An increasing number of public figures and ordinary people have claimed to be spiritual and good people but not religious in the media. Actually, it seems to be a trend. Therefore, I wonder whether there is a certain status about being spiritual and not religious or vice versa. One day, I happened to hear a group of four fellow Christians of my color say that Afro Americans are more spiritual and more worthy of God’s blessings than White people. Afterwards, I decided to think it through and examine the spiritual focus of those brothers and sisters by observing that church whose Senior Pastor is my husband’s best friend for three months.
At the end of the period of three months of observation and interviews with some of the most active church members, I was overwhelmingly stricken by some spiritual aspects of the gospel. First of all, that church was so crowded, which clearly indicates that the rate of baptized people is a lot higher than that of the White church located 5 miles away. During the praise time, people seem to be in a spiritual trance, serving the Lord with all their mind, soul and heart. Young adults ranging from 17 to 25 years conducted the praise time. Loud and lively music like Gospel was booming in the middle of worship service. Afterwards, soft and melodious songs from the Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal were performed while all generous hands were extended to drop their tithes and offerings from their humble salary in most of the cases in token of their faith and gratitude towards our God.
Some people may argue that the need of those Afro Americans of God comes from their hardships, especially economic problems. However, those brothers and sisters repeat data from surveys released by specialized magazines that alleges that the low rate of suicides and depression among Christians and especially Afro Americans is due to their joy in the Lord. A female member proudly added a quote by Barbara Cameron: “worrying is arrogant because God knows what He’s doing.” Hence, they say they show faith at all times and rely on each other to push on through. They seem to be truly generous because the temple is huge, beautiful with all the red and white drapes in the backdrop, flower pots on either side of the church and on the altar or platform. The church is located in a nice neighborhood.
On the other hand, I took a closer look at the youth in that church and asked them some private questions. As a result, I found that most of the young people were not as conservative and zealous for the Lord as their parents claim to be. They revealed that there is a certain rate of divorce I did not expect to hear and half of them had a girlfriend / boyfriend outside their church which the parents utterly oppose. Besides, a small of the teenagers were dressed like their earthly idols they see on TV and it was shocking to see that some of that group wear their pants down like Justin Bieber. The others were formally dressed but most of them try to wear designer clothes or fancy ones to go to church.
Nowadays, spirituality is just being a “good person”. Steve Maraboli would put it this way: “One of the most spiritual things you can do is to embrace your humanity. Connect with those around you today. Say, “I love you”, “I’m sorry”, “I appreciate you”, “I’m proud of you”…whatever you’re feeling. Send random texts, write a cute note, embrace your truth and share it…cause a smile today for someone else…and give plenty of hugs.” Nonetheless, from a biblical perspective, spirituality is opposed to worldly or secular things. Then, being spiritual means a close connection with God who is Spirit and a life that reveals the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Nevertheless, all the Christian churches you can find in Latin America and the Caribbean were planted there by White Americans who love God so much and, therefore, show commitment and great care toward their fellow human beings through very important sacrifices. Most of those White Americans built schools and clinics / hospital in order to cater not only for the spiritual needs of every child of God, but also for his / her physical needs. Those are undeniably historic facts even though you may find now a great deal of white people with a more scientific attitude than spiritual. Most of them would share that quote by Albert Einstein: “Everyone who is seriously involved in the pursuit of science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe- a spirit vastly superior to that of man, and one in the face of which we with our modest powers must feel humble” and go on with their lives without having to delve deeper in the holy scriptures or conforming to the latter.
In conclusion, being a good person – in my opinion- is about living in harmony with your neighbors, cultivates inner peace and wisdom every day. It comes from within. To me, being religious or spiritual is rather linked to the consistency between the theoretical aspect based upon the truthfulness of the bible through conscious reading and the practical dimension centered upon being faithful to God while showing His love toward others no matter what. By the way, I have seen a good portion of the church members drift away from this concept of mine, dress and dance like any other person or white person I could meet elsewhere. In light of the above, I cannot dare to say who is more religious than the other or who is a better person than the other.
Work cited
Steve Maraboli. “life, the Truth, and Being free.” September 2011.web