Ministries & Spirituality

Spirituality means many things to many people. Answering the question of “what is spirituality” for yourself is an important step in your lifelong process of discovery.

To be honest, you don’t need to become an expert in terminology to enjoy a life of meaning and fulfillment. The words are just pointers and tools you can use to uncover your personal direction.

So this article is only one possible answer to the question of “what is spirituality?” If these words resonate with your heart, expand upon them; if not, move on and find something else that feels right to you.

True spirituality has nothing to do with religious practice. The observance of specific belief systems, honoring of certain holy days & customs, and living by a set code of conduct are not spiritual pursuits in and of themselves.

These and other things can be part of an individual’s overall spirituality. But group values systems and traditional behaviors are no more spiritual than political affiliations or loyalty to a college football team.

Spirituality is a very personal matter. And it’s completely experiential, meaning it must be experienced before it can be fully understood.

Having said all this, what’s left to answer? I’ve carried on for half a page about what spirituality is not; so what is it then?

Spirituality is a basic awareness of higher consciousness, and an allowing of the present moment to be what it is.

I could refine this statement by saying: one is spiritual when he or she is aware of a collective, creative consciousness that operates beyond the ego mind. Also, spiritual living involves the practice of being mindful in the moment, and allowing the now to take on a life of its own beyond individual desires to shape events.

This statement is intentionally open for interpretation. While I’ve captured the essence of what I believe spirituality to be, I have refrained from providing a definition heavy with my own personal preferences.

When you know intelligence exists beyond the part of your mind “containing” your identity and personal sense of self, you are being spiritual. When you say “yes” to the present moment, allowing the senses to perceive what they will and making no effort to control what is with your own preference and prejudice, you are being spiritual.

Knowing a great intelligence exists, but making no effort to label it in a way that comforts you, is an act of wisdom. It takes great fortitude to be content with the idea of not necessarily understanding or controlling the world around you.

Also being completely alert in the present moment, rather than hiding from yourself in thoughts of the past and future, requires a steadfast nature. Humanity is not afraid of its alleged weakness and frailty; rather, we are afraid of our own incredible power, thus we hide our faces from it by living in the past and the future most of our lives.

It’s not my intention to slander religion. But I am compelled to warn that many faiths were developed to crush the spiritual nature of their followers.

People are often outraged by any definition of spirituality that omits the vengeful, all-knowing god who exists to protect and punish them. It’s a bizarre phenomenon, and it’s the result of centuries of conditioning and brainwash.

By all means take this article as my opinion. But it’s an opinion based on life experience and an honest search for the truth.

I make no effort to appease the values of others or to detract from another’s point of view. And it’s my sincere hope that I have at least planted the seed of an answer that can be harvested by those who are seeking.



By: Aaron Whiston

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In times long forgotten, people depended on intuition and psychic abilities to understand and operate in their world. The miracles of modern life – science and technology – have made our lives easier in many ways, but they have also created a barrier between our minds and our innate intuitive powers. That barrier has also cut us off from our inner spiritual core and energy. They’re still there, but we can’t seem to access them without great effort.

Spiritual development and psychic self-defense are the antidote to modern life. We no longer have to accept modern stress and conflict into our minds and hearts. We no longer have to fall victim to the negative energies and influences that surround us every day. We can protect ourselves.

Each of us has an inner spiritual center and energy that radiate from our bodies in what is called the aura. Our aura reflects our general condition – the combination of our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual state. People who are healthy, happy, and optimistic radiate strong bright aura, while people who are ill, unhappy, and pessimistic have weak dark auras. Like people, auras interact. Negative people can actually drain the energy and aura of positive people.

How do people lose their spiritual connection?

This world is full of unhealthy distractions. Over-emphasis on wealth and material possessions crowds out our sense of our own divinity. We forget that we are spiritual beings and join the race for things, for prestige, and for worldly power. For most of us, this pursuit is a losing proposition. We can never have enough money, enough things, or enough status. Over time, our natural positive nature is overcome by disappointment, anger, and even violence. In the end, the person who has lost his way finds him- or herself in despair and misery.

People in this state are vulnerable to negative energies and influences from outside. They fall into a downward spiral that is difficult, if not impossible, to escape. They begin to emit negative energy and to drain positive energies around them. This process usually happens at a subconscious level. No one sets out to be unhappy or negative. But once the negative energies dominate, some people do consciously engage in unhealthy, even evil, pursuits. Thus, we see a resurgence of the occult, paranormal hobbies, and experiments with the black arts.

How do people find their spiritual connection?

It is possible to eliminate negative energy from our lives and to become healthy positive people with the ability to defend ourselves from negative energies and influences. The process for doing this is spiritual development. It involves reducing and eliminating our own negative energies and replacing them with positive, spiritually-based energies.

The first step in this process is introspection. By identifying those aspects of our thoughts and emotions that are negative – anger, envy, sloth, and lust, we begin a journey to self-awareness. Becoming self-aware, we are able to identify and nurture our positive energies and emotions – joy, hope, compassion, and enthusiasm. As our spirit grows, our aura gets stronger, and we are able to fend off drains on our energy. We are able to maintain a strong, healthy aura. And we are able to share that positive energy with others.

Part of the discovery process involves freeing suppressed abilities like intuition and telepathy. We are born with these abilities, but we learn very early not to use them because they fly in the face of modern “rational” thought. We are embarrassed or shamed until we lose touch with them completely. They are important to restoring our spiritual connection, and our efforts at spiritual development will help us bring these repressed abilities to the surface where they become part of our psychic self-defense arsenal.

There are many things we can do to promote spiritual development and strength the aura. First and foremost is meditation. It takes time to learn how to meditate, and it can be very frustrating at first. But adopting a practice of daily meditation is the single best way to open your spirit and release hidden innate abilities. It quiets the mind, relaxes the body, and helps us through the introspective process. Practiced over long periods, meditation makes us more energetic, healthier, and better able to recognize and avoid potentially dangerous negative influences.

Other techniques also promote positive spiritual development: yoga, color therapy, naturopathy, laughter therapy, and frequent exposure to nature. Each of them helps get us in touch with our inner spiritual core and build positive thought patterns and energies. This, in turn, strengthens our aura and creates a psychic self-defense barrier between us and negative energies.

Living a healthier lifestyle is critical to spiritual development. It is important to eat a healthy balanced diet, to exercise, to stimulate the mind, and to build healthy relationships. With these goals, you can identify many activities that make you a stronger, more spiritually fit human being.



By: Abhishek Agarwal

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A person who works for money cannot be spiritual. Does it sound true? No. What if he leaves the work and turns to the path of spiritualism? A big blunder, we say. Then comes the question: which is acceptable in today’s world? Can you be a materialist and spiritualist at the same time?

From where did this confusion arise? If we analyze the history, we can see that the so-called gurus divided the people in the name of spiritualism and God. They preached spirituality as a solution to all problems in life. They opposed materialistic views saying that all physical pleasures create dissatisfaction in the society and therefore need to be voided. This leads to ultimate confusion among the ordinary people as whether to follow the path of spiritualism by ignoring the real life or not.

According to Paul Damien, modern spirituality is materialism camouflaged. This is the only difference between the two concepts. Whatever the spiritual gurus preach has a materialistic purpose. They gain by misleading people. They earn money and eat sumptuous food. They are served by many at each moment. Preaching spirituality, they are practicing the ultimate in materialism!

‘Quantum healing’ is another name of spiritual healing offered by many ‘saint’ practitioners and is gaining unwanted popularity in some parts of the world. They challenge medical science through the ‘touch’ therapy coated in spiritualism. This ‘quantum wellness’ program is yet another easy means for the pseudo leaders to catch their preys.

Modern society has grown to differentiate the good from the evil. Many self-help gurus who offer instant solutions to problems through their magical spiritual healing processes are being exposed in many parts of the world.

In today’s world, no one can be free from the ‘material’ bonds of life. Spirituality should not be taken as an easy route to get rid of your problems. Any belief, be it materialism or spiritualism, should be based on the ultimate theme of love – love for the mankind. The pseudo spiritualism does not find any relevance in the context of love and humanity.

The phrase ‘materialism versus spiritualism’ implies that materialism and spiritualism are lying at two extremes.



By: Arvind

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You go to church every Sunday and you say your prayers every day. Does this mean you are a spiritual person?

No.

You practice yoga and meditate every day. Does this mean you are a spiritual person?

No.

You belong to spiritual group and are devoted to following the teachings of the group. Does this mean you are a spiritual person?

