Human Development
Spiritual renaissance
Description:
Despite an apparent general spiritual impoverishment and disregard for highest values there is, paradoxically, a new spirituality emerging from this secularization. There is a spiritual impulse acting in all spheres of life as people become aware of a holistic vision that is personal yet transcends the individual and there seems to be a general participation in the externalization of essential spirituality. The search to experience higher states of consciousness is combined with a commitment to work together so that the resulting perceptions may be manifest in human affairs. Inspiration is sought from all cultures and times, the heroes of each revealing some aspect of corporate inner destiny. The theme of unity and global cooperation is arising from numerous directions, indicating that the corporate soul or divine presence is at work in the world. Self-interest is being sacrificed and concern is emerging for the improvement of all life in a spiritual renaissance.An example of this concern is the increasing prevalence of the empathetic approach as opposed to the objective, reductionist approach in study. Progress is based on intuitive understanding and a recognition of the causal nature of consciousness. There is a desire to explore inner as well as outer space.
Rather than participation in intense private devotions or "escapist" religious life, this new spirituality looks to secular as well as religious institutions and relates to everyday life. It is a dynamic process of transformation integral to human development and permeating all human activity. Its practice demands the use of the imagination as a source of insight. In the contemporary cross-cultural environment, this spirituality implies a pluralistic perspective in time as well as space.