Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Contemplative
Two Essential Questions for the Mystical Journey

Two Essential Questions for the Mystical Journey

Last updated on: December 14, 2021 at 5:55 pm by Carl "Skye" McColman

Two Essential Questions for the Mystical Journey 2021-12-14T17:55:52-04:00 Carl "Skye" McColman

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I was speaking with a few friends of mine who are spiritual directors recently, and we were talking about the work they do accompanying people who seek to draw closer to God.

If you are not familiar with spiritual direction, it is a ministry of interactive care, in which a person supports another in the journey into deeper intimacy with God. A spiritual director does not “direct” in the sense of giving orders, but may provide a sense of orientation or calibration, helping to keep the conversation (and the prayer) always grounded in divine love.

In the Christian tradition, it is said that the only true spiritual director is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit, who is poured into each of our hearts, provides the ultimate “compass” for guiding us more and more fully and deeply into the felicity of God’s presence, love, mercy and care. Thus, the human spiritual director functions like a midwife, someone there to provide care and support and guidance, but always with a humble recognition that there role is to hold a sacred space where the intimacy of God’s love may emerge more fully in the heart of the seeker.

So back to the conversation with my friends who have a ministry of spiritual direction. One of them, I can’t recall who, suggested that ultimately in spiritual direction there are only two questions:

Who is God?
Who are you?

If you’d like, you can pose these questions each in the light of the other:

Who is God, to you?
Who are you, in relation to God?

Just as you cannot have a healthy and sustainable mature human relationship without two human beings who are at least minimally capable of autonomy and care for another, likewise anyone hoping for a meaningful relationship with God must grapple with both of these questions, for their sense of self — and their sense of God, what is sometimes called their “image of God” — will shape and impact how they understand and experience their spiritual journey.

Enjoy reading this blog?
Click here to become a patron.

If you believe God is punishing and wrathful, what kind of relationship will you have with God? Probably one that is very guarded and self-armored, and you might subconsciously be doing all you can to keep God at arm’s length. Conversely, if deep down inside you see yourself as fundamentally unloveable, that will also constrict your capacity to truly be vulnerable and available for God’s love to flow into your life.

When my friend made this simple statement, I nodded in agreement, for my journey both in receiving spiritual direction and in serving as a spiritual director for others, these two questions keep arising again and again. Even someone with a basically mature sense of self and a strong image of God-as-Love will still find that the deep work of prayer, meditation and contemplation will continually yield new insights into places where we need healing, and our image of God might need reconfiguring.

These questions are not just for the ministry of spiritual direction. Indeed, I would suggest that anyone who wants to explore contemplative spirituality and the mystical life would do well to reflect on these questions, intentionally and often.

If you think you are being called into intimacy with God — even into the beatitude of union with God — then take the time to ponder these questions: Who is this God who is calling you? How do you experience God? What do you know about God? What are some things you may have been told about God (in childhood, or even more recently) that simply don’t ring true? Are you afraid of God? Is it possible to trust God, and how does that play out in your life? Where does your image of God need to be deepened, or healed, or transformed?

Likewise, who are the “you” that God is calling? How does God see you? Is God’s sense of who you are consistent with your self-image? Is there something difficult or painful in your life that you are running away from, or not quite ready to face? Do you need the support of others, like a therapist (note: spiritual direction is not the same thing as therapy, and most spiritual directors are trained to make referrals when a person appears to be in need of therapeutic care)? Do you have one or more active addictions, and if so, are you willing to take the steps needed to enter into recovery? Are any of your relationships broken (including your relationship with yourself)? Are you happy? Peaceful? Joyful? If not, what resources can you tap into to bring more felicity, serenity and joy into your life? Where do you hurt (spiritually as well as physically)? What do you want — what do you really want, at the deepest level of your heart? What sacrifices are you willing to make in order to get what you want?

These questions are just a start, but all of them (the “God” questions and the “self” questions) are meant to inspire discernment — thoughtful, mindful, heart-centered reflection on where we are, and where we believe we are called to go.

The mystical life is an invitation into deep mystery, which makes sense, for on a very real level, both God and self ultimately are mysteries to ourselves. We can learn much about who we are, and how we understand God, and put those two understandings together to nurture a healthy and meaningful relationship between self and God, even to the point of experiencing union with God. But the nature of mystical spirituality is such that, no matter how deep our understanding might be, it will always be suspended over the loving abyss of infinite unknowing. Some people might find that image unsettling or even scary. But for those who have a sense of God as love and the presence of God as a merciful and caring presence, even the abyss of the mystery is not unsafe, but rather simply an infinite forum for the most intimate of encounters: between the loving Creator and the beloved creature.

Enjoy reading this blog?
Click here to become a patron.

Previous Post

November 28, 2021

New Editions of Some of My Older Books

Next Post

December 21, 2021 The New “My Sweet Lord” Video is Lots of Fun, But Misses the Point of the Song

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Activism Announcements Art Books Catholicism Celtic Christianity Christian mysticism Christianity Contemplation Current events Etc. Family humor interfaith dialogue Interfaith Wisdom Interspirituality Lay Cistercians Living the Faith Meditation movies Mysticism Mystics nature Poetry Reviews Scripture silence Spirituality Uncategorized Writing

Select a Month February 2025 January 2025 November 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 March 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 August 2023 June 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 October 2013 September 2013 July 2013 May 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 March 2012 December 2011 September 2011 October 2010 August 2010 March 2010 September 2009 July 2008 January 2008 December 2007 September 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2004

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What is the seventh commandment?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Thou shall not commit adultery. Thou shalt not murder. Thou shall have no other gods before me. Thou shall not covet.

Support this
Column