text and photo by: Prime Sarmiento

 

(In my previous post, I talked about the walled city of Intramuros in Manila and how it became a center of Catholicism in the Philippines. I then reflected on the fact that such faith, with its heavy emphasis on “guilt”, hurt my personal spiritual practice.  In this second part of a two-part series on post modern spirituality, I explained how this has spurred me to tread my own spiritual path, spurring me on on a pilgrimage of sorts)

 

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“When you go on searching all the time, the searching itself becomes an obsession and takes you over. You become a spiritual tourist, bustling about and never going anywhere.”

–Sogyal Rinpoche

The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying

 

Why do I travel? To see new places, meet new people, experience new things. Most travelers I know will give the same reply to that question.

 

But I have another reason – to follow my own spiritual path.

 

To have the time and space to reflect, to read spiritual books, to listen to spiritual teachers that I meet along the way, to write my own reflections as it's the only thing that will allow me to make sense of my disparate thoughts.

 

But most of all, I travel to find answers to questions on my own faith. I hold on to Goddess spirituality but how can I reconcile it with my Catholic upbringing? Is it possible to believe in both?

 

It's the search for the right answer that made me a bit edgy for years. I was so hung up on finding the right religion, the right guru that one of my greatest fears was that I had become a “spiritual tourist”.

 

Talking to several teachers and reading a lot of books released me from such fears. And I resolved that I will practice my faith my own way. Why would I live in a (Catholic) box? So yes, I still have the typical altar that you see in most Filipino homes – a small table adorned with flowers, candles, picture of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a crucifix, and icons of various saints. But mine is a bit different – it contains a deck of goddess spirituality cards and a small statue of the Goddess Isis.

 

In fact, I talked about this “different” altar with Rachel Mee-Chapman, spiritual director of The Flock. I sent an e-mail to her about it, and she told me that I'm practicing postmodern spirituality – deconstructing and reconstructing something that I can be comfortable with. (Oh goddess, and I though that I can only read and use these terms in my graduate anthropology class)!

 

“One more thing that I love about the postmodern approach – you can hold two things at the same time in one open palm. You can be Catholic AND be guided by Isis. There may be those in your circles who disagree,” Rachelle said in her e-mail.

 

“But you can stand in your own power and let the testimony of the reality of your life and your practice be your evidence,” she added.

 

Rachelle then advised me to always remember “functionality” – a good way of defining what I think is “right” for me.

 

“Is what you are doing effecting you positively? Does it match your life values? Does it promote wisdom, compassion, and shalom (wholeness) in your life? Well then go for it! As Evangelicals often say “look to the fruit.” If what you are doing in your life is bearing good fruit, then you’re on the right track.”

 

What I'm doing feels right. In fact, when I signed up to become a member of The Flock – online spiritual community for women – I did so because I felt it was “right” for me. It community for people like me who need to find a “spirituality that fits.”

 

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How do you deal with your own spirituality? What do you think of a “spirituality that fits”? Please share your thoughts in the comments section. 🙂

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Resources:

1. The Flock  is an online spiritual community for women.  I love being in this group as it allows me to practice my spirituality the way I like it to be.  It's non-sectarian and welcomes anyone from various faiths. If you like to know more about The Flock and "a spirituality that fits",  you can read Rachelle's post: Relig-ish: A New Tribe

2. If you want to get in touch more with your spirituality, you might want to consider getting yourself the Chakra Healing Goddess meditation* kit. This is a 30 minute long audio MP3, that guides you on a beautiful journey to cleanse your chakras, heal and feel all gorgeously light and shiny.