What is Spirituality 1.Everyone has a spirituality 2.Everyone worships at an altar of sorts (consumerism, materialism, hedonism, narcissism, individualism, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, atheism, Catholicism)

SPIRITUALITY Is how an individual lives out their specific theology Is what an individual does with the fire within Reflects what an individual truly values Is a horizon of ultimate value In Christian spirituality, the horizon of ultimate value is the triune God revealed in Jesus Christ in whose life we participate in through the gift of the Holy Spirit

Challenges in the Spiritual Life Today 1.NARCISSISM – is an over-focus on self, too much ME preoccupation, extreme self-centeredness 2.PRAGMATISM – is when value is placed on someone based only on their achievement, valuable because they have succeeded 3. RESTLESSNESS – is searching for meaning and value in life; something innate drives us to keep searching for fulfillment; God drive, soul memory, searching for the Divine (According to Rolheiser, 2004)

You have made us for yourself O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” Saint Augustine St. Augustine – 4 th century Doctor of the Church Monastic lifestyle became one to imitate to a path of holiness Male and female monastics came to be viewed as the ideal Christians Flight from the world and its temptations Need for ascetism and contemplative prayer One finds God in solitude, quiet

TYPES OF SPIRITUALITY within Catholic Tradition Spirituality draws us closer to God, and helps to love others better 1.Carmelite – Depths of Silence 2.Franciscan – Love for Creation 3.Thomastic- Intellectual Vigor 4.Benedictine - Reverence for the Ordinary 5. Ignatian – (Jesuit) Stand for Justice 6. Feminine – Growth from a lived experience 7. Solidarity – Joined together to eliminate injustices

1. Carmelite Spirituality Two famous 16 th century Carmelites were John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila. They were committed to prayer and to solitude as the foundation for proper action in the world. We listen long and hard for God’s word and to speak in gentleness to others. Believers who have a Carmelite spirituality may search for a silent retreat, or practice centering prayer, and often leave well refreshed more conscious of how to serve others.

2. Franciscan Spirituality Praises nature and finds inspiration for living well in the cool trickle of a stream. The whole world is a Tabernacle. Believers see God’s abundant goodness in nature and naturally want to preserve it. Could be committed to environmental issues, striving to maintain cleaner air and water, preserving the rainforest.

3. Thomastic Spirituality Believers have a passion for truth and order. Some like a carefully reasoned thoughtful approach to faith. Would enjoy reading Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica Enjoy a scholarly approach, with history Would enjoy Lectio Divina, a four step approach to reading Scripture, meditating on God’s message, praying over it, and then contemplating its meaning.

4. Benedictine Spirituality Affirms that God is found in the ordinary Makes the everyday holy Given the chaos of ordinary life, this spirituality is firmly grounded in four anchors: the Rule (God is found in the ordinary), the gospel, the wisdom of the community, and the circumstances of the believer’s life Important to keep an inner place free and uncluttered, refreshed by God

5. Ignatian Spirituality Ignatian spiritualists believe that we have a deep inner longing for God. Jesuits encourage people to have a deep, intimate relationship with God. God isn’t punitive, tyrannical, or obsessed with rules. God desires what is best for us We learn to establish patterns that bring us peace, and avoid situations that make us angry or miserable

6. Feminine Spirituality There is a contemporary renaissance in women’s spirituality. More concerned with a lived experience, less with abstract theories. Less interested in rules, women believers often yearn for more caring and love in a hurting, hungry world. Clare of Assisi, Catherine of Siena, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Teresa of Avila, Therese of Lisieux have enriched a feminine path to the Divine.

7. Solidarity Spirituality Believers stand with each other because God first stood with us. Emerged from Latin America after the Spanish conquest; the poor have never recovered. Joined together we can more effectively bring about God’s kingdom and fight injustice. Believers such as Dorothy Day, Oscar Romero, St. Vincent de Paul, Mother Teresa lived out their spiritualities in solidarity with the world’s poor.