\nYears ago, I mentioned to someone I was religious. “You mean spiritual,” they said. I wondered why they felt the need for such a correction, but didn’t argue. I thought they were being philosophical.<\/p>\n
\nThat concept of being spiritual, vs religious, has echoed in my head ever since. At this time of year, with such religious\/spiritual undertones, it becomes even more irresistible. What, indeed, is the difference between religious and spiritual, and can one be both?<\/p>\n
\nI read a contrast between spiritual and religious over at mindvalley.com<\/a>. It pretty much says what I expected: spirituality is based on cultivating awareness about the truths all around us that we can’t physically see, whereas a religion gives truths that are already known. Spirituality is open-ended compared to religion.<\/p>\n \nDuring the Christmas – aka, Holiday – season, so many people are seeing Christmas decorations and such; yet, to many, Christmas is outside their culture. As I read the Bible more, I confess Christmas as we see it today is further outside of my beliefs as well. I am sure Jesus was born, but the customs we have today that surround Christmas seem distant from Jesus’s story.<\/p>\n Religious, spiritual, or other, I suppose the idea could be to enjoy the pretty lights at night and believe that it comes from a good place and\/or will lead to good. The God of the Bible loves doing good in circumstances where people are distracted.<\/p>\n \nHappy Holidays, and Merry Christmas:)<\/p>\nJack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane,<\/a> Campbell River, BC.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Self-tutoring about beliefs that some might call religious, but others, spiritual: the tutor begins. Years ago, I mentioned to someone I was religious. “You mean spiritual,” they said. I wondered why they felt the need for such a correction, but …<\/p>\n