Dimensions of Spirituality
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A spiritual life, like light, is in itself simple
and self evident. When seen through a prism or studied we can see
that it has complex components and dynamics. It would be a mistake
to try to understand any one dimension independently of the others.
Light, however complex it can turn out to be scientifically, is
still light, that which we see and experience. The same goes for
spirituality, however intricate it may seem under academic scrutiny,
it is the life of the Spirit in us. With this caveat, let’s consider
some significant dimensions of spirituality.
Personal. As Christians each of us lives
his/her life freely and consciously as a baptized person. No one
else can live my spirituality for me. If it is not personalized, it
is not spirituality. It engages and transforms everything one is as
a person. The Spirit opens up inner processes that make it possible
for the person to commit himself/herself to the mission of Jesus.
A kind of enthusiasm invades one’s life, to the
point that one is willing to go to extremes in order to pursue what
gives meaning to life, frequently to the point of surrendering life
for the sake of life. In the Redemptorist tradition it’s a question
of falling in love. In on-going formation, we must give attention to
growing as a person, enhancing one’s capacity to love and be loved.
Spirituality does not necessarily require psychological,
sociological or political maturity. But it does entail the capacity
to let go and to take up risks.
Community. Spirituality opens the closed
doors of the self. It cannot exist in self-centered individualism.
This is due to the very nature of love. Consider this image: the
Spirit like a tailor with needle and thread, sewing together the
fabric of persons to form the quilt of community. The pieces do not
necessarily match very well all the time and the strain between
sections is often quite obvious. But that’s precisely the wonder of
spirituality, the Spirit at work brings the pieces together, makes
them one, without destroying the beauty of each..
Christian Spirituality is vitally Trinitarian.
This Trinitarian perspective is based on God’s historical revelation
of himself through Jesus as the God-with-us. The social and
historical dimensions of spirituality are not an addendum that one
may or may not choose to take seriously. The God that Jesus reveals
is neither solitary nor distant. To have been created in God’s image
means basically that we are created in the image of the first of all
communities.
History and Culture. Spirituality manifests
itself in persons and communities, all of which have a history and
live in a specific culture. Spirituality cannot but express itself
culturally and historically. Time, space and eternity have unique
meanings in the now lived as kairos. Each culture,
each historical period has its own questions and demands.
Spirituality seeks an authentic response to them.
It is the Spirit who offers the capacity to
transcend the negative and the limiting factors of culture and
history and helps us discern the plan of the Father in them. It is
the Spirit that helps us see in people, cultures and historical
moments other than one’s own where God has been present and acting.
It is one and the same Spirit that leads us through history and in
the most diverse cultures.
Creation. Post-modernity has emphasized that
human beings are not the center of creation. As Christians we
believe that it is the dynamic presence of the God who is Love which
brings all together in a unique relationship. All of creation
proceeds from God and is to be considered as a whole: everything and
all are linked and this link is to be respected and promoted if life
is to continue this side of eternity. The ecological movements have
made us conscious of how intricately humanity is bound to the rest
of creation.
Again, these dimensions are not separate
compartments that come loosely together. They are understood as
intertwined intimately in a person’s life. As we open our being to
the action of the Spirit we allow the Spirit to be the teacher that
walks us along the pilgrimage of life. We learn to see, understand
and experience reality from the perspective of Jesus and his
mission. The problems encountered in life are faced and recognized
as challenges from the perspective of the mystery of God’s salvific
and liberating presence. We assume all mediations (psychological,
sociological, pastoral, political, etc.) with a view to the
fundamental option that gives meaning and strength to our efforts.
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