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The New Era of Open Source Integral Personal Spirituality
"Every Person has their own unique spiritual path. These spiritual paths are so unique that there appears to be exactly as many religions in the world as there are people on their paths of personal spiritual development." Rochelle Strieder Select the section(s) below that most appeal to your interests: What is the Personal Spirituality Movement Universe Spirituality is a spirituality that honors the creation of your personal spirituality! Although for centuries the idea of self creating your own transformative personal spirituality has been overlooked or under used, the core concepts of it are as old (if not older than,) religion itself. In many ways it is the original religion! Personal spirituality has long been defined as one’s most direct personal and/or impersonal experience of and relationship to Ultimate Reality. It is the one "tree trunk" that holds, nurtures and integrates all of the branches of the various religions of the world. At the deepest levels it is an evolutionary and integral viewing position that allows for many Omni-denominational religious and spiritual narratives to authentically describe an indescribable Ultimate Reality from their unique cultural experiences, perspectives or metaphors without inconsistencies. (Omni-denominational basicly means from all denominations.) The transformative, direct spiritual experience of Ultimate Reality of the personal spirituality movement is the essential core of all the world’s great religions and it is also held by many to be the single highest purpose and nature of religion itself. This innermost essence of all religion is not religion’s outermost characteristics such as its social beliefs, doctrines, rituals and organizational structures, authorities and hierarchies. (Special Note: If you skipped the direct spiritual experience definition link, we highly recommend you review it before going on further because its results are really what almost everyone is really hoping to achieve for in their religious and spiritual life.)
Active creation of one’s personal spirituality (an integral and integrative personal spirituality) by using all of the spiritual wisdom humanity has acquired as an evolutionary new spiritual movement has been significantly re-invigorated and broadened over the past 20 years because of the internet, modern communication, international trade and travel, the rise of the global Interfaith movement and the recent birth of the Open Source Spirituality and Integral Worldview movements and, all of the other modern factors that are making our shared world smaller and helping to evolve a truly global community. Where once members of one religion would only be exposed to the tenants and authorities of their own faith, today internet and communications media technology is increasingly cross pollinating the finest spiritual wisdom and the awe inspiring lives of the saints and founders of different religions to individuals of every other religion.
It is primarily this natural, spiritual evolutionary cross pollenization and integration process involving the spiritual wisdom and omni-denominational, life affirming and integral personal examples from all of mankind’s religious and spiritual heritage that fuels the surging personal spirituality movement. This integral personal spirituality movement is also growing because the soul, spirit or highest essence/self within us naturally tends to recognize the universal applicability and importance of any spiritual wisdom and truth --- no matter where it comes from!
Once wisdom and truth has been recognized the innermost part of us does not want to let that wisdom or truth go or not make that wisdom or truth a necessary part of our lives. Today’s more authoritarian and sectarian denominationalized religious organizations are having little success in slowing or stopping this powerful, natural evolutionary trend toward the integration of all spiritual wisdom. The power of evolutionary spiritual progress cannot be thwarted. Today as it should be, members of religions all over the world are becoming more independent and being more active in creating their own personal spirituality --- in essence creating their own personalized religion from the best of all denominations within whatever religious tradition they were born in or currently find themselves in. - Back to Top - The Personal Spirituality Movement is Growing Rapidly There are many other reasons this evolutionary, personal spirituality movement is growing rapidly. Many of today’s religiously inclined individuals: - value their personal spiritual freedom and autonomy more than ever. They want to be free to integrate the best of today’s rational science, philosophy and art with their spiritual values. They want to integrate the most useful and life affirming as well as the most inclusive and universal qualities from ALL world views, (pre-modern, traditionalist, modernist, postmodernist and integral) no matter what religious "ism," or culture they come from. They don’t want to be blindly forced into accepting incomplete, inaccurate or mythic or authoritarian based religious world views (traditionalist dogma/doctrine) and no longer applicable solutions from religions created for realities, problems and world views more appropriate to pre-modern, mythic civilization. They want spiritual and religious value based solutions relevant to the global civilization and problems we face in today’s modern, post modern and newly emerging integral world.
