I was
innocently reading along in the textbook for the next class and I hit an
arresting line. Before sharing that
line, let me give you the context. The
book I was reading is one of my favorites.
It is by Richard Rohr and entitled, Everything
Belongs. I find the subtitle quite
interesting: The Gift of Contemplative
Prayer. It certainly is that, but it
is so much more. In some ways, the book
is a spirituality primer.
In a chapter,
which Rohr titles, “Vision of Enchantment,” he charges that we modern people
have a problem. He says, “We have to
accept that we share a mass cultural trance, a hypnotic trance. We are all sleepwalkers.” In many ways this is hard to believe. I do not generally think I am in a
trance. I certainly do not think I am
hypnotized. I often have wondered what
it would be like to be hypnotized, but so far have not stepped forward to let
someone do it to me. So I find it
strange to hear Rohr tell me culture has already done it to me!
Rohr sets
this context because he wants to get to the main point, namely, we need to
learn to see. Of course, that may strike
us as odd since most of us think we see and, perhaps, see quite well. I may not be 20/20 now, but with my contacts
and glasses, I do very well. I see fine.
What does Rohr mean when he says that we
need to see?
In an ironic
way Rohr has brought us to the doorstep of religion. Boldly, he says, “religion is really about
seeing.” So there, I think. If I can get my mind around that sentence and
learn to live it, I will have full understanding. That may be true, but it is going to take a
little more pondering---and maybe praying.
So let’s ponder---and pray---and read a little further in Rohr.
If religion
is really about seeing, that must mean, according to Rohr, that we don’t really
see. We don’t really see what’s
there. Like someone with cataracts, we
have distorted vision. That is exactly what
Rohr is suggesting. We see, but we don’t
see clearly. To see in a distorted
fashion is to be misled. Seeing what’s
there is key. Seeing clearly what’s
there is imperative. So what’s wrong,
according to Rohr?
Rohr shows
me, at least, my cultural distortion. He
says, “We’re used to focusing on attainment and achievement, a sort of
spiritual capitalism.” From here Rohr
leads us around an analytical corner to begin to show us how to see. He reminds us that religion is about
seeing. And then he affirms that
spirituality is “not about earning or achieving. It’s about relationships rather than results
or requirements.” Let’s unpack this to
see the deeper truth that he is revealing.
I think it is
a fair critique that many folks may see religion as a kind of attainment or
achievement. And why wouldn’t we? We live in a capitalistic society. We prize “working” on things. It does seem like things often have to be
achieved or attained. “There’s no such
thing as a free lunch,” is a line I have heard many times. “You get what you work for” is another
one-liner that often is used. That might
be true---or sometimes true---in the financial, work world. But is it true in the spiritual realm?
Rohr does not
think so. What if God leads with
grace? What if God’s first offer is
gift, rather than expectation or demand?
Indeed, in the spirit of Rohr, what if it is already there?
What is “it”
in that last sentence? Rohr suggests,
and I agree, that “it” is nothing less than God’s Presence. It is the very Divinity Itself. We don’t create it; we don’t fabricate
it, It already is there because God is always
everywhere around and surrounding us. We
bask in this Presence and are bathed in it.
Sadly, we usually are not aware of it and, therefore, don’t know
it. And that’s where Rohr’s profound
insight comes to the fore.
If God is
always and already there, then spirituality is about relationships, not results
or requirements. That is why it is first
and foremost about faith. Faith is the
way humans form relationships with God. And faith grows into love. Love is the faith relationship lived out
deeply and passionately. And hope is the
love of faith lived out in the sure and bold knowing that God is already there
and we, too, are “there” with God.
Maybe that is
why the Psalmist was so quick to say Hallelujah! Maybe that is why men and women of God are so
ready to say Praise---praise God from Whom all blessings flow. No wonder we have a hymn of that title!
I will admit
it is taking me some time to wrap my mind around Rohr’s perspective. I think I may be, in part, a spiritual
capitalist. Perhaps I am too good with
attainment, achievement, results, and requirements. My spiritual development may well be an
exercise in awareness. Wake up to the
fact that it already is there!
Hallelujah!
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