This lesson aims to introduce students to the

concept of spirituality, which we can describe

as the experience of conscious involvement in
the project of life- integration through self-
transcendence toward the ultimate value one
perceives. Spirituality is a vital part of the
theological activity. Therefore, misconceptions
regarding spirituality and religion will be
addressed in light of practical theology.
At the end of the lesson, the ReEd1 students are
expected to:
 Explain spirituality as the experience of
conscious involvement in the project of life-
integration through self- transcendence toward
the ultimate value one perceives;
 Distinguish and relate spirituality and religion,
presenting the need for both roots and wings in
the life of faith as well as in theology; and
 Appraise the necessity of practice in faith,
considering the approach of practical theology.
Search in ways by which
we can make discoveries,
and discover in ways by
which we keep on
searching.
For many of us, talk about spirituality results in
descriptions that come off as nebulous and vague.
What do we actually mean when we speak of
“spirituality”? Theologian Peter Feldmeier, who
specializes in Christian spirituality and comparative
theology, describes the obscurity of spirituality as
follows:
Modern interest in spirituality is big and growing.
One needs only to enter a major bookstore to find
a plethora of books devoted to the subject. These
include works on religious doctrine, the new age
movement, mysticism, self-help books, and many
other subjects. Many are practical, dealing with
such topics as how to pray, how to infuse
marriage with religious meaning, or how to
develop a twelve-step spirituality.
Peter Feldmeier, Christian Spirituality: Lived Expressions in the Life of the Church (Winona,
MN: Anselm Academic, 2015), 7.
Theologian Willian Spohn shares what he believes
people mean when they say they are “spiritual but
not religious.”
 The person is interested in religious experience but
cannot find it in the Church
 Many experience a hunger for something more for
life that they cannot live without
 Some have found that Churches promise a vital
relationship with God but fail to deliver on the
promise
 For so many young people, religion represents
rigidity and inflexibility that is not consonant with
their search for meaning in the world
William Spohn. “The Need for Roots and Wings: Spirituality and
Christian Ethics.” Theology Digest 47. no. 4 (Winter 2000): 327
Sandra Schneiders, one of the foremost experts on
the study of spirituality, describes three ways
people view the relationship between spirituality
and religion.
➢ The first perspective views religion and
spirituality as “ strangers to the banquet of
transcendence who never actually meet or
converse.”
➢ The second perspective views religion and
spirituality as “ rivals, if not enemies , vying for
the allegiance of the serious seekers.”
➢ The third perspective views religion and
spirituality as partners, two dimensions of a
single enterprise.
Sandra M. Schneiders, “Religion vs. Spirituality: A Contemporary
Conundrum,” Spiritus: A Journal of Christian Spirituality 3, no. 2
(2003): 164.
We can begin with a working definition from prominent
theologian Roger Haight.

He says “ Spirituality refers to the logic, or character, or

consistent quality of a person’s or a group’s pattern of living
insofar as it is measured before some kind of ultimate
reality.” In this sense, all spirituality is directing the human
life toward some manner of ultimate value or reality. At the
same time, it is a pattern of living that one commits himself
or herself to, which indicates a kind of fidelity to a particular
manner of being in the world- a consistent way of being.

