SPIRITUALITY
WHAT WE DO WITH OUR LIFE-ENERGY:
THE “SPIRIT” IN WHICH WE LIVE
UNDIRECTED
CHANNELED
WHAT IS SPIRITUALITY?
Everyone who is alive has an energy
or life force that drives/empowers
everything s/he does from breathing
and eating and “sexing” to running
marathons, learning languages,
building skyscrapers, baking cakes,
planting gardens and saving the
world…
…like a driving desire-an unquenchable fire,
a restlessness, a
longing, a disquiet, a
hunger, a loneliness, a
gnawing nostalgia, a
wildness that cannot be
tamed, an all-embracing
ache that lies at the
center of our human
experience as the
ultimate force that drives
everything else.
Sometimes it hits us as
pain---dissatisfaction,
frustration, and aching.
At other times it grips
us as a deep energy, as
something beautiful, as
an irresistible pull, more
important than anything
else inside us, toward
love, beauty, creativity,
and a future beyond our
limited present.
But even when we are not conscious of
“it”, this life-force/energy/spiritus
is what keeps all the cells of our bodies
working together as a “living organism”
and moves and empowers us to do all that
we do (the ancients called “it” “the soul”).
When this life force is absent (i.e., when “the
soul leaves the body”) all the parts [except for
the calcium phosphate in the form of carbonated
hydroxyapatite of our skeletons] dis-integrate.
In the WIDEST sense…
SPIRITUALITY can be understood
as that which “channels” or directs
the life/energy/breath/spiritus within
each and every part and particle of
the universe.
CELLULAR “SPIRITUALITY”
For many beings--and for our basic cellular
functions--there is a “genetic spirituality” built
right in to genetic coding for each cell,
regulating how the energy that is obtained is
directed, used & transferred.
http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/RITCHISO/301notes1.htm
Hindbrain (Reptilian) “Spirituality”
Where the instincts of
survival, dominance,
mating and the basic
functions of respiration,
heartbeat channel the life
energy/spiritus that keep
the individual and its
species alive.
http://www.psycheducation.org/
emotion/triune%20brain.htm
LIMBIC SYSTEM
(Mammalian)
The deep-seated
emotions which move
us to connect with our
offspring, siblings and
tribe are built right
into the limbic system
which evolved next.
This is where our mammalian emotions reside,
where memory begins and where emotion and
memory combine together to mark behaviors
with positive or negative feelings.
UNCONSCIOUS VALUE JUDGMENTS
The Limbic System is where mostly
unconscious value judgments are made.
It also plays a role in salience (what grabs your
attention), spontaneity and creativity.
Information filtered by the amygdala is filed
under "agreeable” or “disagreeable“
“safe” or “unsafe”.
Neo-Cortex
But in the human
species--and perhaps in
some of our nearest relatives in
the animal world--there
has
evolved a capacity in
the neo-cortex to
over-ride the
impulses of the
less-evolved parts
of the brain.
Our specifically human spiritualities—how
we channel our life
energies/breath/spiritus beyond what is
regulated by the reptilian and mammalian
parts of the brain, are physiologically
housed in the neo-cortex whose
evolution enabled us to develop
language, abstract thought,
consciousness and imagination.
The Frontal Lobe in particular
is responsible for functions such as reasoning,
problem solving, judgment, impulse control. [This
coupled with the fact that this part of the brain is the last to develop when we are
young adults, probably answers a lot of questions for all who are parents of teens ]
It also manages our higher emotions such as
empathy and altruism. It is what enables us to
“put all the pieces together;” to make sense of
the world” and thus, to “have a worldview”.
http://theageofreason.org/post/1181916669/the-neocortex ; see also Copthorne MacDonald,
“The Role of Values in Wisdom,” (including the three hyperlinks at the end of the article on
how we make decisions, what influences our decisions, and practicing wise behavior)
http://www.wisdompage.com/roleofvalues.html.
But this part of the brain is not hardwired
ahead of time! Consciousness of this led
human beings to develop the notion that we
have been endowed with both freedom
and responsibility –without which we would
be unable to LOVE.
