April 2007 Christian Spirituality by Robert T Sears, SJ

. Spirituality for our time Continue from ...... Each new dimension of spirituality reveals God in a different light, and every spirituality implies a corresponing view of God. The more developed one is in spirituality, then, the more developed one's view of God will be. Conventional spirituality sees God a rule giver and authority figure. Individuated spirituality begins to see God as inner ground of spiritual growth. And committed self-transcending love sees God as a community of creative self-transcending love. Seen in this light, Jesus' self-surrender on the cross reveals the Father as self-surrendering love, and their joint self-gift releases their Spirit of community-building love in the church. People in our day can see the need for reconciliation more clearly than ever. We are more aware of the ghosts of fear and hatred that separate nations and threaten nuclear destruction. We are more aware of the divisions that scandalously pervade christianity and those that set clergy against laity, rich against poor, race against race, and women and men against each other. With insight comes a call to heal; and in view of the danger of ultimate destruction, the call to a reconciling spirituality is not merely optional but an absolute necessity for the continued existence of humanity. As St Paul considered himself an ambassador for God who is calling the world to be reconciled to himself (2 Cor. 5:20-21), surelyone of the best characteristics of a spirituality for our time is reconciliation, both individual and social.

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