Spiritual
The Basics - "Sometimes We Need A Reminder"
FAITH - The Basic Practice
Faith is defined as an acceptance of certain religious doctrines is an essential element in Christianity, it is an attitude of devotion that opens a gateway to spiritual practice.
In the broad scope of the spiritual life, we see faith not as something you have but as something you are in — a relationship. It involves an awareness of and an attunement to God's presence in our everyday experiences.
Practicing faith, then, is like developing any relationship. You have to give it time and attention. It requires you to see, hear, feel, and constantly remember your partner — God. Have confidence in the relationship's viability, even when you are facing mysteries, doubts, and paradoxes. Trust in this faith, even to the point of staking your life on it.
Why This Practice Should Be For You
Many people assume that the chief challenges to faith are disbelief and doubt, but the real stumbling block to faith is resistance to God or the hardened heart. In the Biblical traditions, the heart is used as an image for the deeper self, the true and total person. The hard heart is not open to the sacred. It is similar to eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear.
Difficulties can be catalysts to faith. During a dark night of the soul, sometimes all we can do is trust that this, too, will pass. Facing illness, death, or the myriad other challenges in our lives, we are strengthened by the knowledge that a Greater Power watches and waits with us. In the long run, it's the relationship that matters.
FORGIVENESS - The Basic Practice
There are three kinds of forgiveness, all interrelated. There is self-forgiveness, which enables us to release our guilt and perfectionism. There is the forgiveness we extend to others and receive from them, intimates and enemies alike. And there is the forgiveness of God that assures us of our worth and strengthens us for this practice.
All the spiritual traditions raise up the value of forgiveness, but many people still find it to be a nearly impossible ideal. Just start somewhere. Look truthfully at one hurt you have not been able to forgive. Identify any associated feelings you might have, such as anger, denial, guilt, shame, or embarrassment. Imagine what it would be like to live without feeling this offense. Then let it go.
Other steps may be necessary for healing — a confession of your contribution to the conflict, making amends, changing behavior, a commitment to the community — but giving up your claims for, and sometimes against, yourself is where you have to begin.
Why This Practice Should Be For You
We all know the obvious symptoms that could be relieved by forgiveness — feeling so wounded that we want revenge, constant brooding over a long list of petty grievances, feeling so guilty we don't know how to approach someone we have offended, worry that the hurt could happen again. Bitterness and stubbornness can also be signs that forgiveness is called for, especially when these attitudes are associated with a need to be recognized as the one who is right.
In contrast to these limiting behaviors, which usually erect walls between ourselves and others, forgiveness is freeing. It means that we can move out of our previous position and move on with our lives. Best of all, it enables us to be reconciled with our neighbors and with God so that once again we feel part of the greater community of the spiritual life.
UNITY - The Basic Practice
Unity refers to living in harmony with other people. It means working for a common cause with those around the globe who know that when one person gains, all gain, and when one fails, all fail. We are crafting unity when we build communities.
The spiritual practice of hospitality helps us learn to respect differences and celebrate diversity in the Creation. Unity is about affirming commonalities. This can be as simple as acknowledging how you are like another person. It can lead to actions demonstrating your solidarity with others. Without unity, there is little hope for compassion, justice, or peace.
Why This Practice Should Be For You
Feeling lonely and isolated from other people are symptoms of a lack of unity in your life. Extreme manifestations are alienation and estrangement. Sometimes we deliberately cut ourselves off from others by our tyrannical and arrogant behavior. We may be very protective of our turf and highly individualistic, only interested in having our own way.
Often these same tendencies lead us to build or support the walls that separate groups in our societies along economic, racial, ethnic, sexual, religious, or other lines. Gated, insular communities, where people show little interest in the outside world, are sure signs that unity needs to be practiced.
Unity is more than a passing acquaintance with our neighbors, a temporary agreement among parties, or a superficial feeling of community. Feelings of harmony run deeper and last longer. They broaden your spiritual life in all directions.
DEVOTION - The Basic Practice
A devotional life is one lived in the presence of the Lord. Whether our devotional practices are formal liturgies or informal gestures, they recognize that everything is linked to the Divine. There can be no bracketing of our existence into holy and unholy precincts.
Begin, then, by cultivating your own garden of devotion. Pick as many seeds to plant as you desire. Water them with love. Be vigilant in your caretaking. Add new plants to the garden for variety. And be happy knowing that this garden pleases God.
Why This Practice May Be For You
Devotion is not something that is done once a week, just on religious holidays, or only in response to a particular event in your life. Special devotions may be called for at those times, but as a spiritual practice, it needs to be part of your daily routine.
Devotion then helps you build self-discipline. Being constant in your prayers prepares you for other disciplines needed in your life. On the other hand, if you lack commitment and don't tend to follow through in the long run, your devotional life will suffer as well. This practice needs to be done regularly.