Interfaith spirituality can be defined as a spirituality that finds inspiration from within instead of looking outside for guidance and approval. Like anything living, spirituality needs care and feeding for continued growth. Because long-held or habitual spiritual practices might become too comfortable, it is good to confirm that such practices are still life-affirming.
This process is described by Brother David Steidl-Rast, who observed a “distinction between being rooted in [our] tradition and being stuck in it. The point is to have roots that nourish, rather than a desperate clinging that chokes off real spiritual vitality.” Wayne Teasdale continues, “Spirituality is always about what nourishes. Tradition is useful as long as it enhances and serves the inner life. When it becomes an obstacle, we need to rethink the hold our religion has on us.”
Religious discernment can uphold a long-held faith tradition, or it can point towards exploring other communities. As a spirituality without borders, Interfaith supports this process. Interfaith trusts the soul to recognize wisdom that speaks to its truth. Openness to truth means being open to new religions, and practices—and being open to the very possibility of change.
To experience another faith tradition can be like traveling to a foreign country. Some sights and sounds may be endearing, or perhaps challenging. Likes or dislikes will arise, yet most important is the experience itself, as the experience of exploration and travel is what expands perspective.
A similar process happens when exploring other religions. Personal spirituality cannot help but be affected. By embracing Interfaith spirituality, the veil of duality is lifted. We recognize that we are on the same journey, although traveling different paths.
As theologian Matthew Fox says, “The implication is that every tradition accomplishes like things in the soul of individuals—so alike are the things accomplished that we become mirrors to one another. We can see ourselves in one another.”
Yet to travel the inner journey means personal “stuff” will likely emerge that needs to be dealt with. I am referring to woundings that have not healed. For me, it was easier to embrace new religious traditions and turn my back on the past because “new” meant possibility but the past held hurts.
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A few years ago, after I decided to leave my childhood religion, feelings surrounding this choice were still unresolved. The decision to divorce myself from church hierarchy was easy, but leaving a community of people who had provided support and love was particularly painful. I wanted to run away from this emotional mess and move on.
However, the anger didn’t go away. It would pop up like a jack-in-the-box at the least provocation. I couldn’t ignore my past; I had to find a way through.
The first step in healing was to admit woundedness. Before I had done this, my old habit was to spew bitterness and complain, which made me feel self-righteous and hid my vulnerability. I had struggled to resolve this inner dilemma intellectually by creating a ledger in my mind which listed things from my old religion that were worth keeping and things to throw out.
Trying to be analytical by identifying and extricating specific elements did not work. A shift finally occurred when a friend told me that I had to let go of trying to analyze and control. She said that part of life is learning to live with the mystery of allowing Spirit to work without expecting a detailed explanation.
Instinctively I knew she was right. However, I did not know how to end the tape that kept playing in my head. Then one day, while practicing a newly learned form of prayer, a meditation came to me that proved helpful in releasing control. This simple meditation disengaged the intellect and invited Spirit to heal.
A "Tea Cup Meditation" for Personal Interfaith Healing
What follows is a description of what I call my tea cup meditation. Only a cup, hot water and a tea bag are needed.
In my case, the tea bag symbolically contained the hurts inflicted by my childhood religion; it also contained the hope of a new, yet unrealized relationship of peace. On each side of the tag that was attached to the string that held the tea bag, I drew a symbol to represent these two conflicting elements. Hot water that filled the cup represented Spirit, invisible yet present.
As the tea bag was immersed, elements that used to stand apart (my hurt and my hope for peace) were married. Letting go of control opened my heart to change. This meditation wasn’t just symbolic, it was embodied prayer.
After a few days of practicing this meditation, integration and healing mysteriously took root. By embracing an Interfaith perspective, my soul was nourished. Using Wayne Teasdale’s words, my experience of becoming Interfaith was “…a spiritual renaissance in which, standing on my own two feet, I took responsibility for my spiritual life.” The tea cup meditation that emerged from my new prayer practice facilitated my surrender to Spirit.
Interfaith spirituality challenged me to find my truth. It took courage to face and deal with hurts I would rather have ignored. This freed me from a longtime spiritual habit of looking outward towards a religious authority for guidance. I trusted that I would be led to my own unique experience of healing, and Spirit did not disappoint.
As a closing, I offer the following poem by the Sufi poet Rumi, which beautifully summarizes the personal impact Interfaith spirituality has had on me:
"I have put duality away
and see the two worlds as one,
One I seek, One I know
One I see, One I call…
He is the outward, he is the inward,
Out beyond duality,
we have a home, and it is Glory…
This is the time of union,
the time of eternal beauty.
Abandon your stagnant pool
for the running waters of life…
from the world of separation to the world of union."
Works Cited
Fox, Matthew, One River, Many Wells, New York: Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, 2000.
Teasdale, Wayne, The Mystic Heart, Novato, California: New World Library, 1999.