How this part of the brain functions depends not
only on what kind of nutrients make their way to
the individual cells… but on what kind of
thinking, believing, valuing,
imagining, envisioning and desiring
it learns from family, culture, or religion, and
modifies (or not) as it encounters new thoughts,
beliefs, values, images, dreams for the future
and desires in the present.
Our working description of SPIRITUALITY…
“What we do with the LIFE ENERGY/SPIRITUS
within us”
- includes what is done with the life/energy we
obtain at the cellular, biological, and basic
emotional levels;
- becomes specifically HUMAN ADULT
SPIRITUALITY when the neo-cortex
(reasoning, problem solving, judgment,
impulse control) becomes active in
channeling/directing what we do with our lives.
• This is why it is possible for some of us to
over-ride the “fight or flight” response
triggered by the amygdala and the release of
adrenalin in a situation of danger and
respond with non-violent resistance.
• It is why we can resist the “mob mentality”
which demonizes a scapegoat and remain
open to the truth and value that belongs to
our staunchest opponents.
• It is why we are able to fast during Ramadan,
Lent, or on Yom Kippur when our stomachs
growl and our seemingly insensitive
neighbors are grilling our favorite food right
outside our window.
• It is why some people leave one spiritual
tradition for another or combine features of
several.
• It is why we can and do choose what to eat,
where we get it, how we prepare it, when,
how much, how often and with whom.
Rolheiser:
“We all have a spirituality whether we want one
or not, whether we are religious or not.
Spirituality is more about whether or not we can
sleep at night than about whether or not we
go to church.
It is about being integrated or falling apart,
about living in community or being lonely,
about being in harmony with Mother Earth or
being alienated from her…
Irrespective of whether or not we let ourselves
be consciously shaped by any explicit
religious idea, we act in ways that leave us
healthy or unhealthy, loving or bitter.
What shapes our actions is our spirituality”
( The Holy Longing, p. 7).
• And what shapes our actions is basically what
shapes our desire. Desire makes us act and
when we act what we do will either lead to a
greater integration or disintegration within our
personalities, minds, and bodies--and to the
strengthening or deterioration of our
relationships with ourselves, with others, with
the Earth, and the cosmic world through
which we know ourselves related to “Mystery”
(sometimes pointed to with the word: “God”).
What we do with this life-force/energy/desire—
how we channel it, is our personal spirituality.
WHAT SHAPES MY ACTIONS?
HOW DO I CHANNEL MY DESIRE?
WHAT SORT OF SPIRITUALITY
DO I HAVE?
Our life-energies / desires are channeled
by…
WORLDVIEW—
How we “view” or What we assume about
What IS,
WHY it is,
What it is FOR,
HOW it all FITS together, &
our ROLE in & ATTITUDE toward the world.
Each Culture Expresses this in a COSMOLOGY
Cosmology: The Largest Context (Dowd)
“Gives meaning to existence in every area of
life; helps us understand the mysteries of life
and death; is the soil out of which all beliefs,
customs, behavior, traditions and institutions
grow…
Crystallizes into a set of unquestioned
assumptions & beliefs about life; colors
everything we see; determines how and what
we perceive & dream as possible;
Its rules & boundaries are usually transparent.”
It is what we consider “REALITY”.
WORLDVIEWS/COSMOLOGIES are
Further articulated, expressed, embodied in…
1. BELIEFS or assumptions we have about
Reality/Life/Mystery: “What is & what IT is all
about”
2. VALUES or principles with which we prioritize
among options or make choices
3. BEHAVIORS or “disciplines” we practice on a
regular basis
Most Westerners name one or more of these 3 when you ask them
to describe “being spiritual.”
1. BELIEFS about Reality / Life / Mystery
ASSUMPTIONS regarding
What “IT” is ultimately all about?
What is the point/meaning of Life?
What is the ultimate Goal? Where am I going?