No.

What, then, does it mean to be a spiritual person?

Being a spiritual person is synonymous with being a person whose highest priority is to be loving to oneself and others. A spiritual person cares about people, animals, and the planet. A spiritual person knows that we are all one, and consciously attempts to honor this oneness. A spiritual person is a kind person.

So, you can go to church every Sunday and say your prayers every day, without caring about loving yourself, others and the planet. You can practice yoga and meditate every day without being conscious of what is loving and what is not loving in your thoughts and actions. You can belong to a spiritual group and devotedly follow the teachings, yet still be judgmental toward yourself and others in your daily life.

There are many people who do not practice a religion, who do not meditate, pray or belong to any group, who are very spiritual people. These people naturally do caring things for others. They think about how they can help. Their thoughts are kind rather than judgmental toward themselves and toward others. When you look at them, you see their kindness in their eyes.

There are many religious people who are anything but kind. We all know of religious people who are extremely judgmental, righteous, and outright mean. Can you be both religious and spiritual? Of course! But only when you are operating in your religion from your heart rather than from the learned dogma of your mind.

Years ago I very briefly attended a “spiritual” group. People would meet in an auditorium to hear the leader of the group speak. The second time I attended I heard a number of parents yelling at their children and judging them to try to control them. These parents were being anything but kind with their children. That was the last time I attended the spiritual group. The focus of the group was surrender to God, but love was rarely in the picture! They obviously had a very different experience of God than I did.

My experience of God is that God is the energy of Love that created us and sustains us. In my experience, “God is Spirit” (John 4:24) and “God is love” (1 John 4:16). Anything that is not of love, peace, joy, truth and kindness is not of God. Praying to God does not mean that you are allowing the spirit that is God – the love, peace, joy, truth and kindness that is God – to guide your thoughts and actions. Practicing yoga or meditating does not mean that you have invited the love that is God into your heart, or that you are turning to that ever-present love to learn about what is in your highest good, and the highest good of others and the planet.

If you want to be a spiritual person, then let kindness be your guiding light – kindness toward yourself, toward others, toward animals, and toward this beautiful planet that is our home. Recognize that we all have the spark of love that is God within us, and learn to honor that love so that you can know and experience the Oneness of all that is.



By: Margaret Paul, Ph.d.

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Spiritual healing is an art of non-invasive complimentary therapy. The healer uses the invisible healing energy that is channeled through the healer to the recipient, either by directly touching the body or healing from a few inches above the body. This art of healing creates the capability of overcoming many physical and mental disorders without any medical attention.

The Spiritual Healing sessions

The common spiritual healing sessions last for a maximum of one hour and healing can be received sitting on a chair or lying on a treatment couch. The session will make the person feel relaxing and most healers offer soothing music along with the pleasant, dim light of a candle. The treatment begins by giving the client the choice of “hands on” or “hands off”. Then the healing continues from the head and will be gradually worked down to the feet. Spiritual healing mainly concentrates on working with the energy centers of the body and paying attention to any specific areas that need extra rejuvenation. As the spiritual healing deals with energy is said to be as Energy Healing. People will often feel various sensations, such as tingling, heat, cold or nothing at all. Whatever feeling the person gets, at the end of a session most people will feel very relaxed and centered.

The benefits of Spiritual Healing:

The benefits of spiritual healing cannot be explained in simple paragraphs. Spiritual Healing can help with most of the human problems as it is a complimentary treatment. Physical problems, such as aches and pains, arthritis, broken bones, and mental problems like depression and stress can be treated with the spiritual healing programs. There are some healers who are helping cancer patients to overcome the side effects of chemotherapy. Healing is beneficial for mind balancing and spirit to maintain well being.

Alternative treatments in healing cancer:

Alternative treatments like spiritual healing and prayer are increasingly popular (especially among patients with life-threatening diseases such as cancer). According to theories of spiritual healing, it influences living cells to stimulate the recipient’s conscious awareness of the healer’s intention. Spiritual healing can implement the thought in the patient’s mind that the disease can be healed very quickly.

Healing Organizations:

In modern times, a number of therapeutic techniques involve spiritual aspects and there is overlap between these different approaches. Individuals and organizations involved with spiritual healing may use many different approaches and styles. There are many training schools for learning the spiritual healing techniques.

By: William Austin

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