Monthly Archives: September 2019

Inviting Children into Spirit

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Photo: Michael Neugebauer

Last April, famed scientist Jane Goodall recalled a transformative moment she had in Notre Dame cathedral: light streaming through the Rose Window, Bach filling the vastness. “How could I believe it was the chance gyrations of primeval dust that led to…the collective inspiration and faith of those who (built the cathedral); the advent of Bach… the mind that could, as mine did then, comprehend the whole inexorable progression?.. And so I must believe in a guiding power in the universe—in other words, I must believe in God.”1

Transformative moments like Goodall describes take place in the spiritual imagination, where image, story, music come alive and point towards a reality beyond what we can see. Creative humans purposefully designed cathedrals – as well as Aztec dance, Hindu altars, Christian passion plays – as invitations into Spirit. There was a time when children grew up seeped in these invitations, when societies gathered to express wonder and awe for creation, gratitude to Creator.

Philippe Wojazer / Reuters via nbc news

Today, children grow up seeped in invitations from advertisers and corporations pointing them not towards Spirit, but towards improving physical appearance, owning material things. Is there meaning beyond our material existence? Increasingly, we tell our children “no.” Churches are failing to spark the spiritual imaginations of younger generations as evidenced by declining membership. This failure can be linked to escalating rates of teen anxiety and depression,

as numerous studies find that the most important factor in preventing teen mental health issues is an “inner sense of a living relationship to an…ultimate loving, guiding life force.” 2

For Goodall, this inner sense was sparked by her epiphany in Notre Dame. How can we spark such epiphanies in our children and grandchildren today? Let’s be purposeful and creative as we invite them into a reality beyond the material and into Spirit. After years of listening to what is on the hearts and minds of hundreds of young people, I have ideas about how to do this and you probably do too.

I invite you to join our Spiritually Guiding Young People group that will meet monthly starting Nov 1 at Loyola Spirituality Center in St Paul to share ideas and keep each other focused on this important work.

Click here for more info or to register: Spiritually Guiding Young People Group

Footnotes [1] https://news.janegoodall.org/2019/04/15/dr-goodalls-thoughts-on-the-fire-of-notre-dame/

[2] Miller, Lisa, and Teresa Barker. The Spiritual Child: The New Science on Parenting for Health and Lifelong Thriving. Picador/St. Martin’s Press, 2016, p 5-9 and p 208-209.

To Be Seen, or Not Seen

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Behind the teen’s question, “How do I know that what I see as blue is the same as what you see as blue?” is a fear, a fear that there are no words to bridge the chasm between my inner experience and yours. “What if every time I see blue, it looks like yellow looks to you?” We will never know, and so we live side by side, you seeing yellow and calling it blue, and me wanting to believe that we understand each other and see the same thing.

This past week, I told someone I am just starting to know something personal about myself. Nothing big and no big deal, I thought.

Today, I heard their take on my words and jarringly realized that what I had offered as a clearer glimpse into who I am had instead distorted how this person sees me. Being misunderstood in this way makes me a bit sad.

So much of our inner experience cannot be described and add to that all the layers of story revealing who we really are and it’s a wonder that we ever have those magical encounters of feeling truly seen, truly heard by someone new.

What if it wasn’t so rare and instead we learned how to see past idiosyncrasies, personality differences and into each other’s story in such a way that reveals the beauty of their humanness? I’ll tell you, it’s so easy as a spiritual director to see the beauty of each person who sits in my office and tells me their story. So easy!   

And then I go out into the world and sometimes struggle to hear in that way, to see with love.

Feeling sad today about being misunderstood makes me wonder about all the times I have misunderstood others and caused them to feel distorted, unseen, unheard.

There are countless ways to interpret a person’s words and what you call blue may be my yellow. But if you are telling me something about yourself, I hope to interpret with an aim to meet you in your inner experience and see the beauty in who you are.