Do you remember a few years ago when there was that buzz phrase everywhere? “Spiritual but not religious?” In one sense, they were reacting to the fact that they met many people that were “religious but not spiritual.” Then, for a short while I saw the phrase, “spiritual AND religious” make it’s rounds.
Well, I would like to suggest an update.
“Spiritual but not institutional.”
Perhaps it is a nuanced take on, “spiritual AND religious” but these days, it is where I am at: “Spiritual but not institutional.”
It’s an Exciting Time
In the West, we are at a historic juncture of civilization… institutional trust is at an all time low. It isn’t that people don’t want to join things, far from it. Since January of this year I have met with literally dozens of people that have said to me, “John, I would love to join a community somewhere, it is just that I cannot find one that is not problematic.”
And just in case you want to respond with, “You can’t find some place that doesn’t have problems.” I would like to ask you to sit and listen with some of the people I have met. The reality is that people are holding institutions accountable to a faster and more public degree than ever before. Younger generations want nothing to do with institutions that do not know how to hold themselves accountable. Younger generations want to belong to places/groups/communities that not only do good but are good to their people, employees, and those outside of it.
The “Radical Traditionalist”
Just a little bit ago I showed my Mom two paragraphs about John the Baptist from Father Richard Rohr. In it, he calls John the Baptist a “radical traditionalist.” John the Baptist was so radically devoted to the Torah and the Prophets that it made him a problem point for the Temple institution, yet they knew that they could not hold him accountable because he was actually holding the Temple institution accountable!
John the Baptist actually baptized people out in the wilderness, which was in some sense a veiled critique of the Temple system. All this goes to say that it was astounding that Jesus went OUT OF THE TEMPLE to be baptized. It was as if Jesus was validating and affirming John the Baptist’s critique of the institution.
The Gospel of John’s Deconstructing of the Institution
Not only that, but I was recently doing some personal research on the Gospel of John. Of the four Gospels, it was the last one written, and clearly seems to be motivated in establishing a faith that is centered around the Christ rather than the Temple.
Think about it. The Wedding in Cana, the jars for purification are upgraded into being jars for wine. Nicodemus is exploring something beyond his Temple Pharasaism. The Woman at the Well is told that people will “worship in spirit and truth” and not on a particular mountain (inferring the Temple in Jerusalem). The Pharisees in John 5 are told they are putting too much faith in the Scriptures. The 5000 are fed, but in a way that actually points to the body and blood of Jesus.
It goes on.
John’s Gospel seems concerned with showing that the trajectory of the Christian faith was always about putting faith in the Christ and not in the institution… however, over the centuries we have consistently put back up on a pedestal the institution more than the ekklesia… and people are tired of the abusive rigidity of the institution.
So maybe…
Just maybe…
Being “spiritual but not institutional” is actually closer to the Jesus tradition than those who get paychecks from the institution want you to know about.
Perhaps I am cynical. Perhaps I am overreaching to make a point. I have been burned… badly… twice… by the institution… and yet I feel more devoted to the Jesus tradition than ever before in my life.
So if any of this resonates with you…
Join me in being “spiritual but not institutional.”
Because even Jesus was baptized outside the Temple.
Some Links to Check Out
Join my free weekly email, which often talks about these kind of things.
Check out my commentary on Nicodemus in John 3.
