Real Spirituality

My fiancee' and I frequent a restaurant in L.A. called Real Food Daily. The concept behind the name is that their food -- which is unprocessed, abundantly nutritious, and lovingly prepared -- is more authentic, more "real," than most other food. This claim is at once silly and wise. Silly because philosophers have argued about the true nature of "reality" for centuries. Wise because it's an admissible philosophy that the closer something is to its source, the more "real" it is.

This principle has universal applications. Original paintings are deemed more "real" than prints. Linguistically inventive people are deemed more "real" than those who repeat one-liners from TV. A head of lettuce is more "real" than a hot dog. My interest here is to compare organized spirituality to improvised spirituality. Is either one more real?

Needless to say, comparing these two entities is trickier (and more controversial) than comparing paintings and prints. Every moment of every day, a gentle battle occurs between those that attend religious ceremonies and those that just "believe in something."

How many people do you know that just "believe in something"? I've met far too many to keep count (and I myself belong, for the most part, to this group). They're a raw and ragtag bunch that's curious enough for exploration but too impatient for formalities. Which begs the question: do formalities enhance "real spirituality" or detract from it?

Let's cast aside our existential leanings (if any) and assume that there is in fact -- for lack of a more evocative term -- a spirit world. If this is the case, then all of us are intrinsically connected to it, which means that accessing the spirit world (via prayer, visualization, intuition, etc.) requires no special passkeys. No torahs or rosary beads. No church walls or bemas. By this standard, we can kneel before garden hoses and find God in the pages of a phone directory.

Many of those that just "believe in something" like the sound of this. They tend to scoff in the face of organized religion. For them, all formally religious chants, prayers, rituals, and clothing are empty ornaments standing between the plain flesh of humanity and the sparkling blue rivers of eternity. I steer clear of such thinking.

To my mind, such formalities do not detract from real spirituality. Nor do they enhance it. Whereas the concept behind Real Food Daily is both silly and wise, the concept of Real Spirituality is just plain silly. All spirituality -- be it improvised, half-assed, or out of focus -- is authentic. Assuming, of course, that there is a spirit world.

Consider the realm of the spirit as a house with many doors. Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and Islamism are widely practiced, so perhaps they enter through the front door. Modes like Scientology and Wicca are less conventional, so perhaps they enter through the side. And as for those of us that just "believe in something," we may lack a formal name, and we may enter through the back, but I've no doubt that we reach the same place.

About The Author

Eric Shapiro is the author of "Short of a Picnic," a collection of fiction about people living with mental disorders. He is at work on his first novel.

shortofapicnic@aol.com

elite cleaning services Mundelein ..

In The News:

Scammers are flooding inboxes with fake tracking alerts that mimic real carriers, exploiting the holiday rush to steal logins and personal data.

The Fox News AI Newsletter brings you the latest news on AI technology advancements and the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Texas family reunites with missing 11-year-old cat Grayson after 103 days using Petco Love Lost's AI photo matching technology and community help.

Tired of AI customer service loops? These insider tricks help you escape "frustration AI" and get real human help when you need it most for urgent issues.

Unlock richer audio from your streaming apps with simple tweaks to volume normalization, equalizer settings, and quality preferences for cleaner sound.

Scammers are sending fake Facebook settlement payout emails that mimic legitimate notices from the privacy settlement administrator to deceive users.

Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.

The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.

OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.

Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.

LastPass faces $1.6 million fine from U.K. regulators after 2022 data breach exposed 1.6 million users. Password manager failed proper security controls.

Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.

Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.

Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.