To
contrast religion vs spirituality gives us a clearer understanding
and appreciation of spirituality. The main differences of religion and spirituality lie in the
traditional areas of doctrine, rituals and morality. All religions
have these three basic components: 1) doctrine or beliefs; 2)
rituals or ceremonies; 3) morality or a set of laws governing
conduct. It is in these areas that I will make the contrast of
religion with spirituality.
Doctrine
Versus Experience
Religions
have a set of teachings which all members are enjoined to believe in.
If a member believes differently and teaches others to do so also,
he or she is labeled as an unbeliever and may be excommunicated or
put out of that religious group. Thus Christianity, Islam, Buddhism,
Hinduism and other religions have a different set of doctrines. In
the religions oneness of doctrine is of paramount importance.
In
spirituality while there are certain teachings these are not
emphasized so much as personal experience. Spiritual persons may be
members of different religions but they have the same or similar
experience. Christian mystics focus on the experience of union with
the divine. So do Hindu or Muslim mystics. They may differ in the
means of attaining this union with God but they agree that this has
to be experienced as the goal of their spiritual life.
Rituals
Versus Intimacy
In
religions there are certain rituals or religious ceremonies meant to
express human relationship with the divine. In Christianity we have
the sacraments and the religious services like the Mass, preaching
service, worshipful singing, etc. In certain religions this is so
important that a person is obliged to perform these rituals as a
means of salvation, like the ritual of baptism.
In
spirituality the emphasis is not so much on these rituals as a
personal intimacy with the divine, usually attained through personal
prayer and meditation, activities which in a sense are the opposite
of rituals. Rituals are done in a crowd or group of people.
Meditation is usually done in solitude and silence.
You
can see now that there really is a contrast between religion vs
spirituality.
Morality
Versus Compassion
Religions
produce a set of rules to follow. This is usually expressed in
written laws and oral traditions. Thus the Catholic Church has a
Code of Canon Law. The other Christian churches have written
policies or a system of precedents. The Muslims have the Shariah
Law. The Hindus have their own laws, particularly the laws which
regulate their conduct in their respective castes. After a while the
tendency is to increase the number of laws and to codify these.
In
spirituality the central focus in human conduct is on becoming
compassionate to all of creation. I was about to write "love"
instead of "compassion" in the sub-heading. But over the years the word
"love" has lost much of its real meaning. In almost all
seminars, conferences on spirituality compassion is accentuated as
the most important attitude required of human beings toward creation.
This compassion begins with realizing our oneness with the divine
and with all of creation. It is not just a matter of feeling but is
expressed in actions of kindness towards all we meet, human beings or
other parts of creation. The tendency in spirituality is to simplify
the laws, just like what Jesus did, reducing all of them into two:
love of God and love of neighbor.
The
question I would like to pose is: Which do you think is better,
religion or spirituality? My opinion is that both are necessary to
human life. Religion functions as a cement in human culture. But
with the recent ongoing studies on spirituality we are going to see
an increasing number of men and women who are becoming more spiritual
rather than more religious. Perhaps churches which have lost their
active members, as in certain areas in Europe, can shift their focus from religion to spirituality and give meaning in life to more and more people. Religion vs spirituality will increase the awareness of more people to learn more of the enduring values in life.
Here are my
other blogs which may be of help to you:
for your
spiritual growth
for your health
for learning
about the new trends around us
for earning
some income from the Internet
Here
are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy
of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website
http://bit.ly/anewchrist.
To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this
website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth.
I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much
from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.
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