- want to prune, customize or re-energize their religion by picking, integrating and choosing ideas and practices from the most life affirming wisdom of the world's religions and spiritual traditions --- often without any particular attachment to doctrine. For some this process merely adds on to their original religion. For others while this process includes their original religion, it also transcends it and becomes a revitalizing new synthesis of both their original religion and other spiritual sources.
- sense that the direct spiritual experience of Ultimate Reality is religion’s single most powerful resource and tool for personal transformation. Consequently, it is spiritually efficient, logical and manifest enlightened self-interest to seek out and integrate the most useful and effective spiritual wisdom concerning the expansion of one’s direct spiritual experience of Ultimate Reality no matter what religion or other source that spiritual wisdom may have come from.
- sense that the direct spiritual experience of Ultimate Reality as the original core essence of religion is always freely and directly available to anyone anywhere at any time.
- sense that the main goal of all religions is basically the same (expanding direct spiritual experiences of Ultimate Reality) and, only the paths to getting there are different.
- sense that one religion or one religious perspective alone might not have all the answers or, that all current religions might be partial or complementary views of the Infinite Wholeness and unfathomable Infinite Mysteries, which will forever surround the infiniteness of Ultimate Reality. Consequently they seek to integrate and harmonize all the partial or complementary views to gain a more complete spiritual perspective.
- want to discover their own personal spirituality and/or their direct relationship with Ultimate Reality for themselves rather than be told by others or traditional religious authorities or, dogma that was created in mythic pre-modern times what their personal spirituality should be or look like.
- sense that the deep personal spiritual transformation that comes from the direct spiritual experience of Ultimate Reality also happens to be the most effective source for social and global healing and transformation.
- take their personal responsibility to develop their unique omni-denominational personal spirituality into its completeness as senior even to the responsibility of their current religion for their personal spiritual progress. Ultimately, it is up to each individual to create or earn their spiritual growth while still paradoxically waiting on the grace of Ultimate Reality. At its essence, spiritual growth always has been best achieved in the do-it-yourself religion mode of personal co-responsibility along with the grace and presence of Ultimate Reality.
- believe that the alignment of spiritual intentions which comes far more easily from within an integral and omni-denominational personal spirituality than from creating agreement with the belief, rituals or doctrines of traditional religions will better equip them to co-act with other spiritual individuals to help solve critical global and local social justice, political, ecological and economic challenges.
- believe they can and should learn to develop and listen to their authentic inner spiritual voice. This is because when properly discerned, their authentic inner voice of either conscience, spirit, soul or highest essence/self better reflects the purposes and nature of the Ultimate Reality. This makes their authentic inner voice of either conscience, spirit, soul or highest essence/self a higher spiritual authority for their personal spiritual life than traditional religious authorities. (For more information on how to proper discern your authentic spiritual inner voice conscience, spirit, soul or highest essence/self click here.) And,
- know that they are pilgrims rooted firmly on the most solid and balanced ground in all of, philosophy, science, art, religion and spirituality --- the focused life pilgrimage of continually expanding their direct personal spiritual experience of Ultimate Reality in all areas, stages and levels of life. They feel as this type of spiritual pilgrim they have joined all others throughout history who have chosen this integral and central, universal spiritual path and it’s never ending spiritual journey. While traveling this path they joyously keep inviting in and supporting more company and they keep working for a better world so that they can travel the greatest adventure in the universe with many more spiritual playmates and on better playgrounds.
- are also aware of and participants in the global 2nd Enlightenment movement --- a larger movement that integrates and supports the values of the 2nd Enlightenment.
- believe that there is no spiritual conflict whatsoever in always maintaining a keen mental rationality for truth discernment balanced with the feelings of heart, soul and spirit. They believe that the Ultimate Reality endowed human life with the capacities for feelings and rationality so that both would be used in a correcting balance. Any religious doctrine or dogma that asks its members to ignore the rationality of current science, philosophy or art and to blindly and obediently accept its myths and world views as unchallengeable truth knowingly or unknowingly makes its members unthinking dependent children.