Roger Haight, Spiritual and Religious: Explorations for Seekers

(Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2016), 2.
Who determines what that ultimate value or
reality might be? This is the task of religion.
For Haight, religion refers to “ a set of beliefs,
values, and practices that together identify
what ultimate reality is and help establish the
relationship that obtains between this ultimate
reality and the practitioners.” (Haight, 2016).
Religion becomes that which aids people in
developing spirituality within its defined beliefs
and practices, and in doing so, according to
that religion’s tradition, a person can grow
closer and closer to the ultimate value or
reality. For some religions, like Christianity,
that ultimate reality is God.
Yes, there are people who claim that they have
spirituality even outside of religious institutions.
However, in theory this is incredibly difficult to
do. Without a religion that determines what
ultimate value is, the person finds the ultimate
value on his own terms. Whether secular or
religious, spirituality aims to provide a pattern of
living for its practitioners that hopes to bring
them to the ultimate reality. Given this
foundational understanding, we can borrow
Sandra Schneiders definition of spirituality. She
says spirituality is “the experience of conscious
involvement in the project of life-integration
through self-transcendence toward the ultimate
value one perceives.”(Schneiders, 2016, p.166).
In this sense, spirituality can provide
foundation (life-integration) and direction
(self-transcendence) for a generation of youth
seeking answers to their existential questions.
In particular, beyond secular spiritualities lived
outside religious institutions, one can speak of
a Christian spirituality. This spirituality’s
foundation of life-integration and direction of
self-transcendence finds its ground in the
person of Jesus Christ. Very simply, Christian
spirituality is “the lived experience of the
Christian faith.”
Sandra M. Schneiders, “Biblical Spirituality,” Interpretation 70, no. 4
(October 2016): 417.
 First, spirituality as we are using it in this
definition denotes experience. Therefore,
spirituality is a personal experience, not an
abstract idea or theory.
 Second, spirituality is an experience of a
conscious involvement in a project which means
that it is neither an accidental experience or an
episodic event.
 Third, spirituality is a project of life-integration
which means that it is holistic involving the
whole person.
 Fourth, this project of life-integration is pursued
by consistent self-transcendence toward
ultimate value.
Sandra M. Schneiders, Religion vs. Spirituality, 166-167.
 There are many kinds of
spirituality that exists within the
Catholic Church, but collectively,
various kinds of spirituality in
communities have emerged within
our history in order to provide
guidance and pattern for
developing proper practice and
belief. One possible pattern is the
Augustinian spirituality, patterned
after the Rule of St. Augustine of
Hippo.
Veritas. Within Augustinian
spirituality, one important
aspiration is the understanding of
the truth of oneself, and in that,
the truth of God: Domine Iesu,
noverim me, noverim te. “ O God,
let me know myself, so I may know
you.” (Augustine, Soliloquies 2.1.1)
Unitas. As emphasized in the Rule of
Augustine, Augustine’s first expectation
for members of the Augustinian
community is to live harmoniously
together in oneness of mind and heart. As
such, any Augustinian community strives
to live with mutual concern for one
another, making sure to give mutual
assistance to each other in every way
possible. According to Fitzgerald (2009),
Augustine is always connecting the Gospel
to the experience of the local community.
Caritas. For Augustine, love is the why
and how of our knowledge. “Use
knowledge as a kind of scaffolding to
help build the structure of love and
understanding, which will last forever
even after knowledge destroys itself.
Knowledge is useful when it is used to
promote love. But it becomes useless,
even harmful in itself, if separated
from such an end” (Augustine, Letter
55, 33).
Having some kind of pattern for
living spirituality is very important.
Spirituality is difficult to do alone,
and even more so if it is done
without some kind of basis that
grounds one’s practice of
spirituality. The next section
explains the importance of this
balance, suggesting that all
spirituality must have roots and
wings.
 WilliamSpohn (1998), drawing
from research done by sociologist
Robert Wuthnow, describes three
types of spirituality that has
emerged since the 1950s. These
are the dwelling, seeking and
practicing spiritualities.
 Its emphasis is the reliability
of traditional religious
institutions, and the living out
of person’s spiritual lives
within the traditionally drawn
bounds of such institutions.
William Spohn, “The Need for Roots and Wings: Spirituality and
Christian Ethics,” 328.
The seeking spirituality sought to
abandon the roots of institutional
religion. Without a religion dictating
them what ultimate value to follow,
those who adopted the seeking
spirituality worked to find paths to
ultimate value on their own terms.
William Spohn, “The Need for Roots and Wings: Spirituality and
Christian Ethics,” 329.
 In recent years, a spirituality of practice has
moved to the fore. They came to adopt
certain spiritual disciplines to focus and to
deepen their quest for the sacred. Many
individuals selected elements from
established traditions like meditations, Bible
sharing, fasting, hospitality, service to the
poor, rituals of worship. The committed
spiritual practices of the '90s and beyond
have both roots and wings.

