It is insulting to the Divine to identify ourselves with a spiritual community that is other than the personal interaction we are having IN THIS VERY MOMENT.

When I was 20 years old, a relative a decade older than me - Kathleen Mohler - said something in a discussion that has stuck with me all of my life.  Here is what she said: "When I'm talking with a person, having a meaningful conversation, and they ask me "What religion are you," or "What church do you attend," I feel that any answer I could give would be misleading, insulting and untrue.  For any religion or church I'd mention would do an injustice to the fact that - at this particular moment - my interaction with THIS PERSON is my religion, and my church."  Now, in my adult years, I am more convinced than ever of the importance of this truth.  Why do we insist on identifying ourselves with some religious community that is set apart from the sacred interaction we are having RIGHT THIS MOMENT?  Indeed, each person, event and landscape we encounter IS God's word to us in this moment; to refer to any other moment as more important or definitive of our spirituality than this is to insult the Holy Spirit who is ever present "wherever two or three are gathered" (Matthew 18:20).

While in seminary, I had a professor who specialized in the Radical Reformation, the movement that gave birth to the Mennonites, Amish, Hutterites, Schwenkfelders, Moravian Brethren and Quakers.  Some members of this movement emphasized "the priesthood of all believers," and gave special attention to what they called "the invisible church."  Teachers like Sebastian Franck and Caspar Schwenkfeld spoke often of the sacredness of day-to-day interactions with people of ALL faiths, and understood that this sort of relationship IS the true church  operative in each moment of our lives.  Rather than focusing on a community gathered together in a single place, they viewed "church" as something organically spread out over time.  Thus, for example, we might interact with family members at breakfast, have coffee with a friend at noon, engage in a meaningful conversation with a co-worker in the afternoon, and attend a workshop in the evening.  When treated in a sacred manner, ALL of these interactions are equally instances of "church," "sangha" or "spiritual community" spread out over time.  And while we're pondering this topic, let's not forget our numerous social media internet connections.  After all, that is the community which is happening RIGHT AT THIS MOMENT. In our time, the friendships we form on Facebook or through email are increasingly among the most important forms of spiritual community we possess!  Let us, therefore, make a commitment to engage in these interactions mindfully and with full attention to the divine present in our midst.

Photo:  A Ponderosa Pine is highlighted against a backdrop of forest shot through with a ray of sunlight; Lory State Park, CO; December 26, 2012