Spirituality as Meditation and Inner Peace

In the last few years, Christianity has re-discovered the wisdom (or spirituality) of the Desert Fathers and their practices.  Those who are unfamiliar with the Desert Fathers probably see these practices as being “Eastern.”  Christians have a long tradition of silent prayer, centering prayer, meditation, and the like, though many people don’t know that and tend to call these practices “buddhism.”  Buddhism does, of course, practice similar techniques, though with a different emphasis.  These practices are known to have calming effects, among many other things.  There are a couple key differences between this view and the “Spirituality as Privacy” view.  One is that the “privacy” view is pretty much limited to scripture reading and explicit, spoken requests to God.  In fact, the privacy view would probably be skeptical of people who practiced prayer techniques that emphasized silence, nature, and a mere “resting” in God’s presence.   The second as that the more meditative group tend to speak about spirituality as if it's about finding a piece of yourself that has been lost.  

There are a couple of dangers here.  One is that spirituality isn't necessarily about finding something we've lost, it's about gaining something new.  Spirituality is about receiving a new version of yourself through participating in God's spirit- which is transformative.  Second- any retreat into solitude has the potential to be a retreat from the world; it can be (though it doesn't have to be) a desire to remain unaffected.   The other danger comes in seeking internal peace for its own sake.  Living faithfully in a world that does not typically value faith’s values means living with a great deal of tension both internally and externally.  Seeking internal peace for the sake of internal peace is a way of denying the reality of what is.  It is escaping difficulty simply because we do not feel up to the challenge.  

However, earnestly seeking God through a certain discipline and finding some peace in that process is a beautiful thing.  This is one of the great benefits of meditative practices, including physiological benefits such as stress reduction.  Yet, these practices must be grounded in a deep engagement with all aspects of life (and community) or else they are comfort and little more. 

If we are not deeply engaged with life, then meditation becomes entertainment.  

Humble Submission to God

12 As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.  Colossians 3:12, NRSV

Spirituality begins with the confession that there is a God and we did not get the job.  As such, we do not interact with God as if equals.  This does not mean we cannot be honest, that we cannot question, that we cannot challenge, it just means that we do so with the awareness that our vision and understanding are limited.  It also means that our plans and purposes and desires are secondary to God’s if (or when) they are not aligned.  

It means that whatever life throws our way, we (perhaps gradually) learn to accept and live with those circumstances, trusting that God has structured creation in this way intentionally (with all of its chaos, injustice, and suffering).  God does not exist to answer our questions or solve our problems; we exist to witness to his grace, mercy, forgiveness, and love.  He may choose to engage our questions and our problems and, in fact, He probably will at times, but we do not live with this expectation as if it’s something we “deserve” or something we’re “owed.”  This is when we cross over into pride.  

And, spirituality is not just between us and God.  It is just as much about our relationship to the people and world around us.  Living in humble submission to God means that we refuse to manipulate or cajole the people and circumstances around us such that we can create whatever we imagine might be the ideal version of life.  Humble submission to God means we accept the life God gives with all of its warts.  We refuse fantasy living and give up the desire to force others to conform to our fantasy.  

Footnote: This does not mean we do not exercise responsibility in our lives- it just means that manipulating, controlling, or dominating others is not a form of responsibility.

Spirituality as Privacy

The second camp of spirituality that I mentioned a few days ago is the group that views spirituality as something that happens when we’re appropriately isolated.  It is private, above all else.  No other person may inquire about it nor will I mention what happens there.  It tends to be this view comes with certain rules about what happens in the private space, namely, scripture reading and prayer, and they must be done for a long time or else you’re wasting your time.  (As a youngster I was given the mantra, “15 minutes a day…No way!  Gotta have more to be hardcore.”  In other words, 15 minutes or less of spiritual discipline may as well be zero.)

The danger in this view is that we become disconnected from the fact that all spirituality is, first and foremost, communal.  Spirituality comes from God’s spirit and it comes upon the whole group of God’s people, and individuals benefit from that, but spirituality is not primarily about personal, private experience.  If we ignore the communal aspect of spirituality, we gain little from spiritual privacy- it becomes more like spiritual isolation.  Our spirituality, as individuals, is both led and informed by what has first come upon the group.  

The benefit to what this view emphasizes is the fact that spirituality is truly, deeply personal.  We would be unwise to ignore that or to treat that as unimportant simply because we believe that the community does take precedence over the individual.  We can prioritize both the community and the individual, we do not have to choose.  This is a demonstration of an order of events as much as it is anything else.  

The group’s spirituality leads to the individual’s.

Well-rounded Spirituality

9 But, as it is written,

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
    nor the human heart conceived,
what God has prepared for those who love him”—

10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11 For what human being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also no one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. 13 And we speak of these things in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual things to those who are spiritual. 1 Corinthians 2:10-13, NRSV

Yesterday I wrote that I wanted to spend some time unpacking the key elements of a thriving spiritual existence.  I'm hoping that doing this will accomplish at least two things.  1. I'm hoping this list will open your eyes to things you already do that are profoundly spiritual.  I want you to be able to see your current life as one that is deeply meaningful and filled with God's spirit.  2. I'm hoping to help you find some new things to focus on that may renew your energy for spiritual matters.  So, here's a list of things to cover over the next few days.  

1. Humble submission to God
2. Communal mindset
3. Sense of Wonder
4. Prayer (all forms)
5. Character or virtue
6. Confession
7. Imitation of Christ
8. Every moment holy

What would you add?

What is spirituality anyway?

Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.  Romans 5:1-5, NRSV
 

We talk about spirituality a lot, but we don't often define it.  It's not an easy concept to define.  Our starting point, in a Christian framework, is that spirituality is fundamentally our participation in God's spirit.  God invites us into his community, he has gifted us his spirit, that spirit leads us, guides us,  and transforms us.  

Spirituality, as a reality, begins with God and travels down to us.  It does not originate somewhere inside of us, it ends up there.  Spirituality is not just a matter of spiritual disciplines- it is the lifeblood of a relationship between God and his people.  It does not merely bring us peace and calm, but character and hope.  

Over the next few days we're going to discuss some of the key ingredients in a thriving spiritual existence.