As a result of a social media post referencing an article titled "Can I Go to Church When I Don't Believe*," I entered into a friendly conversation with someone today who asked me the following question:

What does spirituality mean to you?

Well, I thought about it for a hot minute, and I thought it was interesting enough to share and not have it disappear down the ephemeral sands of social media time. Here are the thoughts I posted in reply.

As a person who is both spiritual AND religious, my specific personal understanding of spirituality may not be of much interest. Correct me if I am wrong!
In general, I would consider anything to be spiritual if it connects you to that which is greater than your limited material self.

That could manifest as:
• a deep appreciation for good music that makes you feel something, communicated by its composer and the musicians interpreting it for your experience.
• cultivating a feeling of intimacy with and connection to the natural world, spending time and exploring your part in it.

Or it could be:
• intentionally deepening relationships in meaningful ways with your friends, family, and strangers.
• studying the wisdom of people you admire and aspiring to grow in their likeness; or better yet, to forge new paths based on innovative approaches to ancient ways.

All of these things would count as spiritual practices for me.
I did my best to avoid overtly "religious" language...though there is no valid reason for anyone to say these words are not religious unless speaking only about their own perspective.

So, what do you think? Do you agree with any of what I offered? Do you disagree? In what ways?