Tag: spiritual community

On April 6, at our monthly Coffee Talk, we gathered at Revel 77 Coffee to discuss the concept  of spiritual community.

On Saturday Spokane Faith & Values held its fourth Coffee Talk, this time at Revel 77 Coffee.

A big thanks to those who showed up — 32 people — including the four panelists, the Rev. Jim CastroLang, Skyler Oberst, Dr. Pearce Fujiura and Annie May Brown.

On Saturday Spokane Faith & Values panelists will join our readers in a discussion about spiritual community.

What is spiritual community?

Although community is a crucial aspect of any religious experience, it can be taken too seriously and put the personal relationship with the divine at risk. I can only speak of my own Roman Catholic experience in this matter and share with you two areas in which Catholics need to exercise caution in balancing community and the personal.

My life as a Roman Catholic hinges upon being a part of a community of believers.  Indeed, Christianity in general is a religion for a group of people as is most organized religion. I think that is the “organized” part of religion — people share their beliefs through public rituals and shared symbols. When I consider my life with God I can see it in two parts, the personal and the public.

I believe spiritual community is paramount to spiritual health. Alone we can achieve a great deal, we can contemplate spiritual matters and overcome personal trials. However, it is with the support of community that we thrive.