Why
do I need to change my approach to religion?
Many people grew up in a culture that was heavily influenced by the
outer approach to religion. For such people it can be difficult, even
frightening, to consider giving up this approach to religion. Why would
you have to give up the outer approach?
The obvious reason is that
the outer approach is no longer working for you personally. It can no
longer answer your questions, and it cannot heal your inner conflicts
about spirituality. Giving up this approach frees your mind to look
for a better approach. However, what if there is a universal reason
to give up the outer approach?
Human, know
thy times
If you step back from your
personal situation, you might discover that you are not the only one
who is disappointed with outer religion. In fact, one might consider
that it is a sign of our time that more and more people lose faith in
a traditional approach to religion. Why is this so?
One of the recurring themes
found in the teachings on this website is that there are certain cycles
of change that are occurring in the religious life of this planet. Is
it possible that we are witnessing a planetary shift that causes so
many people to lose faith in the outer approach to religion? To illustrate
this point, consider the analogy of a steam locomotive.
Imagine that you suddenly
find yourself in the engine room of an old steam locomotive. Unbeknownst
to you, someone has stoked the fire burning under the kettle. As the
pressure in the kettle rises, the locomotive begins to move forward.
You panic and pull on the brake as hard as you can. The locomotive stops,
but the pressure keeps rising. Unless you do something to change the
situation, the kettle will explode!
Let us imagine that a new
type of spiritual energy is being released from the spiritual realm.
It causes the pressure to rise in the engine that drives spiritual change
on Earth. The rising pressure creates the need for religious organizations
to change. However, people who take the outer approach to religion are
afraid of this change. Consequently, they pull on the brake and seek
to prevent the locomotive from moving forward.
From an outer perspective,
they might seem to be successful, but from an inner perspective, the
pressure will simply continue to rise until the kettle explodes. Is
this why so many traditional religions are losing members or going through
outer challenges? One example of this process might be the exposure
of sexual abuse by Catholic priests. Is this simply a sign that the
old order is beginning to break down under the mounting pressure of
spiritual change?
To change or suffer
If spiritual change really
is occurring, how can you best deal with the situation? Imagine what
might happen if you take the outer approach and go into complete denial
of any need to change your approach to religion. Obviously, the pressure
will keep building and if the kettle explodes, you might find yourself
in a full-blows spiritual crisis.
An increasing number of people
experience that a certain outer event triggers a breakdown that sends
them into a personal crises of faith. This might be a personal event,
such as the loss of a loved one, but it can also be an impersonal event.
For example, many Catholics
have become so disappointed by the Church's handling of the sexual abuse
by priests that they have lost faith in the Church and feel like they
have nothing left. Other people have lost faith in traditional Christianity,
because Christian churches have refused any serious attempts to reconcile
the Christian faith with the discoveries of science. (For ideas about
unifying science and religion, see the teachings on the need to develop
a new world view.)
Blowing off steam
Is there a better approach?
Let us return to the steam engine. We have seen that complete denial,
meaning trying to prevent the train from moving forward, is not a good
option. It will inevitably lead to an explosion. Another option is to
look for the safety valve and let off some steam. Many religious people
take this approach, which we might call the path of least resistance.
Such people might make minimal
concessions to the changing times, but they are not seriously reconsidering
their religious beliefs. Most importantly, they are not even considering
changing their basic approach to spirituality. Such people are not committed
to change; they are simply trying to prevent the kettle from blowing
up.
The problem with this approach
is that as long as the pressure keeps building, you will have to constantly
let off steam. Some religious people are consumed by the need to defend
their religious beliefs against change. For example, many Christians
are consumed by defending certain Christian doctrines even though science
clearly demonstrates that these doctrines cannot give us a complete
understanding of how life was created.
Is it possible that making
concessions to change without truly committing to changing your personal
approach is what Jesus referred to as being "lukewarm?"
Putting spiritual steam to good use
What if there was a more
productive approach? After all, steam has the potential to be converted
into work that can make the entire train move forward and reach a new
destination, perhaps a better destination.
By looking at history, it
is not difficult to see that human beings are creatures of habit and
often resist change. One of the major problems encountered by Jesus
was that so many orthodox Jews, especially those in leadership positions,
resisted his message that a new spiritual approach was needed.
Is it possible that God wants
to see change in the spiritual life of this planet? Is it possible that
spiritual energy is being released to assist us in embracing this change
and making the most of it? What if we released the brake and allowed
the locomotive to move forward? Is it possible that it might take us
to a better destination?
Obviously, you don't need
to throw caution to the wind and allow your spiritual locomotive to
run amok. Instead, it is far better to take a balanced approach and
move forward safely. However, to remain balanced on your personal path,
you need to adopt the inner approach to spirituality.
All or nothing
When you take the outer approach
to religion, you accept a religious doctrine as complete and infallible.
Therefore, you inevitably end up taking an all-or-nothing approach to
your current beliefs. They must be completely right, so if one aspect
is proven wrong, your faith is destroyed. That is why so many religious
people resist any kind of change.
When you take the inner approach,
you realize that your current beliefs are not complete and infallible.
They simply represent the highest understanding that you have been able
to grasp up to this point in time. In fact, you expect that as your
understanding grows, you will naturally gain a deeper understanding
of the spiritual side of life.
The main benefit of the inner
approach to spirituality is that it removes the sense that your faith
is threatened. Thereby, you can overcome the fear that your faith could
be lost. Letting go of a particular religious belief is not a matter
of losing your faith and being thrown into a personal crisis. Instead,
your life is a continual journey towards a deeper understanding. You
never lose a belief; you simply replace it with a better and more complete
understanding.
Holding on to the outer approach
forces you into the extremes, where you must hold on to existing beliefs
out of fear of losing everything. Adopting the inner approach makes
it possible to experience a balanced and gradual growth in your understanding
of the spiritual side of life.
When you take the inner approach,
you don't throw away or question all of your existing beliefs. Instead,
you gradually open your mind to a new understanding of some aspect of
the spiritual side of life. You use your existing beliefs as a foundation
for your journey. You never lose your bearings and feel like you are
in a free fall. Your existing beliefs are a safety net instead of a
dead weight that prevents you from climbing the ladder of spiritual
understanding.
By adopting the inner approach
to spirituality, you don't run the risk of having your kettle blow up.
You don't have to spend all of your time letting off steam while getting
nowhere. Instead, you can move forward in a balanced and controlled
manner that allows your spiritual growth to stay on track.
To learn more about how you
can know truth inside yourself, go to the How
to know truth page.
To learn more about why the
inner approach to knowledge is so important, go to the How
to find answers to life's questions section.
If you want to know more
about spiritual cycles, study the discourse on Why
and how religion and science must change.
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© 2003 by Kim Michaels |
