world seems to be shifting more toward spirituality and away from religion. I visualize a world movement of spiritual realization each night before sleep, like a bomb of enlightenment… like a prayer. I truly feel that if, by mass miracle, the whole world simply dropped their religious affiliations and just found a path to their creator in a personal way… then every single other negative issue on the earth would melt away.
@donshobbins - It’s all too complicated for me to imagine, but yet I accept that there’s probably something “higher”
Of this there is no doubt…read my comment to jenny….put what i explained to the test
and find out for yourself
and if that doenst work get back to me…
there are many branches of the path and they all lead back to the tree
@Bijouli - you have the sight …no doubt about it…:love:
the Two word have so much depth, significant definition is necessary to precisely point to that of which we are trying to describe. teadious at times…but interesting
:sunny:
@C_L_O_G -
fun to watch things play out…
its good to be in a room filled with people how have positive energy
Sunday mass is very stimulating regardless of the sermon
@bodhitree -
Life force energy ,,its so real !!
I call it
Biotism
funny we have watched watch over the years as a tree grows UP against the force of gravity
The One invisible force (biotism) obviously overcoming the accepted force of gravity.
and no one recognises it:spinning:
wake up people…get someone to study this stuff..
I want to drink a few bottles of it
@mag_1 -
you and he are old friends mag
:sunny:
@mourning2dancing -
:heartbeat:
You are fun Steve….I am always blessed by the presence of your words
Third, for me, religion is how I publicly express my spirituality. So for me, “spiritual but not religious” pretty much equates to saying, “I’m a believer, but I don’t live like it.” Which strikes a blow to the very core of what it means to “believe.” In all honesty, in my experience it’s much more likely that someone will be “religious but not spiritual” than “spiritual but not religious.”
Believe is a term that many see in vastly different ways so its use in this case by the ‘believer’ kinda tell you what level thay are on…
religious but not spiritual … to me would be to dwell in poverty….
Jesus said, “If the flesh came into being because of spirit, that is a marvel, but if spirit came into being because of the body, that is a marvel of marvels.
Yet I marvel at how this great wealth has come to dwell in this poverty.”
@hunor2 -
Sad that this is so often true…the very organizations that are here to help us evolve at times misguide us
Shared beliefs can be a wonderful force ….let us hope we are wise in what we choose
@Dosmangoes -
I can see that.
so it “appears” :spinning: linking up with the “others” as you so accurately put it a few years ago “a group is gathering” has been a challenge & somewhat dangerous upon occasion :lol: good to see you writing again you yourself draw from the well & web of ancient wisdom have a good day dos blessings beck
this mini looks familiar eh ?
awesome post! To me, spirituality is something much deeper than religion. It’s something that you feel within you. It’s not something that can be taught, it’s just something that you have to learn by being open. Religion, for me, tends to exclude so much wisdom that is found in other religions.
In religion I felt very secluded, like I was in a box, and I wasn’t allowed to be open to any other opinion. But as a spiritual person I have begun to feel like I am no longer limited to the box…I’m free. I’m a part of the Earth, and everything in it and on it. Spirituality is the destination, but so many people get “stuck” thinking that religion is all there is. That religion IS spirituality.
I think you can have both, but religion by itself seems empty to me. Spirituality fills in the holes of religion.
I am spiritual (I suppose) because I believe in God and I try to follow the teachings of Jesus. Religions are simply tax exempt businesses.
Jesus’s message is a legitimate and powerful spiritual teaching..yes,I agree….people will attend more to church if no-mistake as take use religious power for capitalism….people were confusing as paladox of God’s love and insanity…spiritual will be more higher than religious doctrin in people’s mind hereafter…but Bible’s effect is biggest power for human being in human’s history and continu so long I think…
:heartbeat::heartbeat::heartbeat:…good to hear from you again…as per the question..I ( when ask) state that I am Spiritual not Religious..because…my perception of religion is as an introduction to the direct link ( we are the bridges let those of us who Know Who We Are..not denie that any more than seekers…I know and have direct experience with the Divine..and other spheres of awareness…I therefore lack faith* …however..I never pass up a speaker who has something to teach me or…a place I can find to learn…I Am therefore..Spiritually Ecumenical and Eclectic..and Know that at the base of all organized religions Dwells the Ancient Wisdoms as foundation* but hey..I’m flexible..total enlightenment is Not mine yet…too hard to live here while entirely drenched in awareness of all..( not the fact that we are a part of the all but the awareness co shared with All)…..
I could go on* smiles…glad your back..I need Thunder Bay & Your Gleenings* ((Wings))
It meant for me for a long time that I believed but was disillusioned with what I was taught by organized religion. I am reading my way through the Bible now and trying to find my way home. Happy Thanksgiving. Judi
May this year we entering be the beginning of your best years yet to come; years of Health, Prosperity, Peace, & forever the bliss of Serenity.