On Spirituality and Religion

Michael. A. Rizzotti

 

In our netage introduction we have intimated the existence of a religious dynamic with an ensuing theory of all religious experience. This essay is dedicated on some aspects of its definition.

 

The most important issue in any development of a theory is its methodology, meaning: The study of the direction and implications of empirical research or the suitability of the techniques employed in it. For our purpose, the core of the analysis revolves around the text, more specifically the Bible. The rules of inquiry are defined here as non-linear. In the sense that all empirical fields that are pertinent to the development of our theory will be used. As we pointed out, at the center lies the text, which is immutable and open to scientific scrutiny. Around the nucleus of the word gravitate the different fields of scientific interpretation. These fields are: Philology, history of religions, exegetics, hermemeutics, anthropology, archeology, literary criticism, comparative mythology, ethnology, ontology and theology.

 

Methodology has always been the driest of all disciplines. It is also the most essential tool for any scientific discovery. Hopefully, the reader will not have to dwell too deep into the arcane language of methodology in order to understand the theory we propose. The best methodology is usually the one that reveals the most intricate and beautiful truths while being entertaining at the same time. However, this might not be the case for our theory. Think of it this way. People put a lot of physical strain to build beautiful bodies. Perhaps one should put a little more time to develop an enlightened mind.

 

 

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As described in the Bible, the sacred ─or the holy─ has been throughout the centuries the central theme of most religious beliefs and ritual practices. The holy is perhaps the matrix of religion as we know it. Yet the profane, which plays a significant role in the development of the sacred, has been deliberately discounted. To illustrate how important the dichotomy between the sacred and the profane is, just think of the primordial opposition between:

 

                                                       God   vs   Satan

                                                      good   vs   evil

                                                       Holy   vs   common

                                                    sacred   vs   profane

 

 

As we will see in some of the articles posted on this, the reality of the profane is as vital as the sacred. Yet there lies an even more important dynamic beyond these two principles. It is defined as the wholly other: The transcendental sphere where the sacred and profane meet and interact. As we will see the wholly other is a very ambivalent and dynamic principle. Nevertheless it is this fuzzy concept that holds the key to understanding the religious experience.

 

We will parallel the latter sacred triad to the Holy Trinity. This doctrine is a perfect example of the essence of the religious dynamic we are writing about. Namely, God the Father, God the Son, and the Holy Spirit. One notices the conspicuous absence of the Mother principle from the divine triune reality. The reason is simple. The nature of the profane is described as an excluded and hidden reality, hence not readily apparent. Since the sacred is at center of religion, the profane has been its overshadowed and segregated reality ─herein lies the realm of the Mother/Divine principle. God the Son being the wholly other principle, the result of a spiritual interaction between the sacred and the profane.

 

In essence, the religious experience could be described in terms of the dynamic interrelation between these three principles: the sacred, the profane, and the wholly other.

 

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