subject: Spirituality in the Modern Age [print this page] Spirituality in the Modern Age Spirituality in the Modern Age
Spirituality in the modern age
What is the meaning of the title of this article? Spirituality in the modern age, what is that supposed to mean?
When speaking with intelligent, educated people, the very word spirituality is taboo. It is unscientific and conjures image of dark men dancing manically around fires or stooped women dispensing magical charms to a credulous public. Or perhaps, to the more religiously inclined, an image of a robust priest decked out in fine threaded vestments, delivering a sermon admits the many hued sunlight that pours through the stained glass windows. But these ideas although impressive, are so very far from practical plausibility.
The problem is this, is there a place for god and spirituality in a time were astrology has been replaced by genetics and prayer by modern medicine? Is there a place for holiness at a time were the involutions of history become obvious and shiny suited anchormen with their boyish faces replace prophets with high tech equipment and statistical data?
Can there be coexistence between science and religion? What I want to say here today is not what most people have said on this topic. I will not say what atheists say and not what religious people say. I what to point out a phenomenon we are all familiar with as people and through it the answer will be suggested to you implicitly. I will not employ dogmatic language nor take a position for one side or the other. What I will do I finish this article with a question and you will decide where you stand bases on the observations I will submit presently.
What I science? I'm not asking what the scientific method is or the philosophy of science. I'm asking for a simple non-controversial definition. The answer is in a line "the description of the behavior of the world in objective terms."
What is spirituality? I'm not asking whether or not the position posited by various spiritual beliefs reflect an accurate objective world description. I'm asking what it is. And the answer is a subjective internalization of experience.
Science is objective, spiritual desire is subjective. (Again, this is not about whether or not spirituality is true or false it's about why we have "created" it or why we "believe" in it)
It follows form this that to understand the objective universe we must adopt an objective outlook, i.e. a scientific outlook. The question I will leave you with is this to understand the human experience is an objective scientific approach appropriate or is a subjective personal one? Are we truly unique and thus meaningful, or are we simply animated mannequins and the notion of meaning itself is an evolutionary anomaly?