 William Spohn, “The Need for Roots and Wings:

Spirituality and Christian Ethics,” 329.
From the perspective of an understanding of
secular spirituality, Peter Van Ness
characterizes spirituality as "the quest for
attaining an optimal relationship between
what one truly is and everything that is. It is
done by adopting appropriate spiritual
practices and by participating in relevant
communal rituals.” Thus, to achieve life
integration people often rely on tangible and
concrete ways in which their spirituality is
lived out. This living out of spirituality is
often referred to as “practice.”
Peter H. Van Ness, "Introduction: Spirituality and the Secular Quest,"
vol. 22, World Spirituality (NY. Crossroad, 1996), 5.
Some people think spirituality involves only
prayers and rituals. But practice captures a
wide range of realities, which not only includes
prayer, but also includes moral living. At the
same time, practice is not just private activity,
but is something that touches entire
communities and society at large. According to
Maclntyre (1984), practice is any coherent and
complex form of socially established
cooperative human activity.
Spiritual practices are journeys, not
day trips into the realm of the
sacred. They are not hobbies or
occasional exercises that depend
on our moods. Practices require
commitment, the deliberate setting
aside of time to do them regularly,
like reading scripture 20 minutes a
day or worshiping every Sunday
with a particular community (Spohn,
1998, p.331).
Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life
(Jn 14: 6) and thus it is of utmost
significance that both spirituality and
theology be encountered in a manner
that is not simply emphasizing
orthodoxy, or proper understanding of
the faith, but also highlighting
orthopraxis , which involves the proper
living out of the faith in practice.
Stephen Bevans, Contextual Theology as Practical Theology,
(Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield, 2014), 45.
The understanding of the doctrinal truths must
be dealt with “practicality,” in relation to the
current context and situation of the life of the
student. In this case, one could argue that “all
theology is contextual theology” (Bevans,
2014). By this we mean theologizing with an
understanding of the concerns of the
community of faith, especially in the light of
their contextual situation. This also means a
theology that is rooted in the practice of the
faith, a theology that draws from the Catholic
spiritual practice, and ultimately results into
further practice.
According to Terry Veling, practical theology is
a strand of theological thought that attempts
to heal the division between theory and
practice that has marred theological discourse
throughout the years. Theology has been
traditionally divided into two areas: one is a
theology that deals with theories and concepts
and the other one is a theology that focuses on
the application of the said theories and
concepts. Indeed, practical theology aims at
the harmonization of the knowledge of the
faith, and the practice of the faith.
Terry Veling, Practical Theology: On Earth As It Is In Heaven
(Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2005), 3-22.
The Church in the Philippines recognizes the
distinct need for renewed religious education
and catechesis that is grounded in practice.
Thus, the National Catechetical Directory for
the Philippines highlights three important
features of teaching about the faith that may
be able to reach out to students of theology
today: integration, inculturation and
community- formation.
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, National
Catechetical Directory for the Philippines, Third Edition (Manila:
Episcopal Commission for Catechesis and Catholic Edition,
2010) paras. 356- 393.
Integration in theology means the
complex yet holistic approach to the
faith that aims to interrelate the
Christian message and the actual
living out of that same message in the
daily life of the people. One example
is the source integration of Sacred
Scripture and Sacred Tradition into the
experience of the believer.
Joseph L. Roche, A Companion to CFC (Manila: ECCCE/Word and
Life Publications, 1998), 35-51.
Inculturation is the process of
