With so many Americans calling themselves “spiritual” rather than religious, many in the Christian community have asked, “How can we make Christianity more spiritual?” That is a laughable question because Christianity is inherently spiritual. Prayer, baptism, worship, singing, communion, fellowship, reading scripture, and the list can go on. Sure, Christianity does not have rocks, stones, and other “new age” objects or artifacts, but there is a steady diet of spiritual things in Christianity.
For hundreds of years mystic, monastic, and ascetic Christians have sought to have a deeper connection with God. St. John of the Cross, Francis of Assisi, Julian of Norwich, and Thomas Merton are a few names that Christians may have heard before. Sometimes their stories are bizarre, but often many mystics simply wanted a prayerful spiritual life.
Some Christians may run the other way when they hear the word “mystical”, but believe it or not every time we pray we are being mystical. When we pray, we are praying to a transcendent God to ask or praise him for supernatural works. When we Christians use the word “mystical” we are talking about the spiritual life and we do not have to speak in tongues to be spiritual either.
One the most transformational components of the spiritual life is reading scripture. However, many find the Bible boring and need a guide when reading. One the most spiritual things we can do when we read scripture is to participate in lectio divina. What the heck is that?
