Church vs. Spirituality

Church vs.

Spirituality

The idea of religion and spirituality has always been an important aspect of my life. I grew up going to a Catholic school and attending Mass every Friday with my class, but I always found that I had a different outlook on religion compared to my peers. My mother, who is Catholic as well, always raised me and my sisters with a more spiritual outlook on religion. She saw the teachings of the Bible as symbolic messages that we interpret to our own lives rather than to be taken literally. The Bible was written thousands of years ago, but many teachings still have the same universal truths we see in our lives today. It is about how you decide to apply it to your life and what it means to you.

I was raised a Presbyterian, a branch of Christianity before I became Catholic in the second grade. When I was younger I went to Sunday school, while my parents were at Church. We did art projects and watched shows such as Veggie Tales, which made learning about God and religion fun. As I got older and went to Catholic school, I began to learn things about the Bible I didn’t know before. It became more about rules and wrong versus right, rather than how you can apply the teachings to your life. Religion class was about memorizing prayers and Bible passages without understanding why. Why are these prayers important to learn and what is the significance of it all?

My relationship with God and spirituality did not become what it is today without difficulties. I never questioned God until I was in high school and began to think about the real purpose of religion. My mom, who is very religious and spiritual, was diagnosed with colon cancer in my senior year of high school and it made me question everything. Many people have this “moment” where they question why God lets these things happen and His purpose. Why would God let this happen to someone so kind and devoted to others? I felt angry with God but continued to pray every night to find some guidance. Once my mom got better and was officially cancer-free, I began to change my outlook on a lot of things in life. I thought more about what I was giving back to the world around me and what my actual purpose was.

Religion and spirituality are both rooted in trying to understand the meaning of life and how a relationship with higher power

WRITTEN BY RUBY LEWIS DESIGNER COURTNEY SHAPIRO 40 ALIGN

may influence that meaning. However, I find that one’s spirituality is more focused on the individual and what you as a singular person believe.

The Church on the other hand has more structure in finding meaning. Even with so many rules, people find solace and safety in the order and structure. Organized religion and spirituality can go hand in hand. You can find spirituality within religion by interpreting what you deem to be your own truths. Spirituality is a universal, personalized experience, and everyone’s experience is unique. One may describe a spiritual experience as being sacred or transcendent similar to how religion can be.

For some, God can only be accessed within the walls of the church, with religion being synonymous with spirituality. In the Catholic church, the sacramental life is closely tied to the church and some find it quite spiritual to take part in the sacraments. Mass or Church can be a beautiful meditation with call and response, prayers, and music. Living a religious life can be very meaningful if the intention is to draw closer to God and others rather than the rules designed by the Church. As human beings, we are wired for love and for spiritual experiences which some seek out through religion. Philosopher and French priest, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin once said, “We are not humans having a spiritual experience, but spiritual beings having a human experience.” The spirit is pure, the spirit is holy, the spirit can be understood as God. Can religion and the Church claim the same?

I am religious and believe in God, but I do not agree with everything the Church teaches. The Church is based on the teachings of Jesus and God, but it is manmade, composed of rules and structure meant to organize a group of people around a set of beliefs. Religion is also designed to require people to donate money because after all, it is a business. Without donations from congregants, religious organizations would not be able to exist because leaders of the church need to be paid, and typically a church building has expenses.

I found a universal truth in both religion and spirituality that I think links the two together; That is to be kind to one another. This truth has been said in many different ways throughout time.

In the Bible, Jesus says, “a new commandment I give you, love your neighbor as thyself.” In Buddhism, the Tripitaka also mentions this truth saying, “Treat not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.” Regardless if someone is more spiritual than religious the universal truths we live by and how we treat others are more important. What you give to others and put out into the universe is what ignites our spiritual experience.

ART DIRECTOR KATHERINE STALLARD