Nontraditional Spiritual Practice

Ask Me Anything

Week 18: Nontraditional Spiritual Practice

How can I worship God in ways that aren't the traditional church service?
Is Christianity all or nothing? Sometimes I feel like a “half Christian” because I think that Jesus is Love and I feel the Spirit but I also have New Age beliefs in meditation, crystals, etc. I think that many religions have elements of the truth, and it’s hard for me to say that I’m strictly one thing.

Gnosticism & New Age Beliefs

These questions touch on a lot of things, such as diversity in belief and in practice. I want to spend time tonight focusing on practice, primarily because we are in Lent, so talk about spiritual practice is all around. This semester we have discussed the diversity of belief within Christianity, and we will revisit some key points tonight. This crew will be about diversity in early Christian faith (both belief and practice), how that connects to New Age beliefs, and how we can broaden our view of worship, finding meaningful rituals and practices that draw us closer to God.

The more orthodox and colonialized that Christianity became, the more we have been homogenized in belief and practice. Early Christianity was deeply diverse. Read the crew guide, Religion and the State, to learn more about the diversity of early Christianity. When we think of faith now, we think it is diverse both in ritual and in theology, however it doesn't come close to the diversity of early Christianity. The conversation for orthodoxy in Christianity can first be traced to Irenaeus. Irenaeus was an 18-20-year-old Greek bishop from the first century when he witnessed 50-70 people executed in his community. He was very wary of fragmentation and tried to rally his people under a uniform message. Irenaeus was very against the what he labeled as "Gnostics"; he did not like The Gospel of Thomas, often labeled the "Gnostic Gospel", because he believed it was heavily influenced by the Gnostics, and therefore he labeled it as ‘heretical’.

Gnosticism was really an umbrella term for a variety of early Christians who held beliefs that were eventually labeled as heretical. Some Gnostics had beliefs that Jesus didn't die (Docetism), because he wasn't an incarnated human. There was also some who believed that the world was created by an inferior being, instead of the true spiritual God. Those are some of the critiques and issues that people had with Gnosticism. The New Age Movement, draws from esotericism, which is the acquisition of mystical knowledge. Esotericism can be traced back to the second century Gnostics.

The New Age Movement arose in the 70s and 80s as a diverse spiritual group with two common beliefs: there is going to be a new age of Spiritual Consciousness or awakening, and individuals can bring about their own transformation as a means of precursing the New Age. It isn't exclusive to any one religious group, and there is a diverse range of beliefs. New Age practices such as crystals, tarot, mediums/psychics, astrology, yoga, etc. are used as tools to assist in personal transformation and spiritual development. The reality is there has been a major spike in "New Age" beliefs in Christian communities.

Statistics on the Relationship Between Christianity and New Age Beliefs:

A majority of US adults identify as Christian
80% Christians believe in God as described in the Bible
60% of Christians believe accept at least 1 New Age belief
- 47% of evangelical Protestants
- 80% Catholics
- 80% black protestants
People who are more likely to hold new age beliefs: women, people under 65, those who have not graduated from college, racial and ethnic minorities, and Democrats and those who lean toward the Democratic Party

Astrology & Crystals in Scripture

An ongoing theme in our conversations is that Christianity has always been diverse--both in practice and in belief--and it's okay to disagree. Astrology and Crystals can both be found in the Bible. One of my absolute favorite stories to talk about astrology is the Three Magi. The "star in the east" or "en te anatole" refers to an astronomical phenomenon from ancient Greek astrology with astrological implications. Many believe that the Magi would have been astrologers, who understood the significance of the astrological implications of a star in the east, and would've set out to see Jesus. All signs would've pointed to a significant royal birth. Astrology was present in Judaism, the bible (Hebrew, Christian, and uncanonized). There was actually a horoscope found in the dead sea scrolls. Origen of Alexandria, 184-253 CE, believed that the stars are “heavenly writings, which the angels and the divine powers are able to read well.” Therefore believing that we could both interpret and misinterpret astrology, just like scripture. Anti-Astrology attitudes arise with Augustine of Hippo.

Crystals, and precious stones are mentioned throughout the Bible and hold religious significance. Exodus 39:8-14 details the Priests' breastplates, which were composed of 12 precious stones: ruby, topaz, garnet, emerald, sapphire, diamond, jacinth, agate, amethyst, beryl, onyx, and jasper. Priests also carried urim and thummim in their pockets which symbolized light and protection and was used for obtaining oracles. In fact the use of Urim is one of the three legitimate ways to obtain an oracle in ancient Judaism (1 Samuel 28:6).

Returning To the Questions

"How can I worship God in ways that aren't the traditional church service?"

For many Christians, both protestants and non-protestants, we are taught that spiritual practice consists of going to church, reading the Bible, and praying. What do we do when these things aren't feasible, or are harmful, or simply aren't working? Depending on where you live, there may not be a church that is safe. Depending on how you've been taught to engage with scripture, it may not always be healthy for you to force scripture. And while I wish joy in those things, they aren't the only things. There has always been a diverse range of practices and beliefs within Christianity. I believe that worship means giving thanks to and honoring God. This can look like a lot of different things. The things that make us feel alive, connected, or reflective can serve as a starting point. What makes you feel connected to God? What makes you feel connected to yourself and others? What rituals can you incorporate into your life that allow you to be with God? This can take time, intuition, and experimentation to develop.

"Is Christianity all or nothing? Sometimes I feel like a “half Christian” because I think that Jesus is Love and I feel the Spirit but I also have New Age beliefs in meditation, crystals, etc. I think that many religions have elements of the truth, and it’s hard for me to say that I’m strictly one thing"

Christianity has had diverse opinion and expression since the beginning. We come from a history where Jewish priests would argue and debate openly. It is only until more recent Christianity that we have developed an intolerance for disagreement. There is so much space within Christianity to disagree about all things, from our interpretation of what Jesus means for us, to whether or not we believe in aliens.

With all things, expanding our view of worship will take time, conversation, intuition, research and re-evaluation to determine what suites you. Colonization has a large history of either demonizing or appropriating different spiritually significant practices into Christianity. Taking time to engage in discussion, introspection and research, that can go a long way. There are so many ways to connect with God, and while going to church, reading scripture, and traditional prayer can be beneficial, there are so many other ways we can worship. Last week, we talked about Lent, and how we sacrificing or adding a practice can be beneficial to our spiritual wellbeing. I would encourage everyone to consider what spiritual practices best benefit them, and even to try something new and see how it feels. There is no clear-cut, right or wrong way. Something either connects us to God or it doesn't. There is no shame in something not working in the immediate moment, and what works one day may change. When we hold to only church, prayer and scripture, that can lead to a lot of shame when those things don’t serve us.