Inspiration
“God
does not die when we cease to believe in a personal deity, but we die
on the day when our lives cease to be illuminated by the steady
radiance, renewed daily, of a wonder, the source of which is beyond
all reason.”
Dag
Hammarskjold
We
have been talking in the Spirituality Group about the ways religion
is changing. The young people in the group, and the older folks too,
find it hard to find meaning in the old, crusty tenets of the
church—original sin, salvation through “the blood of the Lamb”,
which sound medieval to their millennial ears. They are far more
interested in discovering ways that Spirit is working in the world and in
their own lives. While they very much want to study the teachings of
Jesus, they have no interest in delving into such notions as the
virgin birth, the resurrection, or whether Jesus will return. They
are all too cognizant of the atrocities committed in the name of God
over time, and even today, and want no part of it. They don't
appreciate the fact that religion has become entangled in politics
and is being used as a power handle by politicians. They firmly
believe that the church as we know it must change, and that change
must reflect both the scientific and the psychological knowledge
gained over the last two-thousand years. And, above all, the church
must demonstrate honesty and compassion.
What
is not in question among this small group of seekers is the need for
a personal relationship with “God-as-source” of inspiration, hope
and security. I would, in fact, characterize them as very religious,
but in a non-traditional way. When young twenty-somethings are
willing to get up on Sunday mornings and make it to meditation and
spirituality group by 9:30, then engage in heart-felt discussion for
an hour and a half, something big is stirring inside them. And while
this group is a small sample, I think they are on the front edge of a
trend that started long ago, and which will change, hopefully in a
good way, the meaning of “religion” for the next millennium. God
is personal, more accessible, more real to them, and the church must
restructure it's hierarchical system if it wants a shot at relevance.
We
are all in need of wonder and inspiration that comes from only one
source—Divine Spirit within, around and among us, in the world, and
in our hearts.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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