contextualization and dialogue that allows
for the engagement between faith and
culture. According to Fr. Walter Principe,
“Incuturation means that the gospel must
be allowed to take root in the various
cultures of the world.” The preaching,
worship and spiritual life of the Church
must incorporate the best elements of
each culture.
Walter H. Principe, Catholicity, Inculturation, and Liberation Theology: Do
They Mix?,” Franciscan Studies 47, no. 1 (1987): 28.
Theologizing must be not just
informative, but formative and
transformative for people and
communities. An authentic
practical theology touches the
lives of both individuals and
communities.
Thomas Groome, Will There Be Faith? A New Vision of Educating and
Growing Disciples (New York, NY: Harper One, 2011), 94.
A practical theology demands to
respond to the urgent needs of the
community called the Church, and
greater world community in which the
that Church dwells. God’s vision of
salvation was never on an individual
level alone, but one that extends to the
far reaches of the world. The task of
theology is to build up this community
of faith, and its call for justice, peace
and joy for all people.
Remember, to be spiritual you need the roots
of religious tradition and community, while
to be religious in a Christian way you need
the wings of committed spiritual practices.
They are not supposed to be as opposing
forces, but complementary realities that help
people come to a fuller life. In this manner,
the true challenge of living out authentic
Catholic faith is to be both spiritual and
religious.
William Spohn, “The Need for Roots and Wings: Spirituality and
Christian Ethics,” 339.
1. What critique can we offer to the growing trend
of young people who identify themselves as
spiritual but not religious?
2. Why is there a need for roots and wings in
spirituality?
3. Can you give contextual examples of
spiritualities in the Philippines that lack roots or
wings?
4. What are some of the fundamental principles of
Augustinian spirituality?
5. Why is practice important in the spiritual life?
Bevans, Stephen. “Contextual Theology as Practical Theology.”
In Opening the Field of Practical Theology: An
Introduction, edited by Kathleen Calahan and Mikoski,
45-60. Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield, 2014.
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines. National
Catechetical Directory for the Philippines. Third
Edition. Manila: Episcopal Commission for Catechesis
and Catholic Edition, 2010.
Feldmeier, Peter. Christian Spirituality: Lived Expressions in the
Life of the Church. Winona, MN: Anselm Academic, 2015.
Fitzgerald, Allan D. “Introduction.” In Homilies on the Gospel of
John 1-40, edited by Allan D Fitzgerald, Vol. 3. The
Works of Saint Augustine: A Translation for the 21st
Century 20. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2009.
Groome, Thomas. Will There Be Faith? A New Vision for
Educating and Growing Disciples. New York, NY:
HarperOne, 2011.
Haight, Roger. Spiritual and Religious: Explorations for Seekers.
Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2016.
Maclntyre, Alasdair. After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory.
Second Edition. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre
Dame Press, 1984.
Principe, Walter H. Catholicity, Inculturation, and Liberation
Theology: Do They Mix?,” Franciscan Studies 47, no.1
(1987): 24-43.
Roche, Joseph L. A Companion to CFC . Manila: ECCCE/Word
and Life Publications, 1998.
Schneiders, Sandra M. “Biblical Spirituality.” Interpretation 70,
no. 4 (October 2016): 417-30.
_______“Religion vs. Spirituality: A Contemporary Conundrum.”
Spiritus: A Journal of Christian Spirituality 3, no. 2 (2003):
63-85
Spohn, William. “The Need for Roots and Wings: Spirituality
and Christian Ethics.” Theology Digest 47. no. 4
(Winter 2000): 327-40.
Van Ness, Peter H. "Introduction: Spirituality and the Secular
Quest." In Spirituality and the Secular Quest, edited by
Peter H. Van Ness, Vol. 22. World Spirituality: An
Encyclopedic History of the Religious Quest. New York,
NY: Crossroad, 1996.
Veling, Terry. Practical Theology: On Earth as It Is in Heaven.
Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2005.
Summative
Assessment