New Pathways to God

By Hanusia Tkaczyk

Religious changes have been particularly accelerated in the 20th century. People in Western society at least, have taken the question of theology into their own hands, rather than accepting what they inherited or what authority dictated to them. Four recent developments stand out for me on the concept of God: Buddhism, Feminine Spirituality, symbolism and what I call self-directed spirituality. They stand out because of their current popularity among seekers and because of key characteristics that avoid many of the pitfalls of traditional religion.

BUDDHISM
Buddhism is an ancient religion but drifted into the West slowly, seeing a definite increase as the Vietnam conflict made Eastern culture more available to us. Its current appeal may be largely due to the fact that it is “uncontaminated by inadequate theism” (Armstrong p. 211). Unlike many other religions, it has no Supreme Being to argue about, whose nature and rules have been the source of endless debate, controversy and inquisitions against heretics. There is no enforcement of practice through guilt or fear of punishment and it allows much individual variation in the living out of the basic tenets. Its four noble truths are that:

1. life means suffering,
2. the origin of suffering is attachment (to ideas, persons, objects, power)
3. that this suffering can end through following
4. the eight-fold path, whose elements are broadly painted as wisdom, ethical conduct and mental development .

This is an eminently practical approach to religion and grew in the Western world at a time when civil liberties and intellectual freedom had spread beyond the halls of academia and spilled well out into the streets. The popular media likes to trash it as meaningless, because it has so few rules, yet its appeal is broad and its practitioners report finding much peace and guidance in its embrace. It values of non-violence and karma (the accumulation of good or bad outcomes based on previous actions) appeal to people with a sense of responsibility for the environment and for good human relationships. Buddhism’s practice of meditation is eminently appealing to the stressed out, multi-tasking person who needs to change his/her life. It relies on teachers and mentors but does not get bogged down in the self-righteous doctrinal debates of some other religions. Even if many adherents do not but into all of it (the reincarnations of the Dalai Lama, for instance) , it remains one of the most popular and satisfying choices of the modern religious seeker.

FEMININE SPIRITUALITY
Secondly, there has been a veritable explosion of FEMININE SPIRITUALITY in the 20th century. One can hardly open a newspaper or browse a bookstore without seeing references to women’s spirituality groups, The Goddess or Wicca. It has even become safe enough to enter popular culture - witness films and TV programs such as Practical Magic, The Witches Of Eastwick and Charmed. Not that these are necessarily accurate representations of this movement, but the point is that they have become acceptable enough to be common.

Many men have trouble understanding all the fuss. I will attempt to clarify on behalf of my Sisters. Regardless of official Christian teaching that God has no gender, we are absolutely inundated with images and wording that makes it very clear which gender is associated with the power of God . So, men are not conscious of the fact their religion styles them as a copy of the Great Being, but makes women “ the other”. Author Barbara G. Walker said it well: “Women can be wife of the flesh, mother of the flesh, Temptress, particularly of the (male) flesh or purified virgin renouncing the flesh….” She goes on to make clear that Woman is not seen as having been made in the image of the Divine. The upsurge of Feminine Spirituality has given women an opportunity to experience divinity as relating to themselves, their physical image of humanity and their unique way of being in the world, their viewpoints and sensibilities.

I would emphasize that feminine spirituality allows women to embrace their womanhood, which the religions of The Book (Christianity, Judaism and Islam) have associated with sexual temptation, uncleanliness and primitive, animal instinct. To experience one’s body as a divine gift for the first time is to feel as if one has finally come home.

Further exploration of feminine religion reveals that it is less concerned with hierarchy, control, “thou shalts” and arguments about the correct conceptualization of God. It is more likely to honour the direct experience of God’s presence and immanence, and to rely more on the deep, intuitive connection with God. Again, these appeal to women who are tired of the oppression and limitations of a masculine-based and male-controlled religion

One form it has taken is that of neo-paganism, which although not necessarily exclusive of men, is by and large a feminine phenomenon. I am very cognizant of the fact that for most people, paganism (aka witchcraft, Wicca and The Craft) are associated with devil-worship and orgies (at worst) or silly spell-casting (at best). This picture is patently false, although the civil and religious propaganda machine which created it can pride itself on stunning effectiveness of many centuries’ duration.

The discussion of the Christian Church’s campaign against women (and men) who worshipped in the old religion is a long story, not for this discussion. Suffice it to say that Paganism, in whatever form, is a religion that sees God in all aspects of Nature and of Life. It celebrates natural cycles of Life-Death-Rebirth. It is largely free of the complex and divisive theological debates for which Christianity is well known and is highly conducive to individual practice.

Paganism is not a singular phenomenon. There are many types, schools or versions. The term Wicca refers to a European version of the religion. The word itself is thought to originate in the Anglo-Saxon term for “wise one” , indicating a practitioner wise in the ways of Nature and the mysterious ways of the divine. This religion was largely an oral tradition, so few writings exist clarifying its beliefs and practices. Early Feminist historical theory held that Christianity drove the old Nature religion underground and that Paganism in the 20th century and beyond is a revival of it. That theory has largely fallen into disrepute. The prevailing current opinion is that Neo-Paganism is a well-meaning but very modern re-creation of a Nature- based religion. It values the natural cycles of life and adjures its practitioners to harm no one, but beyond that to do as they will. For a full treatment of paganism in the modern world, including history, sects, beliefs and practices, I highly recommend journalist Margot Adler’s work, DRAWING DOWN THE MOON.

