Can We Imagine Spirituality Without Religion?

[osgart]

I left religion, but i never left spirituality. In a practical sense spirituality is about qualities of being. In a mystical sense its about qualities of experience.

The independent belief in God I have stems from identifying an objective moral truth. God for me is the supreme goal of life. Its mysterious yet simple at heart.

To claim to know God through all these soul judging religions, and eternal condemnation for non belief, is something that over time will ultimately perish. With increasing knowledge of reality, and the growth of modern civilization, how could it not? The less desparate people are the more they will grasp reason over fear.

 

[leov]

Can we imagine spirituality -- the belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality -- without religion -- the culturally transmitted belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality?

Why or why not?

Absolutely.

 

[Neutral Name]

Can we imagine spirituality -- the belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality -- without religion -- the culturally transmitted belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality?

Why or why not?

Absolutely. That is exactly how I believe. I gave up on religions because I see too much of man's viewpoints in them. I absolutely believe in God. I say God because it is an easy three letter, one syllable word. I actually don't care what it is called. It can be Jane for all I care. Anyway, I have a very spiritual life. Amazing coincidences happen constantly. I pray and get wonderful answers. I get signs. I have no religion in my life but God is ever present in my life. I advocate my way of life for anyone tired of religious mumbo jumbo. God is real and is there for anyone who who seeks.

 

[Audie]

Absolutely. That is exactly how I believe. I gave up on religions because I see too much of man's viewpoints in them. I absolutely believe in God. I say God because it is an easy three letter, one syllable word. I actually don't care what it is called. It can be Jane for all I care. Anyway, I have a very spiritual life. Amazing coincidences happen constantly. I pray and get wonderful answers. I get signs. I have no religion in my life but God is ever present in my life. I advocate my way of life for anyone tired of religious mumbo jumbo. God is real and is there for anyone who who seeks.

Sounds like a fantasy life, where this infinite creator
of the universe takes such a detailed personal
interest i just lil" ol" you.

Sorry ah, your way of life, no way.

 

[BSM1]

nonsense

Really? Why?

 

[Neutral Name]

I have no idea what it feels like to be 'spiritual' even when I was religious. I don't think I would enjoy the experience.

I feel bad for you. Spiritual is a good thing. God or the higher power or the light or Jane is love. God helps in this world. If you have a bad moment, just pray and you will be helped. And even without praying, God will do wonderful things for you. God knows your heart and mind. God is there for you just because you are. God loves you and love is a good thing.

 

[Audie]

Really? Why?

coz of you said they are apples to oranges

maybe you could say why you think they are

 

[BSM1]

coz of you said they are apples to oranges

maybe you could say why you think they are

Spirituality has nothing to do with religion. Spirituality is an intense personal and inward realization; religion, by definition, has to be structured to a set of believers. Religion tends to stifle spirituality because of its abhorrence of the group mentality. I guess your could be spiritual as well as religious, but one doesn't require, or even, define the other.

 

[Aupmanyav]

OP: That can be much better.

 

[Neutral Name]

With how you are defining the terms?

No.

There is no human who lacks culturally transmitted beliefs that will invariably inform one's belief in and reference for a spiritual world or reality.

I beg to differ. I started life as an atheist with a biologist father. I did not believe until I had things happen which proved the supernatural to me. I had little human cultural knowledge. In fact, I would meet Christians but I didn't know what to think of them. They were just strange people to me. I wondered about them. So, I learned God from God, not from humans. I started having good, strange coincidences happen. I finally realized that there has to be something to it. There were just too many events statistically. So, I finally began to believe.

 

[leov]

I left religion, but i never left spirituality. In a practical sense spirituality is about qualities of being. In a mystical sense its about qualities of experience.

The independent belief in God I have stems from identifying an objective moral truth. God for me is the supreme goal of life. Its mysterious yet simple at heart.

