1. Texts
a) Swami Krishnananda says the following in relation to one form of Hindu spirituality:
Spiritual Life, The Divine Life Society, U.P., India, pp. 11-16.
A.N. Sharma, Modern Saints and Mystics, The Divine Life Society, U.P., India, 1978, p. 133.
Behind the doctrine of deification there lies the belief that man is made in the image and likeness of
God, the Holy Trinity. "May they all be one", Christ prayed at the Last Supper: "as thou, Father, art
in me and I in Thee, so also may they be in us" (John 17.21). Just as the three persons of the Holy
Trinity "dwell" in one another in an unceasing koinonia of love, so man, made in the image of the
Trinity, is called to "dwell" in the Trinitarian God.
The mystical union between God and man is a true union, yet in this union Creator and creature do
not become fused into one single being. Unlike some Eastern religions which understand God-soul
union as total identification, Orthodox mystical theology has always insisted that man, however closely
linked to God, retains his full personal integrity. Man, when deified, remains distinct (though not
separate) from God. The Mystery of the Trinity is a mystery of unity in diversity and those who express
the Trinity in themselves do not sacrifice their personal characteristics. Therefore, man does not
become God by nature, but is merely a "created God", a god by grace or by status.
Gennadios Limouris, Theological Significance Study, Workshop II, Bossey 1986.
A Spirituality for Our Times, Geneva, WCC, 1985, pp. 18-19.
a) Whom do you consider to be a "spiritual", "holy", or "saintly" person? What are the qualities of such
a person? Have you encountered such "holiness" in persons of other faiths?
b) If or when you come across saintliness or holiness in someone of another faith, how do you
understand this theologically?
The concept of spirituality varies between religions. Also the word "spirituality" is understood in many
ways within various religious traditions. First let us consider the following texts which, in one way or
another, deal with the area of spirituality.
The spirit of sadhana (spiritual discipline) in the inner part is more important than the
outward form with which most people usually busy themselves... It is to be remembered that sadhana
is not any kind of bodily action that is outwardly demonstrated in the world, but a state of mind, a
condition of thinking, a consciousness in which one lives. Suppose one counts ten thousand beads on
a particular day, with a heart filled with rancour,... the beads are not going to do one any good. All
actions are symbols of an inward mood of mind. And when the mood is absent, the action itself has no
significance... It is difficult to make one understand that the spirit of sadhana is determined by the
extent to which one aspires for God-realization...
b) Here is a prayer of a modern Hindu sage, Ramana Maharshi:
Within the heart's cave Brahman ever shines.
c) Orthodox tradition within Christianity speaks of spirituality in terms of theosis or deification. The
following passage explains the final goal of spiritual life:
There, all alone is "I" the self-aware.
Then enter deep in the heart by search for Self
Or diving deep by meditation's means
Or stilling mind by use of breath-control.
Thus may'st thou find sure rest within the Self.
The aim of the Christian life which Orthodox spirituality describes as the acquisition of the Holy
Spirit of God can equally be defined in terms of deification (theosis). The Church Fathers, as for
example St Basil the Great, described man as a native creature whose final goal is the attainment of
theosis, "deification" or "divinization". For Orthodoxy humankind's salvation and redemption means
its deification.
d) There is also a tradition within the church which speaks of spirituality primarily in terms of Christian
discipleship in the commitment to justice. It has been said: "The question of bread for myself is a material
question. The question of bread for my neighbour is a spiritual question."An ecumenical group gathered
at Annecy in France in December 1984, to explore the marks of "A Spirituality for Our Times".
Discipleship in service, the group recognized, is one of those "marks".
It is a spirituality that is expressed in service and witness. We are to be a servant church, willing
to divest ourselves of the allurements of power, fully involved in the daily struggles of the people,
recognizing the wholeness of God's kingdom. We are to be a witnessing church, committed to the
non-violent struggle for peace and reconciliation with creation and with one another. The God of
history and Jesus of Nazareth direct us to throw in our lot with the poor and oppressed. To learn the
gospel from them and to live in solidarity with them. To confront the sinful structures that oppress
them. This will require repentance, conversion, and suffering. And we rejoice when the body is built
up in integrity and freedom. Our faithfulness is judged by the inclusiveness of our communities and by
the compassion we show to the least among us, the hungry, the naked, the sick and
imprisoned.
2. Discussion and questions
How do you respond to these statements on the meaning of spirituality? Is its purpose to wean ourselves
from the tastes of this world and develop a taste for God alone, that our passions and ambitions may be
transformed Godward? Is it to dwell in God through the power of the Holy Spirit? Is it to be actively
at work in the service of the poor and oppressed, in the work of reconciliation and non-violence? What
other understandings of spirituality do you have?
