on the separation of church and self

yesterday, i read a piece on why millenials are leaving (or have already left) the church. the angle on the piece was why making church hip(ster) and more ‘relevant’ wasn’t going to bring young folks back. millenials are seeking meaning and no amount of smoke and lights can cover an inauthentic institution.

and then today i was reading john a. powell’s racing to justice and i found an interesting parallel. the chapter is on the symbiotic relationship between spiritual practice and social justice. he opens the chapter with an explanation of how most people who come to religion via a western perspective believe the connection between spirituality and social justice is one way. that is, spiritual practice should inform one’s social justice work. but he then goes on to explain that many of our most impactful social justice leaders (gandhi, mlk jr.) had spiritual practices that were informed by their drive to alleviate suffering.

he then discusses the lack of distinction between the secular and the spiritual in non-western religions. and then discusses how the overemphasized (individualized) western notions of faith screws things up.

i feel that.