Beyond "religion" and "spirituality"

Contemplation and "eusebeia"

I have written in these posts more than once that, in the popular “religion vs. spirituality” tug-of-war, I prefer the word “religion.” Both words are notoriously difficult to define (for example, the term “spirituality” was once a synonym for “clergy”). Still, the lazy pseudo-definition of “religion” as “everything-I-don’t-like-about-organized-churches” or, put more simply, ecclesiastical “authoritarianism” is – in my opinion – more than matched by the airy-fairy, filmy, and gaseous associations one gets from the word “spirituality.” The latter can mean virtually anything that feels inwardly warm and floaty but can be passed off as lofty or “deep” (from “mindfulness training” to listening semi-dreamily to birdsong in the morning over a fragrant cup of green tea). Of the two words, as I’ve said before, “religion” has a sinewy and serious sound; its color scheme could be mahogany and maroon. “Spirituality,” on the other hand, is either pastel or psychedelic, depending on one’s preference; it wears sandals and flashes the “peace” sign at you from behind the wheel of “a chartreuse microbus” (to cite C. W. McCall). Religion, at least, demands something from you. Regarding it, I wrote in a previous post: