Recently, via Twitter, a question was raised: What is spiritual?
One response was "everything is spiritual". I've heard of this concept before, but never in Christian circles, who, I thought the speaker was a part of, so I asked him to clarify for me, and he did so in a blog post shortly after.
I do understand better now what this person meant when he said that everything is spiritual, but I do not agree with him.
First off, when someone says the statement "Everything is Spiritual", in my head, I associate the statement with "Everything is God", or "God is in everything", which can lead to, among other things, nature-worship, mysticism and so on. I now know that is not what was meant.
Now comes the tricky part, saying what I actually believe about the statement... In a way, either directly or indirectly, everything CAN BE spiritual, but I would not say that everything innately is spiritual.
My cell phone in and of itself is not spiritual, but it can be used for spiritual things.
Spiritual things can be defined as something pertaining to things not of the natural world. "Supernatural" is very close in definition, though it usually connotates beings, or person-esque entities, such as ghosts, demons, hauntings, spirits and so on. Supernatural things are usually more intentional while spiritual can be more innate. Spiritual is a little more broad in definition (in my mind at least.)
(According to dictionary.com Spiritual is defined as: of or pertaining to the spirit or soul, as distinguished from the physical nature: a spiritual approach to life. (See here for full definition))
Spiritual can also be an adjective describing someone who focuses his/her thoughts on things not of this world, but beyond, again, getting close to the definition of supernatural, but not exactly the same.
With this in mind, something can be spiritual but not be Godly, which is where things can get dangerous. A psychic can be spiritual, but not Godly. The Book of Mormon can be spiritual but not Godly. A Hindu individual can be spiritual, but not Godly. A pagan practice can be spiritual but not Godly. Even Christian practices, can be spiritual, but not necessarily Godly.
What is Godly you might ask? Godly is anything that gives the God of the Bible glory. Philippians 4:8 put it very well: Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, thing about such things. (Be sure to read the verse in context as well.)
Hope this clarifies my position and hesitations! Nothing is meant to be derogatory or offensive, so please don't take it as such, just trying to speak the truth!
Simply because saying that everything is spiritual MAY lead one down a path towards mysticism & nature worship DOES NOT mean that it IS mysticism. While it is important to maintain that distinction, it is not important to reject things that might be close. The promotion of recycling can also lead one to nature worship. So can Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
ReplyDeleteActually, I think separating the world into spiritual & non-spiritual things is a MUCH more damaging framework to operate out of. For many years Christians have allowed this to fuel hypocrisy & shallow faith. If Jesus is primarily concerned with my eternal soul (which is really an abstract concept), then my church activity, bible reading, possessions & faith has VERY LITTLE to do with the real world.
I have a friend who studies brain development at Ohio State and this mode of thinking (separating pieces of life into seperate & distinct spheres: spiritual/natural, public/private, flesh/spirit, work/home) is the mindset of sociopaths & lieing politicians (for more, listen to freakonomics podcast episode entitled "faking it").
We are holistic, integrated beings & a quick glance through scripture via that lens leads to much insight & clarity. Also, a quick glance through behavioral psychology, brain development & epigenetics will have your lines between spiritual and natural pretty blurred (if not removed).
interesting article: http://blogs.howstuffworks.com/2010/05/04/epigenetics-and-ptsd-nature-and-nuture-working-in-conjunction-to-give-you-flashbacks/
I only say the thing about teenage mutant ninja turtles in the first paragraph because of the dark path it lead me down as a young child.
ReplyDelete"Are there any Ninja Turtles down here!!!"
I yelled into every manhole & curbside water drain i crossed for about 2 years straight. It is documented via VHS tape.