1. Texts
a) At dawn, an elderly Hindu woman stands in her dripping sari in the waters of the River Ganges, her
rites of bathing completed, her hands folded in prayer:
Adapted from "A Morning Hymn to Shiva", Altar Flowers, Calcutta, Advaita Ashram, 1953.
The "Fatibah", Qur'an, Surah 1, Kenneth Cragg, trans.
Forms of Prayer for Jewish Worship, edited by the Assembly of Rabbis of the Reform
Synagogues of Great Britain, London, 1977, p. 315.
From John S. Mbiti, The Prayers of African Religion, London, SPCK, and Maryknoll, NY,
Orbis Books, 1975, pp. 148f.
Prayer too may require the discipline of practice. Devout Hindus pray three times a day, or at least at
dawn and nightfall. Muslims remember God in prayer five times a day. Many Orthodox disciplines of
prayer aim to inculcate the perpetual remembrance of God.
What does it mean that we as Christians are people of prayer living in the midst of other peoples of
prayer? The Jewish writer Chaim Potok puts the issue powerfully in the question of a young Jewish rabbi
travelling in Japan. At a Buddhist shrine, he observed an old Japanese man, prayer book in hand, slowly
swaying back and forth as he stood in prayer. The young rabbi asked his Jewish companion, "Do you
think our God is listening to him?"
With this as part of your collective experience as a group, reflect on the prayer above and on other
prayers and aspects of spiritual discipline that you know about from your neighbours and colleagues of
other faiths.
Do you think it is meaningful to speak of a particular prayer as "Hindu" "Muslim", "Christian", etc.? If
so, in what sense? If not, why not? What is "Christian about the Lord's Prayer, which is, of course, a
Jewish prayer in origin?
Spirituality, of course, inevitably involves some form of spiritual discipline such as prayer or meditation
from which one draws strength and insight. As Christians, we are a people who pray. We pray in a great
variety of ways. We open our hearts to God, we speak and are spoken to, in prayer. We live amidst
people of other faiths who also pray. How do we understand the prayers of our neighbours?
At dawn I worship Shiva, the Lord who is half-man, half-woman, the Primeval Lord who is the
cause of the creation, maintenance, and dissolution of this world, the Lord of the Universe, the
conqueror of the world who captivates also my heart, who is the one infallible remedy for the afflictions
of earthly life.
b) At noontime in Indonesia, a Muslim man excuses himself from the company of his Christian friend
to join Muslims throughout the world who bow down in prayer. "I must remember our Creator," he
explains to his companion. He begins with Islam's most universal prayer:
In the Name of God, the merciful Lord of mercy.
c) On Friday evening a Jewish mother lights the candles on the supper table as the family begins the
Sabbath service. Their prayers include this one:
Praise be to God, the Lord of all being.
The merciful Lord of mercy, Master of the day of judgment,
You alone we serve and to you alone we come for aid.
Guide us in the straight path,
The path of those whom you have blessed,
Not of those against whom there is displeasure,
Nor of those who go astray.
God of might, light of the world, bless us with a perfect blessing in Your presence. Enlighten our
eyes with Your light and Your truth, just as we light the Sabbath candles before You, and so make a
spirit of trust and love dwell in our homes. Guide us with the light of Your presence, for in Your light
we see light. Send Your blessing to every home of Israel and to the whole world, and set peace and
eternal blessing upon them. Amen.
d) A Kikuyu from Kenya offers a traditional prayer of his people:
O my Father, Great Elder,
e) This prayer comes from the Shona people (Zimbabwe):
I have no words to thank you,
But with your deep wisdom
I am sure that you can see
How I value your glorious gifts.
O my Father, when I look upon your greatness,
I am confounded with awe.
O Great Elder,
Ruler of all things earthly and heavenly,
I am your warrior,
Ready to act in accordance with your will.
Great Spirit!
Piler up of the rocks into towering mountains!
When thou stampest on the stone,
The dust rises and fills the land,
Hardness of the precipice;
Waters of the pool that turn
Into misty rain when stirred.
Vessel overflowing with oil!
Father of Rundi,
Who seweth the heavens like cloth:
Let him knit together that which is below.
Caller forth of the branching trees:
Thou bringest forth the shoots
That they stand erect.
Thou hast filled the land with mankind,
The dust rises on high, oh Lord!
Wonderful One, thou livest
In the midst of the sheltering rocks,
Thou givest of rain to mankind:
We pray to thee, Hear us, Lord!
Show mercy when we beseech thee, Lord.
