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SPIRITUALITY

WHAT WE DO WITH OUR LIFE-ENERGY: THE “SPIRIT” IN WHICH WE LIVE. SPIRITUALITY. UNDIRECTED. CHANNELED. WHAT IS SPIRITUALITY? .

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SPIRITUALITY

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  1. WHAT WE DO WITH OUR LIFE-ENERGY: THE “SPIRIT” IN WHICH WE LIVE SPIRITUALITY

  2. UNDIRECTED CHANNELED

  3. 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…

  4. …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.

  5. 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.

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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

  9. 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

  10. LIMBIC SYSTEM(Mammalian) 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. 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.

  11. 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”.

  12. 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.

  13. Our specifically human spiritualities—how we channel our life energies/breath/spiritusbeyond 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.

  14. 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.

  15. 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.

  16. 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.

  17. 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.

  18. 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.

  19. 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.

  20. 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…

  21. 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).

  22. 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”).

  23. What we do with this life-force/energy/desire—how we channel it, is our personal spirituality.

  24. WHAT SHAPES MY ACTIONS? HOW DO I CHANNEL MY DESIRE? WHAT SORT OF SPIRITUALITY DO I HAVE?

  25. 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

  26. 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”.

  27. WORLDVIEWS/COSMOLOGIES are Further articulated, expressed, embodied in… • BELIEFS or assumptions we have about Reality/Life/Mystery: “What is & what IT is all about” • VALUES or principles with which we prioritize among options or make choices • 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.”

  28. 1. BELIEFS about Reality / Life / Mystery ASSUMPTIONS regardingWhat “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;”

  29. “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”…

  30. *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.

  31. 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;”

  32. “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;”

  33. “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.

  34. 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.

  35. samples of habits, exercises, practices… study, prayer, meditation, helping others, exercising, yoga, eating junk food, getting smashed, doing drugs, fast foods, watching movies, text messaging, playing, listening to music making music, doing art, homework, caring for children, volunteering, “slow” food, going to work, shopping, on retreat, doing housework, yard work, hobbies… what we do consciously / unconsciously channels our “life energy”.

  36. 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.

  37. 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…

  38. 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.

  39. ARTISTIC PHILOSOPHICAL ECOLOGICAL MATERIALIST THEISTIC ATHEISTIC RELIGIOUS SECULAR AGNOSTIC Examples of “SPIRITUALITIES” JEWISH KABBALIST HASSIDIC BUDDHIST ZEN TIBETAN INDIGENOUS SHAMANIST ANIMIST CHRISTIAN PROTESTANT UCC ORUCC CATHOLIC DOMINICAN EDGEWOOD

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