Book Discussion - The Presence Of The Infinite, How do people practice their "spirituality"?

How do people practice their “spirituality”?

Everyone who has felt the power of truth, the kindness of goodness, or the loveliness of beauty has had an experience of spirit. The only reason such common yet profound experiences are not universally identified as spiritual is that our collective understanding of spiritual experience remains underdeveloped.

McIntosh, Steve. The Presence of the Infinite . Quest Books. P.2

People who report that they are “spiritual” but not “religious” usually have no articulate answer when asked what their statement means. What does it mean to say that one is “spiritual”?

It usually means that the person has some sort of apprehension of a Higher Power of some sort but this apprehension does not lead to any deliberate, purposeful, and intentional practice to cultivate more of the spiritual in their lives.

Steve McIntosh suggests in the passage above that people who seek the truth, do good things, and pause to savor beauty when they see it are practicing spirituality.

1. What do you think of these ideas about seeking truth, doing good, and savoring beauty as being spiritual practices?

2. When and how do you engage in these practices and what are the benefits you have experienced from doing so?

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #347 - Anger must come from judgment. Judgment is the weapon I would use against myself, to keep the miracle away from me.

 

Lesson #347

Anger must come from judgment. Judgment is the weapon I would use against myself, to keep the miracle away from me.

I get angry when things are not the way I want them to be. I like to think I am the boss and in control. The miracle is a shift in perception from want to love. What would Love want me to want?

In Alcoholic Anonymous it is suggested in step three that we turn our willfulness over to God’s will for us. “Let go and let God,” reads the bumper sticker.

In Unitarian Universalism we covenant together to affirm and promote the inherent worth of every person. We drop our judgment and acknowledge the Transcendent Source in ourselves and others.

Today we trade judgment for the miracle, anger for love, distress for peace, anguish for joy.

Book discussion - The Presence Of The Infinite, Infinite Transcendent Source

Infinite Transcendent Source

But as we will explore, what all authentic spiritual experiences have in common is this connection to a quality of being that is best described as infinite. Within the context of spiritual experience, the idea of the infinite includes not only a mathematical infinity of quantity—boundless, endless, unlimited, immeasurable, and eternal—but also a metaphysical infinity of quality—unified, whole, complete, perfect, self-sufficient, and largely beyond definition or conception. Yet even though the infinite is largely transconceptual and elusive, it can be directly experienced by humans.

McIntosh, Steve. The Presence of the Infinite . Quest Books. P. 1-2

Simply put, spirituality is our experience of our Transcendent Source. It is what UUs call the interdependent web of all existence.

1. When have you experienced your oneness with the Ground of Being?
2. How can you best describe it?
3. While this experience is personal, sometimes we share it with others. This experience has been called “empathic reverberation.” Jesus said, “Where two or more are gathered in my name, there I will be.” Jesus is not talking about Jesus the person, Jesus is talking about Spirit as when He said, “I and the Father are One.” Have you experienced Oneness with others?

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #346 - Today the peace of God envelopes me, and I forget all things except God's Love.

 

Lesson #346

Today the peace of God envelopes me, and I forget all things except God’s Love.

In A Course In Miracles when time stands still and we become aware of experience outside of time, it is called a “Holy Instant.” Today’s lesson suggests that we get into a flow state which is outside of time where we become one with the experience of whatever we are doing in the ego world and transcend it to a place of peace and love.

In Alcoholic Anonymous it is suggested in step eleven that we improve our conscious contact with God.

In Unitarian Universalism we covenant together to affirm and promote a love for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Today, we set all the things of the world of the ego aside and abide in the peace and love that we call “God,” our Transcendent Source.

Book Discussion - The Presence Of The Infinite, What is spiritual?

What is spiritual?

But the idea that spiritual experience is—actually and literally—an experience of that which is infinite or transcendent may find agreement among many who are open-minded about the possibility of some kind of spiritual reality.

McIntosh, Steve. The Presence of the Infinite . Quest Books. p.1

More and more people say these days when asked about an affiliation with a religious denomination that they are not “religious” but they are “spiritual.” What is the meaning of this word “spiritual”?

Steve McIntosh suggests that the experience of “spiritual” is an experience of the Transcendent or the Infinite. It is the experience of something greater than oneself. It is the experience of what Twelve Step programs like AA call the “Higher Power.”

The next question might be “How do you practice or implement your experience of the “spiritual’? Is there is a spiritual intelligence, and if so, how does one develop it?

The first step in developing one’s spiritual intelligence is coming to know that there is such a thing and that it can be enhanced. The second step is to find someone to share this discovery with to explore the idea. The third step is to develop a map or a curriculum to increase one’s spiritual intelligence. The fourth step is to engage in regular study and practice.

1. How do you practice your spirituality?
2. What practices do you engage in to enhance your spiritual intelligence?

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #345 - I offer only miracles today. For I would have them be returned to me.

 Lesson #345

I offer only miracles today. For I would have them be returned to me.

A miracle is a shift in perception from guilt to Love. Today, I decide to see Love and to ask myself continuously “What would Love have me do?”

In Alcoholic Anonymous it is suggested, in step eleven, that we improve our conscious contact with God through prayer and meditation and in step twelve that we share the contact we establish with God (Love) with others.

In Unitarian Universalism we join together to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of others and in this affirmation and promotion we work miracles. Healing occurs through the forgiveness we practice leading to a shift in perception from grievance and resentment and blame to compassion, understanding, and acceptance.

Today it is suggested that we shift our perception from the negative to the positive and in doing so the miracle of peace and joy arise.

A Course In Miracles Workbook Lesson #344 - Today I learn the law of love; that what I give my brother is my gift to me.

 Lesson #344

Today I learn the law of love; that what I give my brother is my gift to me.

The paradoxical teaching of A Course In Miracles is that we learn what we teach, we receive what we give away. A joke is to be shared, so is singing, so is any creation we make.

It is suggested in step twelve in Alcoholic Anonymous that we share what we have learned from the program. It is in sharing and giving it away that our own recovery is strengthened.

In Unitarian Universalism we covenant together to accept one another and encourage our spiritual development. It is in this encouragement that we our spiritual intelligence grows higher.

Today the law of love teaches me that what I give my brother I give myself. This is also known as the law of karma.