What is Spirituality?

As most people who read this probably know, I am currently back in school full time. No, they didn't find out that I secretly flunked the 6th grade and sent me back to junior high (though I'd still probably struggle with 6th grade math). I'm currently taking classes as prep to begin a PhD program next year at the Oblate School of Theology. My focus is on spirituality.

Don't worry, this isn't some weird, hippy type of program. I'm studying spirituality in its academic sense, the experiences people have of God and how they relate to theology, the Bible, and living a Christian life. Every single one of us has had experiences of a religious sort, be they positive or negative. My goal is to understand how our experiences of God, both good and bad, impact our ability to do theology and be disciples. 

For many people it is their experiences that are the primary governing factor in how they view life and faith. You can study the Bible on a particular point with someone for thirty years, but if they have a strong experience that confirms the opposite often times that experience wins out. We live our lives by what we experience and it is the lens that we must view everything else.

This is especially true with religion and faith. If someone has had a particularly negative experience in a certain denomination, it can be nigh impossible for them to return. If someone has an absolutely wonderful experience at a Bible camp they may end up fighting for that camp to stay open decades later even though attendance has dropped and things just aren't what they used to be. If someone believes, and I mean truly knows in their soul, that Jesus has told what to do it can be hard to change their minds.

Even those of us, I include myself here, that aren't very experiential people have experiences of God in our lives. They may not be emotional experiences, but we often find comfort in the rhythm of doing life in a local church. We get excited when we learn a new factoid about Leviticus. We simply are rejuvenated by periods of silent reflection and meditation. Even our doubts and questions can be seen as a form of spiritual experience.

So why study this in detail and not, say, the New Testament? Well, because as far as I can tell nobody really does in the world I grew up in. We have plenty of Bible scholars doing good work on exegesis and hermeneutics. We actually have quite a few good theologians and historians, though you do have to search them out. What we don't have much of are scholars who have really thrown themselves at the question of spirituality and experience. We all know it exists, but what on earth do we do about it?

We all know we should pray, but do we have a robust understanding of how prayer changes us and how different kinds of prayers can help in different circumstances? Do we know that there are two thousand years worth of Christians who have, like Jacob, "wrestled with God" and have deep insights that can guide us as we seek to know him? Do we read the Bible simply as a source of information or as an encounter with the living Christ? How would we even do that anyway?

Our spiritual growth doesn't have to be aimless and left up to each individual to figure out. We can face the experiences we have and see how they affect the way we pray, read Scripture, worship, serve, and more. We can encourage people to grow spiritually in ways that are healthy, theologically rich, and orthodox that are far more robust and deep than any modern fad.

This is all new to me. I always thought I would do a PhD in theology, another subject we don't readily engage in albeit more so than this. However, I believe and trust in God that where I'm at is where I need to be. I've only been in class for a few weeks now and already this is challenging. Spirituality, real spirituality, is not some esoteric philosophy but the study of where the beauty of theology and Scripture meets the messy experiences of life, and I'm thrilled to be studying it.