THE SYMBOLIC APPROACH
A third and very interesting approach can be described as symbolism . On the intellectual plane, we have seen much interest in Joseph Campbell’s popularization of mythology . The great psychiatrist Carl G. Jung found fascinating patterns of stories across cultures that fell into a highly recognizable patterns of basic characters and plots. He theorized that this indicated some basic psychological concepts that were hard-wired into humanity, hence they emerged in every place and time. Many people rejecting the limitations and weaknesses of religious groups, have found themselves drawn into the deep and satisfying world of myth. The approach is less literal and doctrinal than conventional religion, thus less prone to oppression and competition about whose God is right and which group is going to Hell.

Several modern theologians, Tom Harpur and Bishop John Spong among them, advocate that we stop arguing about the authenticity of a literal reading of Scripture. The way the Bible was written and its likely purposes at the time, explains the many contradictions and interpretations. They urge us to stop haggling over details such as whether Jesus was married or whether he spoke against premarital sex or the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin. They ask instead, that we hear and honour the key aspects of the message : of a life based on love (not fear or mere obedience) and that we look beyond familial and tribal loyalties to see that we are all children of God. We don’t need Carbon-14 dating or forensic anthropologists to prove the truth of these values.

“So being a disciple of this Jesus does not require me to make literalized creedal affirmations in propositional forms about the reality of the theistic God who supposedly invaded our world and who lived among us for a time on the person of Jesus. It only requires me to be empowered by him to imitate the presence of God in him by living fully, loving wastefully and by having the courage to be all that God created me to be. (Spong p 132)

This is the type of religion advocated by many liberal branches of Christianity, such as the United Church of Canada. It is more palatable to Christians who are younger, educated in critical thinking, conscious of the difference between religion and faith and therefore less likely to simply obey an established hierarchy. Many are aware of the incongruities and outright contradictions in Christian scripture and scholarship. Others are simply disillusioned with Christianity’s past missteps and limitations. Even so, the idea of following the dictated teachings of a historical Jesus die hard and many of the older generations still stick to their fairly literal readings of both the history and the Scriptures. Even in liberal churches, pastors educated in modern theology hesitate to fully proclaim the non-literalist, symbolic approach. It is implied and the underlying messages are emphasized but not always clearly declared. The way forward for liberal Christians is still not easy.

DO-IT-YOURSELF
Perhaps the most unexpected development in the search for God has been the 20th century’s self-directed spirituality. Millions of people are pursuing their own, independent relationship with God . They may follow the path laid out by one religion or may literally borrow beliefs and practices from several sources. This approach is the target of much derision, as it makes no sense whatsoever to people still invested in the idea that if one religion is correct, the others must be wrong. They call it a smorgasbord approach, or “You believe in everything so you believe in nothing.” This is classic masculine all/none thinking.

Many self-directed religions seekers are simply not prepared to argue the truth or superiority of any given religion. They see religious beliefs and practices as merely the means to an end. In this respect they are like the mystics, who sought to experience directly the immediate presence of God. Self-directed may or may not mystical, but it certainly NOT mired in sectarian struggles. Some who are self-directed , experiment with techniques and views from other religions while maintaining a major commitment to one religion. They, like the mystics, want to approach God without the middle-man.

Andrew Harvey’s book THE DIRECT PATH is a good example of the latter. Harvey outlines his own experience in a multi-faith household in India. He developed a comfort with several spiritual traditions, but was almost undone by a bad experience with a guru. Ultimately, he argues, we need to carve out our own relationship with God and not rely on prophets or priests, however compelling, to define it for us. Harvey’s book is a compendium of prayers, rituals and spiritual exercises from Zen Buddhism, Sufism, Ignatian spirituality and Hinduism, with yogic practices and T’ai Chi. He and others like him, show the seeker a variety of pathways that can be taken to explore and perhaps even answer our own God question.

Many do-it-yourselfers are not members of any religions community. One community that stands out is Unitarian Universalist church. Emerging from Protestant Christianity it has become a unique religious organization, in that it does not demand obedience to one particular set of doctrines. Members are asked to adhere to a covenant about the sacredness of life, the individual right to search for the Divine (in whatever form that takes), to social responsibility and the use of reason in the search for truth. There is no creed and there are no prescribed rituals, but there is a highly democratic process of governance. Form one Sunday to the next one might see services whose orientation is Christian, Humanist, Pagan, Jewish, environmental or coming from an approach of social responsibility . Not surprisingly, it has large appeal among liberal religious thinkers. Among members of the more liberal Christian churches, one will also find people who do not buy in 100% to the formal theology, but who find comfort, purpose and community within the walls of a that church. This personalized accommodation rather than full-fledged obedience is the hallmark of the new approach to religion.

CONCLUSION

The forgoing is a brief sample of the more popular religious movements which are an alternative to traditional or fundamental Christianity. All take their root in an established religion, but branch beyond it. They are an example of the evolution of religion -incorporating new developments in thinking, governance and right relationship among people, while maintaining the values, experience and sense of meaning which are so central to the religious experience. Despite the problems of many religious movements, human beings continue to need meaning beyond themselves and they search for this in communities of other seekers. These days, the search is more varied and individualized, but no less valuable.

References:

Adler, Margot DRAWING DOWN THE MOON (New York : Penguin Books, 1986

Harpur, Tom GOD HELP US (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1992)

Harvey, Andrew THE DIRECT PATH Creating a Personal Journey to the Divine Using the World's Spiritual Traditions ( Broadway , 2001)

Smith, Houston THE RELIGIONS OF MAN (New York: Harper and Row 1958).

Spong, John Shelby WHY CHRSITIANITY MUST CHANGE OR DIE (New York: Harper-Collins, 1998)

Walker, Barbara G. WOMEN’S RITUALS ( San Francisco : Harper, 1990)

Internet sources:

www.beliefnet.com - Buddhism
www.cuc.ca (Canadian Unitarian Council)
www.uua.org (Unitarian Universalists Association – American )
www.thebigpicture.com (Buddhism material)