Whacking the wasps

Would you prefer to be known as a spiritual person or a religious nutcase? Which word combination has the most positive connotation? Take your time. Think it over.

And yes, this would be one of those annoying (okay, very annoying) rhetorical questions. Sorry about that, but I needed a snappy introduction.

In many social circles, spirituality is viewed as being neutral and entirely positive. It’s all good. Meanwhile, religion – and particularly Christianity – is said to be negative and oppressive; it isn’t considered to be modern or moderate or progressive. Which is to say, that it’s almost all bad. No, it doesn’t take long before you get the distinct impression that traditional religion is out and designer spirituality is in.

From this precarious vantage point, bad things are sure to happen in post-modern paradise if too many people get too religious. That would be dangerous and very scary.

That’s right. Spirituality is said to be a bright ray of inclusive and politically correct sunshine in a dark and dogmatic world. This sophisticated lingo sounds lovely; it gets the certified stamp of approval. We hear it all the time. Many people take it on their tongue. And many in the West also take the tonic that is implied by this term. For this is how folks with a materialistic mindset attempt to chase their bad old nihilistic blues away.

It isn’t, however, much of a news flash to say that this technique doesn’t work. How could it? But some people still try to inject meaning and purpose into their lives by way of this long shot and haphazard method. They grasp at anything and everything.

Even now, my brain is beginning to shut down and the haze is setting in at the mere mention of this magical term.

It is interesting how a limited step of faith is rejected nowadays in favour of a wild and reckless leap into the spiritual beyond. Which brings up the question parents often ask their kids in the context of less-than-positive peer pressure; a question I was asked the other day in the context of my poor driving habits:

“If that guy up ahead of us decided to drive off a cliff, would you?”

Well, no, not exactly, I mean of course not. But I did seem to be drifting in that general direction. And it’s a good thing my wife was paying attention.

Longing for meaning and direction in life, searching for guidance, some young people unfortunately do what amounts to just that. In the name of freedom and individuality, they wander towards the edge of some well-known precipice and dutifully get in line to drive or jump off. Each new generation makes the same sad mistakes.

Spirituality isn’t all bad but it certainly isn’t all good either.

What am I getting at? Simply this: The spiritual world has a well-established dark side. While making contact with a variety of spiritual beings is possible, it is not recommended. There are consequences, and sometimes very unpleasant one. In other words, you really do not want to be messing with some powerful spiritual beings. Sure, people do it all the time – barging on in where angels fear to tread. But please, don’t go there. Don’t do that.

Of course I take it as a basic fact of life that unpleasant spiritual beings actually exist. For every crank who makes this sort of talk sound foolish, there are ten common people who will tell you in plain terms that this is so. For every condescending professor who has the leisure to live in his head, there are at least twenty ordinary guys who must deal with larger realities.

And life is hard enough without going out of your way to connect with dangerous spiritual realities. So put the stick down and back away as quickly as you can.