Are you a spiritual person? Many people would say that they are, others may say they are not as spiritual as they want to be, but few would say they don’t want to be spiritual. Being spiritual is valuable across religious lines, cultural lines, and is even something that an atheist or agnostic might encourage someone to be. I think it is safe to say that being spiritual is viewed as a good thing by most people.
There a lot of sources for tips on how to become more spiritual. In 2019, Katie Depoula wrote an article for TIME.com titled “How to Become More Spiritual Person”, and I believe she does a good job of verbalizing what being spiritual means to many. She believes that she is an authority on spirituality because of her approach to dealing with tragedy.
Sadly, her brother had died of a drug overdose. But because she was a “spiritual person” she was was able to navigate through that difficult time. She believed her brother “became an angel” and since he was now an angel she could talk to him any time she wanted. She said, “Now, my brother and I connect daily. I joke that we talk more now than we did when he was here, and in a way, it’s true. When I need a little extra magic (to find a parking spot or the right words for a speech), I call on my brother. I can feel his presence because I’m open to it.”
Depoula doesn’t say that everyone needs to have the same approach to spiritualism as she has. She has her spirituality with roots in her religion, but doesn’t really think that you need to be religious in order to be spiritual. In her view someone doing yoga, or writing in their journal, or meditating, or going on a walk, or taking a deep breath, or dancing, is doing something spiritual. She ends her article with the following line, “The moral of the story? When it comes to spirituality, the only rule is that there are no rules. The most important thing you can do is to follow your intuition to design a relationship with the divine that’s divinely you”.
I want to share one particular tip that Depoula gives in her article to have you think about. She says “make spirituality fun”. In this particular tip she explains that many of us went to church or temple or religious services of some kind but they pushed us away because they are boring. To make spirituality more fun she says, “Make quarterly vision boards to help visualize your desires… Decorate with sparkly crystals like rose quartz and amethyst to shift the energy of your space.” After you have done that, “Build a money altar with an abundance candle, a copy of Esther Hicks’ Money and the Law of Attraction and a check you’ve written to yourself for the total income you want to make in 2016. Top it off with a citrine crystal to help attract prosperity and success. Try it out, make it fun and make it yours.”
When we put this all together we get a good picture of what it means to be spiritual to a large percentage of the population. Being spiritual is following your own intuition to create your own relationship with a god that is created by you. When you do this, you do what you want. Why use crystals? Why make an altar to yourself? Why light candles? Because when you are worshipping yourself, you worship in the way that would be pleasing to you.
Christians are supposed to be spiritual people. Is her image what it should should look like for a Christian? Could a Christian follow Depoula’s advice and become a more spiritual person? I would venture to say that the majority of people reading this would say “no”. The million dollar question is “why not?”
Why would you say she is wrong in her approach to spirituality? Is it because she has crystals? What if she likes crystals? Is it because she has made up her own altar? What if she likes the altar? Is it because she is praying to her dead brother? Isn’t her heart telling her to do that?
Why is her approach to spirituality wrong? I’d like to hear from you with your response. Please email them to me at firstcenturychurch30@gmail.com.
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