The Spirit Guide: Meditation: Spirituality versus Religion...which is the Right Trail?

What is the difference between religion and spirituality?  We often use these terms interchangeably, but I've met a lot of religious people who aren't spiritual, and there are many spiritual people who aren't religious.  I was a religious person at one time.  I no longer identify that way even though religion is, indeed, part of my path.  I consider myself spiritual.  

As I mentioned in the welcome video, I am not a denomination basher.  I believe I can walk into any Christian church and find a good message and community.  This isn't about my satisfaction or dissatisfaction with a particular church I attended in the past.  There was never any kind of falling out.  One day I simply looked around and said, hmmm, this isn't me.  This isn't what I think Jesus wants from us.  There are a lot of rules and I don't know where they come from, and why do we spend more on gold chalices than we do on poor children?  

One of my hobbies is hiking.  Specifically, I am a section hiker on the Appalachian Trail in the Eastern United States.  I live right on the trail in a smaller town that we hand picked so that my family could be trail angels to thru hikers hiking the 2200 mile footpath from Georgia to Maine.  The trail speaks to me in ways that brick and mortar churches do not.  I find the footpath to be a perfect metaphor of life.  Lots of rocks, lots of vistas, amazing opportunities and devastating challenges along the way.

When I left formal religion (the "church") about 10 years ago, I knew I had to go somewhere other than my couch to focus on my relationship with God.  Nature is that place.  I don't have to hike far before my inner mind slows down, and I just start chatting with God.  I can sit for hours in the middle of the forest and just lay it all out and listen and pause and reflect.  

When you have such a tight connection to a denomination and then one day, you choose to walk away...there is a lot of loneliness.  You know you left for the right reasons, but there really aren't a gaggle of people wanting to help you walk away...they are trying to get you back.  I had isolated myself on purpose...and I was isolated as a result.  

There was/is one exception.  Nazareth House Apostolate in Kentucky is under the direction of Fr. Thom Hicks and his wife, "Mama" Vicki.  These are not your typical missionaries (I will give you a sandwich if you come sit and listen to my speech).  They truly are an example to all missions groups....have some food.  Hang out.  One day you will want to know why we keep feeding you and you will ask.  Then we will share what we know about Divine Love.  There is not one single pretense in what they do.  There is no ego.  They are about serving people...they are not about serving themselves.

When I walked away from organized religion, I stayed closely connected with my spiritual "trail angels" at Nazareth House.  If I lived closer, I 'd be there every Sunday.

When we moved back to Pennsylvania in 2019, I didn't look for a church. I didn't really want to get back into all that goes with being part of one.  I didn't want to get swept back into the drama of church life.  It was not my calling to be part of the madness.  My spirituality didn't depend on it.  

Then the pandemic hit.

During times of great national sadness and angst (Gulf War, 9/11, and the COVID-19 pandemic), I always felt the need to go pray with other praying people.  For the first two, I had been a member of a church, but I wasn't a member of any church for COVID, and, truth be told, I felt helpless.  The power of Christian prayer is amazing in times like these.  

I could only think of one church in town even though there are many.  It's a church where the local food pantry, run by a collection of churches, is housed.  My neighbor had needed food once, and she was too embarrassed to go there, so I went there and picked up food for her and her children.  So, this was the church I remembered, and they had church in the parking lot.  Perfect! No need to get overly involved.  No one to sign me up to serve on a committee.  Church from the luxury of Abe the Lincoln.  

Something spoke to me about this church, and while I didn't want to get sucked into formal religion again, I thought fondly of them.  I didn't know anyone who went there, but I always got a good vibe from the people I met that went there.  They do so much good in the community, and, truly, you can see hands working Divine Love.  I still wasn't sold on joining, but it wasn't because of them...it's always been because of me.

Right before this past Christmas, I really wanted to take part in Advent services.  If you are from traditions like Roman/Anglican Catholicism or Evangelical/Missouri Synod Lutheran, preparing for Christmas and Easter is almost as important as the holidays themselves.  So, I posted on Facebook, and asked about the area churches and their plans for Advent.  I got lots of suggestions, and it warmed my heart that so many people were proud of their churches.  But it took a teenage girl at our December community tree lighting event to get me there.

Back in the day, I was the youth director of my church, a Sunday school teacher, a church camp counselor, and then the co-director of our synod church camp.  I was going to be a nun intending to work with troubled teenagers.  If God was going to get me to open the door of my heart...he knew it was going to take a teenager to knock.  This young lady knew my disabled son from the buddies' club at school and  personally invited me.  It was really brave for a teenager to step up to a complete stranger, and I knew it was a sign from God, so I went.

If I do ever join a church again, it will be this one.  These folks are generous in the community and really, of any church I've ever attended, truly grasp what I see as spreading Divine Love.  My hesitancy to join is really my personal limitation.  I am not ready to join a family yet, but I am happy to be the visiting friend.

So...as I was hiking in this wilderness and bouncing all over the blue blazes...God had a plan to get me back to something.  But, what was it?

I can't say I know the bigger picture, but I know a small piece.  I had to walk away from the church so I could know what it is I believed.  In all the wanderings, the one thing that never ever wavered was my belief in Divine Love and Jesus Christ.  While I have shed much of the rules and dogma of man made religion, I have never stepped away from the heart and love of Jesus Christ.  While I do like hymns and a meaningful sermon, I don't need them to love Jesus or serve God. Divine Love is the terminus of this trail.  

How do we know we are on the right path?  Ask your spirit guide.  That's what I did.  That's the answer I got.  So, for now, that's my path.

Will I ever join the church where I visit?  I don't know.  Right now, I think I am working on getting my heart right and shedding nearly 50 years of religious baggage.  I don't know what happens after that.