Thou art on high with the spirits of the great.
Thou raisest the grass-covered hills
Above the earth, and createst the rivers,
Gracious One.
2. Comment
As Christians, we recognize acts we perceive as "prayer" in the lives of people of other faiths. Some
prayers are spoken; others are unspoken. We can affirm from our own experience of prayer that, in the
yearning of the heart towards God, words may not come readily. According to St Paul, it is the Spirit
who enables us to pray when we cannot find the words to pray, and it is the Spirit that intercedes for us
"with sighs too deep for words" (Romans 8). Contemplation or silent meditation is also a form of prayer
or "centring".
I don't know, ... I never thought of it.
The rabbi's question is a profoundly important theological question: If God is not listening, why not?
What kind of God do we understand God to be that he would not listen to the ardent prayers of this
man? If God is listening, then what is distinctive about us as a community? Who are we who have
especially claimed the ear of God?
Neither did I until now. If He's not listening, why not? If he is listening, then - well, what are we all
about?" (The Book of Lights, New York, Fawcett Crest, 1981,
pp. 261-2).
3. Discussion and questions
If you have not yet visited a place of worship, a monastery, a meditation hall of another religious
tradition, this would be a good time to do so as a group. If possible, arrange to attend a worship event
and try to find out from the participants as much as possible about the songs, prayers, and rituals which
make up the worship. Discuss the event, both in terms of what it meant for the participants and what it
meant to members of your group who went as guests or observers.
1. Texts
The practice of Zazen became a way to develop the inner stance. Spoken word really tends to limit
God, limiting him to the meaning of the words spoken. But "centring down" as the Quakers put it,
remaining at the "still point" within, completely open to the all-pervading energy of God, was to be in
touch with myself, with who I really am; it is also to give God full freedom to help me become what I
am capable of being. .. Zazen has helped me to seek that depth, to be at home there, to deepen it, to
act out of it.
The outer contemplative stance is described in the Christian tradition as "a loving glance". It is
really the eye of the poet, or of any artist, the open eye that looks with love on all reality, seeing
nothing as unimportant, nothing as uninteresting....
Two aspects of Zen deepened this outward contemplative stance. One was the directive "to keep
the eyes open" because the practice of Zazen was not to "shut out reality" but to "make one more aware
of reality". That appealed to me as an antidote to any "ivory-tower praying", always a danger to be
avoided by the contemplative. A second deepening influence was the Zen openness to nature. The
practice of mindfulness, of being completely present wherever I am, increased my awareness of beauty
in often overlooked places, like noticing the velvet cameos of the milkweed blossom as I walked along
a dusty lane...
When I practise Zazen, centring down to that "still point" within, I am not only in touch with myself
and with God; I am in touch with all humankind, with all reality. I find the horizons of my prayer and
of my consequent action constantly expanding. I become more aware of what it means to be a member
of the human family and of the earth community. And as I become more adept in the twofold movement
- advance without, retreat within - I am growing in the realization that the inner and the outer
contemplative stances are not at all separate paths. It is only illusion to think they are. They have
always been one. And to walk in this path means to act out responsibility not from duty, not from zeal,
not from any desire to play the hero, the saviour, the martyr; it is rather to act spontaneously out of
the integralness of our nature, which is HUMANITY.
In Spring Wind, Vol. 4, No. 4, Winter 1984-85, pp. 25-27.
a) What are the issues involved in the "sharing" of spiritual traditions?
b) How do you understand the Holy Spirit, and the work of the Holy Spirit in the "spiritual" life? What
do we mean when we speak of the "spiritual" life of people of other faiths?
For further discussion of some of the specific issues of inter-religious sharing you might invite people
from a local interfaith council, if there is one in your area, to discuss together some of the issues being
faced on the question of worship and spirituality when persons of different religious traditions
meet.
Now listen to this text where witness is given by a person on how her spiritual life was enriched by
incorporating techniques of meditation that belong to another religious tradition. The passage comes
from Zen and Me by Ann E. Chester, who, remaining a convinced Christian, practised Zazen,
sitting meditation, for many years:
I knew from experience that an authentic prayer life had to involve more than "saying prayers".
Zen helped me to clarify my concepts and to grow in a more contemplative stance towards life. I saw
this stance as twofold: inner and outer.
3. Discussion and questions
Discuss the testimony of this woman. Are there other examples you can think of where Christians have
explored or benefited from the spiritual resources of another tradition, remaining fundamentally
grounded in Christianity? Do you know of people of other faiths who have explored or benefited from
the spiritual resources of the Christian tradition, while still remaining firmly a part of their own tradition?