“nothing exists that cannot be proven by science;”
“God is Love; Loving is what life is all about;”
“it’s every person for herself/himself;”
“you only get what you deserve;”
“the one with the most toys when he dies, wins;”
“there is no fighting the system—
you can’t change anything so you may as well play
the game to win;”
“all people are created in the image of God and are
of inestimable value and dignity;”
“only the thin (muscular, rich, who have hair, etc.) matter;”
“life is a shit sandwich and every day is another
bite”…
*BELIEF-STATEMENTS…
Attempt to summarize our worldview
(= our basic stance with regard to)
What IS,
WHY it is,
What it is FOR,
HOW it all FITS together, &
our ROLE in & ATTITUDE toward the world;
*Are always inadequate and incomplete when
compared with the experience of “Life” which
these belief-statements attempt to synthesize.
2. VALUES or principles
with which we prioritize options or choices
“justice for all is more important than claiming
privileges or luxuries for myself;”
“being accepted by my peers is more important
than speaking my own truth;”
“convenience and ease are more important than
biking or recycling;”
“numbing the loneliness with alcohol/drugs is
easier than working through the pain;”
“getting laid is easier than building a
relationship;”
“spending time in silence or prayer is more
important than watching TV,”
“sharing vs. hoarding,”
“including all vs. excluding those who are
different,”
“valuing all people equally vs. living for
status/prestige superiority,”
“using power to serve/free others vs.
using power to dominate/manipulate others;”
“non-violence vs. violence;”
“it’s my way or the highway”…
“hard work and honesty, courage and fair play,
tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism”
(Obama, 20 Jan 2009)
Note:
There is a difference between “professed” values and “operative”
values; the latter are the ones that actually channel our energies and
characterize our personal spirituality.
3. the HABITS, exercises or “disciplines”
we practice on a regular basis.
Many of these practices or habits are acquired
unconsciously from family, culture, religion,
society (so they express the communal or
shared dimension of our own spirituality)
Others are consciously adopted to change
habits or behaviors to be consistent with our
consciously chosen beliefs and values.
By these we attempt to “put into practice” what
we believe and value… and so acquire the
virtue or character associated with making
choices that lead to greater integration/health.
samples of habits, exercises, practices…
study,
prayer,
meditation,
helping others,
exercising,
yoga,
eating junk food,
getting smashed,
doing drugs,
fast foods,
watching movies, going to work,
shopping, on
text messaging,
retreat,
playing,
listening to music doing
housework,
making music,
yard work,
doing art,
hobbies…
homework,
what we do
caring for children, consciously /
unconsciously
volunteering,
channels our
“slow” food,
“life energy”.
Beliefs, Values & Behaviors are
Foundational:
•
• through them we
filter all the other
factors that
influence what we
do with the life force,
the drive within us.
•
But all of these are
influenced
consciously and
unconsciously
throughout our lives
by new
information/data/facts/
knowledge
• experiences and
interpretations.
information/data/facts/knowledge
What I learn about reality from various
intellectual disciplines and sources of
information:
environmental studies, natural sciences,
philosophy, ethics, economics, politics,
psychology, sociology, history, nursing,
religious studies, art, music, theater, etc.
news media, popular culture, hearsay, etc.
and from my own…
experiences and interpretations
• What happens to me (within and beyond my
control)
• and how I use my beliefs/values/behaviors
and new knowledge to make sense of these
experiences.
As a result, our spirituality matures and we
discover ourselves “changing directions” in
accordance with altered/changed beliefs,
values, and behaviors.
Examples of “SPIRITUALITIES”
JEWISH
KABBALIST
HASSIDIC
BUDDHIST
ZEN
TIBETAN
INDIGENOUS
SHAMANIST
ANIMIST
ARTISTIC
PHILOSOPHICAL
ECOLOGICAL
MATERIALIST
THEISTIC
CHRISTIAN
ATHEISTIC
PROTESTANT
RELIGIOUS
UCC
SECULAR
ORUCC
AGNOSTIC
CATHOLIC
DOMINICAN
EDGEWOOD