To claim to know God through all these soul judging religions, and eternal condemnation for non belief, is something that over time will ultimately perish. With increasing knowledge of reality, and the growth of modern civilization, how could it not? The less desparate people are the more they will grasp reason over fear.

Clearing up all chaff from particular religions, one can find that the core is direct face to face contact with spiritual world.

 

[Neutral Name]

Yes... probably.

Religion is a more structured and often community focused approach to a variety of concepts including spirituality. The belief in a spiritual world almost certainly came about prior to the existence of any organised religion. While this is a difficult one to definitively prove, it's generally believed that the earliest ancestors of what we'd now term religions stem from early animism and nature worship. If this is true, then there would have necessarily been a moment in which somebody conceived of these notions prior to sharing them.

If you want to get more controversial, it's also possible that this animistic approach is at least somewhat instinctive. I've seen this hypothesis suggested on occasion but couldn't tell you how solid its foundation is. Nonetheless, if this is true (or even true of some people) then it would suggest that there's a concept of spirituality that can exist independently of cultural norms and that would be codified by religion rather than created by it.

I would believe that it could be instinctive. I was an atheist who found the supernatural because it came to me. I didn't come looking for it.

 

[sealchan]

Can we imagine spirituality -- the belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality -- without religion -- the culturally transmitted belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality?

Why or why not?

Yes...wheresoever one has found the direct experience of the spiritual the collective ritual and tradition of religion is often secondary in importance.

 

[SugarOcean]

Can we imagine spirituality -- the belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality -- without religion -- the culturally transmitted belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality?

Why or why not?

Sure.
Religion imparts dogma, a set of agreed upon concepts, rules, dictates, to define what it means to believe. And what it is one believes in.
Spirituality is a relationship, a link, an innate knowledge of connection with the source.

 

[osgart]

Clearing up all chaff from particular religions, one can find that the core is direct face to face contact with spiritual world.

How would you define the core?

 

[leov]

How would you define the core?

Ultimately being in blissful state, depends on your goal, it may just ability to read Akashic record, to be present in spirit world and understand surroundings....learning, I may not have enough imagination.

 

[osgart]

I see that a lot of people have a connection to a higher source without religion. I call that God, but God is really just a word for something that goes beyond human understanding in a lot of ways. I think the part of God all can understand whether you are a believer or not is the simplicity of God's intentions with people.

There is a lot i do not understand about God. And i am not sure that God is creator or that we happened into existence solely because of natural occurence. But i do know that the love of God is supremely inspiring stuff.

I am quite sure a lot of non believers also have experiences that defy explanation.

I imagine God does not need anyone to have a laundry list of specific beliefs to know love. In this world its too easy to believe many things from nihilism to eternal hope. And a lot of good comes from unexpected places.

 

[osgart]

Ultimately being in blissful state, depends on your goal, it may just ability to read Akashic record, to be present in spirit world and understand surroundings....learning, I may not have enough imagination.

I read a book about the Akashic field a year ago from a guy named Ervin Laszlo, i believe is his name. It was interesting to think that there is a whole other dimension to reality.

I really do think peace, joy, bliss is the ultimate purpose of life. Unfortunately there are many circumstances that run contrary to that happening. I see existence as the ground floor, the roots of life and we just have to grow beyond it.

 

[leov]

I read a book about the Akashic field a year ago from a guy named Ervin Laszlo, i believe is his name. It was interesting to think that there is a whole other dimension to reality.

I really do think peace, joy, bliss is the ultimate purpose of life. Unfortunately there are many circumstances that run contrary to that happening. I see existence as the ground floor, the roots of life and we just have to grow beyond it.

I have seen a few articles And videos of E.L. He is a very interesting man. We are here to "grow beyond".

 

[TransmutingSoul]

Can we imagine spirituality -- the belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality -- without religion -- the culturally transmitted belief in and reverence for a spiritual world or reality?

Why or why not?

I would say yes. We can make this life of our own reality.

Regards Tony