(These notes are from some of my recent journaling and are bounce -backs from some thoughts and observations referenced here and here….)

Religion and Spirituality are a yin and yang, one focused outward and the other inward but only really growing vibrantly into life when intertwined… much like DNA.

In worship and ritual we seek right relationship with the universe around us, with our beloved communities, and with the best within ourselves.

Now exactly how we define “the universe”, and what ideas and ideals and entities we may or may not populate it with will depend upon our faith and/or philosophy; but I believe it to be true that it is in Religion ~AND~ Spirituality, through worship and ritual that we seek and find right relationship with the universe around us, with our beloved communities, and with the best within ourselves.

Unfortunately we cannot always be IN worship and ritual…

There are bills to pay and jobs, and chores we must get done, and duties we find ourselves obligated to deal with.  There are traffic jams, and contentious matters of public policy and politics, and other shoppers cutting us off in the market, and noisy neighbors, and nosy ones too!  The proverbial Ten Thousand Things of the Buddhist’s, all clamoring for our attention and pulling and pushing and distracting us from our right relationships with the world and within ourselves.

We cannot always be in worship or ritual, but we can seek to remember our right relationships and our best selves… the Virtus of the Romans or Arete of the Helenes… we can remember these things through Spiritual Practice…