Now I know this has been up before,but it would really help me if you could add your reflections to it if you have not already. We would love to get sufficient numbers for this little survey to draw on it for research purposes, so go on help us!
Sunday, November 09, 2008
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11 comments:
I would, but it's a moot point.
Sorry, you must get that all the time, but this is the first I hear of you...
These words "religion" and "spirituality" can have such different meanings for people and can carry much baggage. I like the following quote by Norman Fischer from a chapter he wrote - Calling, Being Called in Beside Still waters - Jews, Christians and the Way of the Buddha (ed) Kasimow, Keenan & Keenan.
"The word religion, it seems, stands for established traditions; it stands for doctrine and belief, rules and proscribed practices, rites and rituals, the authority and sanction of tradition and the past. Religion is weighty; this is good - weight brings gravity - but it is also bad - it pulls you down, making it harder to fly.
Spirituality is something else. It’s about experience, about feeling. It’s personal and heartfelt. It involves practice and belief to an extent, but the emphasis is on what happens and how it feels rather than on what is supposed to be performed and how that is supposed to be understood and interpreted. If the centre of religion is the church, the scripture, the doctrine, the structure, the centre of spirituality is the person, the feeling human heart. The strength of spirituality is the lightness and sensitivity of its reality - if you are open to it, it’s there for you, as real as a breeze. But its lightness is also its weakness - yes, it helps you fly, but you might just keep going. Lacking the ballast of tradition, spirituality tends to float us off high into the clouds, where we can easily lose track of ourselves. Clearly then what we are after is a combination of these two elements. We want a religion that holds us and deepens us, along with a spirituality that lifts us and feeds us the food we need.
Religion = Fear Based
Spirituality = Misunderstood
Awakening = Consciousness
Enlightenment = Everyday Living
Ray has made a very good point, and it points to a flaw in the survey form. I chose the reponse: "Yes, I consider myself a follower of Christian spirituality." But I also follow a Chrisitan religious tradition. So according to Ray's definitions, I could also respond with: "Yes, drawing on a religious tradition." I do both. I regularly attend and am involved in my Methodist church, yet I also describe myself as an Emergent Christian, which is a spirituality movement and not (yet) a religious tradition.
I guess that there are many, many who are Christians spiritually, yet are not involved in a Christian religious tradition (as defined by a connection to a traditional faith community, ie., church or denomination).
A few tweaks to the survey and it could be interesting.
Thanks for your valued comments. We have added new questions, so please do let us know if we have got it right, or needs more comment.
Ian from the Moot Community
Err... if you alter the survey halfway through, it invalidates the previous responses...
I don't feel the survey expresses the complexity of my thing...
I'd vote 'not sure but working on it.'
I believe in Jesus but I'm not sure where I stand with him or with 'church' - whatever that is.
Slightly frustrated, none of the above and all of the above— at different times and in different contexts. Far too binary and centered on 'identity'.
I'm with Michel Serres on this one
'neither masters nor disciples' and 'Identity is death'.
Nic
Thanks for the comment. We are trying this out - not perfect - what questions and responses would be better - help us out....
Ian
Fair enough—
Keep the question (or questions) Don't prescribe the answers. This probably means more work for you, but I suspect it may be more satisfying for the people responding.
Thanks for that Nic
But what does that mean - raise questions = as the questions people are pursuing, give us an example - that would really help... for example - what would have helped you?
Cheers
ian
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