More than twenty percent of the girls in my daily emails from Match.com identify themselves as “spiritual but not religious.” If you are not a member of this group, you are probably right now thinking to yourself, “aren’t spiritual and religious the same thing?” Indeed they are; however, some religious people are ashamed of being religious and have instead adopted a form of politically-correct self-denial. (These are the same people who insist that we call the short “vertically-challenged,” the stupid “learning-disabled,” the unfunny “differently-humored,” and prison schools for wicked kids “alternative education.”)
These are also the same people, apparently, who sit around like idiots while nuts from the Kabbalah Centre indoctrinate children in public schools:
“What does greater satisfaction bring?” she asks. Matthew replies: “Spiritual power!”Zucker asks him where the power comes from? “Your inner light,” the boy answers.
And where is that light found? “In your heart,” he says.
It may seem harsh of me, I know, to dismiss such scientifically-valid concepts as “spiritual power” (which I’m pretty sure is “spiritual work divided by spiritual time”) and “inner light” (which is made up of “inner photons” that sometimes behave like “inner particles” and other times behave like “inner waves”) as religious. The LAUSD would certainly disagree:
” ‘Spirituality for Kids’ is not religious,” said Karen Timko, who is in charge of elementary counselors for the Los Angeles Unified School District and has included the group in a resource fair for counselors. “It’s tools for navigating your life.”[...]
” ‘Inner light’ is a universal term,” spokeswoman Esther Weinberg wrote in an e-mailed response to questions. “If you look it up, you’ll see it is used by Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Oprah, Eckhart Tolle, Deepak Chopra, many yoga practitioners, and it actually originated with the Quakers.”
You’re right, that totally doesn’t sound religious. And if Deepak Chopra used the term, well, then there’s probably nothing flakey or religious about it at all!
I hate this vapid phrase, but I don’t think the problem is that it’s P.C. The problem is that it’s vague. “Spiritual” and “religious” each have about a dozen definitions, so, when you combine them, that’s about one gross of possible meanings.
If you believe something, say what you believe in, and if you don’t, just admit that you’re agnostic.
Well.. interesting opinions.. I don´t consider myself religious person, but I believe in good nameless God. Here you can find my opinion about it!
Cool blog by the way!
ViktoryiaN
ViktoryiaN, are you using “religious” to mean “belonging to an organized religion”? Under other meanings of the word, it’s possible to have a personal religion, which would make you religious.
Like so many issues, this is primarily semantics, I think.
hmmm…..don’t u think spiritual n religious is different ??yes!! spiritual is an mind of logistic magic n use mystic power to lead your life n religion is a faith to the god to lead us for better life .. so no religion is false i think!
This post has been linked for the HOT5 Daily 4/16/2009, at The Unreligious Right
True Christianity is not really about “religion” it is about “relationship.” No matter where you live on the planet – your color, your country, your language – you have been created by God for a purpose. You live out that purpose both here on earth and – after your body gives way to death – you will live eternally either apart from God in Hell or with Him in Paradise. The “way” to heaven is through a relationship with Jesus Christ. God does not want you to spend eternity apart from Him. He wants you in paradise with Him. He wants this so badly that he sent his son to pay your penalty of sin. Your relationship with Jesus Christ – your acceptance of Him, your belief in what he did by dying on the cross for you – is your entrance ticket to heaven. Eternal life is free. Jesus pays the entrance fee for you. It is acquired, not through religion, but through relationship. “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” *Phillipians 2:11* This probably angers you, yes? If so, I am sorry. But I would rather anger you now than not at least expose you to the truth of scripture so you have a greater possibility of eternal life in paradise.
I bet a lot of us guys on match.com use “spiritual but not religious” so as not to out ourselves as atheists and scare away too many chicks. Being too open about your atheism is frequently a sign of poor sensitivity to social cues, and this spells doom for seduction. Besides, many of the self-identified spiritual chicks are fruity new age types, the easiest lay and you want to build a bit of rapport early on.
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I consider myself spiritual but not religious. Yet, I am a Christian and I’m not ashamed to say it. I pray daily. I even attend church.
I believe many people (including myself) use the term “spiritual but not religious” in reference to the private realm of thought and experience and religious in reference to the public realm (membership, institutions, etc.)
To me organized religion is not the sole-or even the most valuable-means of furthering spiritual growth. Spirituality is a journey intimately linked with the pursuit of personal growth and development It reveals my personal desire to establish a personal, heart-felt relationship with God rather establishing a superficial relationship through institutions.
You have a religion (Christianity), so you are religious. I think when people say “not religious,” they really mean “unaffiliated”.
And actually. if you attend church, doesn’t that pretty much make you affiliated, anyway?
