{"id":1578,"date":"2022-04-20T15:26:53","date_gmt":"2022-04-20T19:26:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redchairblogs.wpengine.com\/holymoly\/?p=1578"},"modified":"2022-04-20T15:26:53","modified_gmt":"2022-04-20T19:26:53","slug":"larger-freer-and-more-loving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/2022\/04\/20\/larger-freer-and-more-loving\/","title":{"rendered":"Larger, Freer, and More Loving"},"content":{"rendered":"

If the concept of God has any validity or any use, it can only be to make us larger, freer, and more loving.\u00a0<\/em>
\n<\/span>– James Baldwin, <\/span>The Fire Next Time<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I had a striking conversation with a student recently about their evolving and changing understanding of the Divine. They mentioned how much their thoughts have changed in the short few years they have been on campus. As they described this spiritual journey, the student shared how at times they have been disillusioned by spirituality yet have developed a desire for a deeper understanding of the Divine. They have fewer answers, more questions, and yet somehow find that exciting and hopeful.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At the end of our conversation, I was asked if we could meet again so that I might field questions about my own spiritual journey and the ways in which I navigated such experiences. They hoped my answers may give more guidance as they explore an expansive spirituality.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I could not help but think of a quote from James Baldwin\u2019s <\/span>The Fire Next Time<\/span><\/i>. In it, he encourages his young nephew to \u201cdivorce himself from all the\u2026hypocrisies\u201d of religion and goes on to say, \u201cIf the concept of God has any validity or any use, it can only be to make us larger, freer, and more loving.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

I sense this student was on such a journey. In their quest to divorce themselves from hypocrisy, they are becoming larger, freer, and more loving. To be honest, it is quite easy to see in students and it\u2019s one of my greatest joys in chaplaincy. More often than not, just when students are questioning the concept of the Divine, they often find themselves closer to the Divine than they had initially hoped. As they doubt, ask questions, and even deconstruct, they are building something much more sacred. They are becoming freer and more loving before our very eyes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our role as chaplains is <\/span>not<\/span><\/i> to change someone else\u2019s religion, convince someone to follow our chosen religion, or shame a person into living a different way. Instead, we are to be present to their spiritual exploration, journeying with them through suffering, pain, or grief, and being a traveling companion as they become large, freer, and move loving.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Within the last few weeks, Christians, Jews, and Muslims have celebrated Easter, Passover, and Ramadan. These are some of the holiest days for each tradition. Although they are celebrated at different times and in different ways, each holiday allows its followers to become larger, freer, and more loving.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Wherever you find yourself on the spiritual journey, take heart that you have traveling companions willing to be with you, present to questions, and honored to see you become larger, freer, and more loving.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If the concept of God has any validity or any use, it can only be to make us larger, freer, and more loving.\u00a0 – James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time I had a striking conversation with a student recently about …<\/p>\n

Larger, Freer, and More Loving<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nathan"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1QIf6-ps","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1578"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1578\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}