For more information about the cultural creatives fueling the personal spirituality movement click here. The surging Personal Spirituality movement has in effect switched the location of religious authority from concentric rings of hierarchal religious authority common in traditional religious structures to omni-centric spiritual authority centered in the individual more specifically, in the person’s own authentic spiritual inner voice, conscience, spirit, soul or highest essence/self. This great change and shift from traditional hierarchal concentric religious authority to omni centric personal religious authority has evolved naturally in part due to the new communication technologies more closely linking religious community members together as well as the great wealth and variety of spiritual safeguards information that simply was not available to our pre modern era predecessors.
Today the combined omni-denominational group spiritual wisdom of a mature spiritual community regarding spiritual safeguards can rapidly help and counter balance a member who has misread their inner voice conscience, spirit, soul or highest essence/self. Additionally the already existing spiritual validity tests for how to discern your authentic inner spiritual voice from the total spiritual heritage of mankind is readily available to assist the individual to decide both how to evolve and grow in the optimal spiritual way and what is most spiritually true for them. (To help the adult individuals within our spiritual community make spiritual their own final determinations of spiritual truth for themselves we provide extensive cross cultural and cross denominational spiritual information on how to best connect with the highest self and/or Ultimate Reality Presence already within themselves and then how to know they are hearing its most authentic spiritual guidance as well as how to now they are manifesting the fruits of authentic spiritual growth. We also provide extensive cross cultural and cross denominational spiritual information, principles, creeds, codes of conduct, position papers, discussions etc. see links to left,) on all issues of spirituality or living a spiritually principled life in the secular world.)
Our Universe Spirituality holds that the direct connection and experiential relationship that all individuals currently have (or potentially could have) with Ultimate Reality (their omni-denominational personal spirituality and its development) is the most sacred, important relationship of all. We further believe that because each of us is a unique personality, each of us will have a unique spiritual relationship with Ultimate Reality, a unique path of spiritual growth and there will be as many different spiritual paths to the Infinite as there are individuals.
We believe that the authentic spiritual inner voice, conscience, spirit, soul or highest essence/self within you is the highest spiritual authority and teacher, that the sovereignty of your spiritual free will is the spiritual prime directive of the universe and, that in matters of spirituality "one size does not fit all". To help honor and support this uniqueness and your personal spiritual journey and adventure and your personal spiritual authority we have created the Personal Spirituality sections of our web site. We believe that the R)evolutionary Personal Spirituality sections of our website are fundamental to attaining success using the other share wisdom and act collectively sections of our website. - Back to Top - Results from Various National Polls and Surveys on the Growing Omni-denominational Personal Spirituality Movement - Sixty four 64 percent of the individuals surveyed agreed with the idea that "most people can grow spiritually without being religious."
- In January 2002, a USA TODAY/Gallup poll showed A full third (33%) OF AMERICANS described themselves as "spiritual but not religious," an increase of 3% over three years. There is a tendency for those who do describe themselves as "spiritual but not religious" to be among the heaviest Internet users. "Spiritual but not religious" are one of the most rapidly growing religious classifications in the United States, are one of the most rapidly growing religious classifications in the United States. The "spiritual but not religious" classification is one of the most politically liberal demographics (rivaled only by black churchgoers and Jews).
- Thirty six percent of the individuals surveyed admit bringing teachings and philosophies from more than one religion into their spiritual practices.
- Even though they never step inside a church or synagogue, in the U.S. nearly 20% of all Americans consider themselves interested in spiritual issues.
- Fifty-seven percent of Americans consider spirituality a very important part of their daily lives, according to a Newsweek/Beliefnet poll, conducted August 2-4, 2005. But not all of those polled define spirituality in terms of a traditional religion. While the majority (55%) report that they are religious and spiritual, a significant number (24%) consider themselves spiritual, but not religious. - Back to Top -
What is Next? Simple Steps to Begin Immediately Expanding Your Personal Spirituality
In the Personal Spirituality sections on our web site you can learn about new ways to expand your personal spirituality, connect at Essence, share your spiritual wisdom and act collectively from the strength of an expanded spiritualized perspective. Specifically you will be able to begin immediately by clicking this What's Next link. What's Next? “Transforming, individuals, relationships and communities—that transform the world towards a just, sustainable and equitable world for all!” |
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