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Let’s get down to the nitty gritty of this phrase! The religious institutions have BECOME VERY EMBARRASSING TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH! For example: Catholic pedophiles and Catholic anti-birth control in an overpopulated age. Jewish Rabbis in crime rings. Muslim terrorists. Fundamentalist preachers having affairs, challenging evolution and good science, etc., etc. Hence, many people don’t want to be associated with this hypocrisy and idiocy. So, “Spiritual but not Religious” really means, “I am religious but I am not associated with religious institutions.”
Though spiritual and religious may be synonyms in one sense, I think the phrase “spiritual but not religious” is the simplest way of describing a worldview that includes neither a set way to salvation nor an absence of otherworldliness. Can one say that he doesn’t believe in a God yet is religious? Can one say that he doesn’t believe in God yet is spiritual? My dictionary says no to the former and yes to the latter. By explaining a concept using two definitions that overlap in many ways but are not equal, I think it actually brings more clarity to the concept described.
However, I think I’ll have to explain myself in detail everywhere I go because of people like Tellie (no spite intended) who are Christian and spiritual but not religious (which confuses me to no end, by the way). I think it’s about time we started making up new words for these non-religious religions and these non-religious non-religions.
I hate it when people say the are spiritual and not religious. I think you’re right when you say that this is basically a political thing where people are afraid to say they are christian or whatever they are. Also, I am pretty sure this just another thing that only white people do that makes not sense at all. “Inner peace” and connected to a “higher power” is such BS, I almost think this has become more of a hipster fad than an actual belief to say that you are spiritual.
Can I be religious but not spiritual, just to throw everyone off?
I think religion in it self has its good points if the focus is to better ourselves as human beings and to practice the good things it has to teach us.
I am a Christian and no religion bring news of hope, faith and love to many people in spit of the hate people have toured its religious nature and past. It also help many people in need of food, shelter and rescues from natural disasters.
Government’s are just as oppressing as religions many people where kill in the name of Hitler’s so called perfect race. Just to name one out of many unjust people. I assure you that they wear not of Christian or Christ like in nature.
To be spiritual in itself is no great thing because we are all spiritual being, but if it’s was not for the lack of love in the human heart, life on earth would different.
If people stared to love, Jesus Christ rather then make religion, government or any intuition their focus their would be alot less war/suffering.
Jesus Christ, Price of peace.
Religion and Spiritualism are the same thing in the way that a Rainbow Trout and a Yellow Tuna are the same thing, but very different. The salient point is this. Religions all claim to be in possesion of a written document authored by the creator of the universe. Spiritual people want to believe there is a higher power but do not buy the authenticity of the document.
I identify myself as spiritual but not Religious.
I was a saved, born again, fundamentalist Baptist. However over the last ten years of intense study of the Bible and its origins, I lost my religion. I have no religion. I don’t go to church anymore, (Oh and yes I have known many, many, many people who were very religious so to speak, but had no spirituality whatsoever. They just went through all the motions, said all the right things, did all the right things, and it was all for show, but had no idea what being in touch with your own inner spirit is all about.
I don’t believe God, in whatever form or force that may take, had anything to do with the Bible. The Bible and religion are constructs totally of man. The life force within you, however it came to be, you had nothing to do with, nor can it be explained, nor do you know what happens after death if anyting, other than decay. I now believe that if, and yes I say if, (which really makes me agnostic I suppose), if God, or whatever you want to call it, is there at all then he or it is simply the power of life within us all. Whatever thing it is that makes us Alive.
I say that I am spiritual in the sense that I don’t rule out the possibility that the force of Life within me and all living things could be what we commonly refer to as God. The term God may be a misnomer, or a least a misused name for this force of life.
Something it seems gave us all life, besides just the right chemicals coming together in the right amounts at the right time. I’m just saying.
So, I have no religion at all. However I do allow that the force of life wherever it comes form, however it formed, bonds us all together in a form of spirituality, which is nothing more than life itself. It is within us. Stop looking for God externally or through religion, because he/it has been there all along, inside of you. There is no heaven, there is no hell, and nobody came and died for me, or even need to.
God, or the force that gives you life is the Power of Now within you, to enjoy life now. You have everything you need to enjoy life, within you.
Definitions for myself… Religious indicates an association with a group of people many of which truly believe that their religion is and can be the only correct one and thus anyone not of that religion is NOT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH!!!
I’ve seen friends dismiss each other simply because one found out that the other was catholic not mormon. I’ve seen families break up because of religion. To me, religion is often a dividing factor between people at least as much as the color of a persons skin.
Spiritual simply indicates that I believe in a higher power and even in Christ (though I’m still reflecting on my beliefs in Christ), but I do not limit my mind and belief structure to only one school of thought. I am willing to attend any church simply for the learning experience and am open to religious discussions without the seemingly inevitable outbursts that often come from single-minded believers.
[...] people don’t even remember what religion they’re supposed to be and simply say “spiritual but not religious,” which inadvertently tricks their mates-to-be into believing that they’ve found [...]
return.