Monday, October 14, 2013

What Will You Put in Your Spiritual "Bolt Bag"

What Will You Put in Your Spiritual “Bolt Bag”?
The October 15 Weekly Insight from Spirituality U.

A Bolt Bag is a backpack in which you throw everything you might need in order to survive in case you are forced to evacuate your home. I first learned of this idea a couple of weeks ago when I watched a “DVD on TV” broadcast of the movie, “Salt.” The story features actress Angelina Jolie as a Russian sleeper spy working at the CIA until her identity is suddenly revealed. She is forced to flee and rushes to her home where she grabs her Bolt Bag and disappears. Her bag contains a fake Passport along with a disguise, a pistol, several hundred dollars in cash, and the stray bomb or two.

            I would imagine that a Spiritual Bolt Bag would contain somewhat different tools. Personally, I think it should contain everything we need to survive and thrive should a disaster overtake us. What would you put in your bag if you had, say, five minutes to pack and flee? Remember, everything must be light and easy to transport.

            I actually have a Bolt Bag. Mine contains some actual emergency supplies such as health bars, bags of juice, bottled water, a small first aid kit, and an emergency radio/flashlight that operates by a hand crank and can even recharge my cell phone.  

But I think a Spiritual Bold Bag ought to also serve as a kind of mobile home. Every home has a variety of rooms, and each must be visited regularly or it becomes dusty and messy. My spiritual mobile home comprises my five senses, as well as my head and my heart.

So, my Bolt Bag contains something to nourish each of them. For my eyes, I include a paper icon containing an image of the Virgin and Child. I’ve also packed a votive candle, matches and a waterproof tin to put them in.

For my nose, a few sticks of incense.

For touch, I’ve thrown in a set of prayer beads (a Buddhist Mala).
For my ears, I count the dozens of songs (some sacred some secular) on my I-phone; I also include the vast number of tunes stored in my head which I can hear when I call them to mind.

The health bars and bags of juice can serve my sense of taste when I offer Sabbath Prayers on Friday evenings.

It’s a different story with my head and heart. My head means my mind. It will be nourished by several books including the Bible; One Hundred Years of Solitude (my favorite book); and a few volumes of poetry and spiritual writing that I have stored on (you guessed it) my I-phone.

For my heart, I will take along memories of friends and loved ones as well as the fondness I feel for the apartment that has been my home for the last five years.

And to keep a record of how I use all of these spiritual tools in the days or weeks or months of an evacuation, I will take a blank notebook. And a pencil.

What Would you put in your spiritual "Bolt Bag"?
And how about you? What would you take in your Bolt Bag?

Monday, October 7, 2013

Oct 8 Weekly Insight from Spirituality U.: What is a Jihad? (You Might be Surprised)

What is a Jihad? (You Might be Surprised)

(The October 8 Weekly Insight from Spirituality U. at Interfaith Paths to Peace)

Most of us probably know the word Jihad (pronounced zhee-hod) with regard to terrorist attacks made by Islamic fanatics calling for a “holy war”. Certainly Jihad can mean “holy war” but not in the way terrorists use it. No real Muslim would endorse an attack aimed at defenseless women and children. On the other hand, Islam does call for military action in defense of the faith and its followers—when they are under attack.

Yet the word Jihad has a number of meanings. In one use it certainly does refer to “outer struggles” to defend Islam and its adherents. But in another (preferred by many mainstream Muslims) Jihad signifies an inner struggle, especially against our own personal sinfulness.

There is a famous story about the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his advice about Jihad. A group of early Muslims were celebrating their military victory over enemies who greatly outnumbered them. The Prophet cautioned them not to celebrate too much because the greater Jihad lay before them: the Jihad against their own faults and weaknesses.

According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) still another meaning of Jihad is the struggle to build a just and caring society, one that reflects the deepest positive values expressed in the Qur’an. In fact, there can be many types of Jihad in a variety of areas, including education, personal morality, and interfaith cooperation.

But let’s return for a moment to the idea of Jihad as holy war. We would do well to remind ourselves that a close examination of history reveals what disasters holy wars can be. The Crusades certainly count among the darkest actions in the history of Christianity. Even WWII (the so called, “Good War) left millions of civilians dead as a result of the indiscriminate bombing raids undertaken by both sides in the conflict.

Finally, we should all be careful about how we use the word Jihad. In the current debate about the shutdown of the Federal government, one Democratic Congressman excoriated his Republican colleagues for undertaking a Jihad, or holy war, against the American people over Obamacare. That use of the word clearly deserves to be condemned. It serves as a reminder that we all need to embark on an “inner Jihad” of curbing our tongues when we are angry.


For more information about the idea of Jihad, visit: http://islam.about.com/od/jihad/f/jihad.htm

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

What makes a Pilgrimage a Pilgrimage?

(The October 1st 3-minute Weekly Insight from Spirituality U.)

Many of us would probably answer that question by describing a very structured journey undertaken by extremely devoted religious folks. But really, a pilgrimage can be any type of journey that has a significant spiritual or emotional impact on our lives. In fact, a pilgrimage can just as well be secular as spiritual. Some people find their lives as deeply affected by a trip to the Baseball Hall of Fame as they do by a visit to a major religious shrine. 

So, let’s take a look at what makes a trip a pilgrimage and then let’s talk about the various steps involved in a sacred journey.

As I see it, pilgrimages can come in at least four varieties. First, there are pilgrimages that are required of members of a religion. A good example of this type is the once-in-a-lifetime “Hajj--a visit to Mecca required of most Muslims. Second, there are “elective” visits to religious sites undertaken by deeply spiritual people who choose to undertake a sacred journey as part of their religious practice. A good example here might be the walk undertaken by thousands of Christians each year along the “Camino de Santiago de Compostela” in Northern Spain.

Third, there are the seemingly non-spiritual excursions that are converted into pilgrimages by something we experience along the way or by an epiphany we have after our travel. We may have a casual encounter in an airport or on a train that changes our lives. Or months after our travel we may have a sudden realization that radically alters the way we see things.

Fourth, there are pilgrimages that take place without any physical travel at all. I call these “virtual pilgrimages.” Here’s a personal example:  one day I was longing to be at my favorite place on the planet: the beautiful high desert of Ghost Ranch in New Mexico. I closed my eyes and suddenly was able to visualize myself standing on the porch of the Ghost Ranch dining hall. I could see all of the details of the mountainous terrain. I could hear the birds singing and the coyotes wailing. I could savor the aroma of the pinion and the sage. It was like instant teleportation. (And it saved a lot on travel expenses.)

If we actually have time to plan a trip, it can be helpful to understand the steps that make up the typical pilgrimage. Such a journey often involves at least six stages. These include: 1) the call (something that draws us to make the trek); 2) the preparation (not just the reading of travel books and the packing, but also the seeking out of spiritual advice and sometimes counseling); 3) the journey (undertaken with an attitude of openness to everything we encounter); 4) the arrival (which may be fulfilling…but can also be disappointing or even disturbing); 5) the return home (with its attendant letdown); and, 6) a time of reflection—a savoring of what happened during the pilgrimage. This savoring may come weeks or even months later—with the possible discovery of facts and lessons we weren’t aware of as we traveled.

So, the next time you travel for any reason, be open to the chance that you may be on a pilgrimage. And if you plan a sacred journey, make sure you pay attention to every step of your trip. Remember, “We make the path by walking.”

For more information about pilgrimage visit: