Spiritual but Not Religious? A Path to Finding God Within

How a unique spiritual practice can help you find God.

It has been 50 years since I attended Sunday services on a regular basis. I was a teenager, and my strict Catholic father gave up on me following in his church-going footsteps. And the truth is, my perception of church has changed little over the past half-century: I just don’t get that much out of it.

The late Father Thomas Keating understands. I was recently reading his twenty-year old book The Better Part: Stages of Contemplative Living and found a passage that resonated with me. Keating, a member of the Catholic religious order known as the Trappists, wrote that many who attend church reach a point where “the liturgy is boring and uninspiring” and “scripture is like reading the phonebook.” He also points to the problem: too often religion engages the mind but fails to touch the heart.

Keating wrote that “no amount of spiritual yakking” can take the place of our desire to be with God at the deepest level of our being. “People today are looking not so much for doctrinal certitude as for meaning in life.” We want to be moved. We want access to “the divine indwelling.” We want a direct connection with God.

Keating shows us a way forward: the Lectio Divina.

Keating is best known for bringing the ancient Christian meditation practice known as centering prayer back into the mainstream. And while the rules around centering prayer are few, the contemplative practice known as Lectio Divina has even less structure. At least Keating’s version of it.

When engaging in the practice, Keating tells us our ultimate goal is to get acquainted with “this extraordinary presence.” It’s not too different from getting to know anyone we just met and want a deeper personal relationship with. Keating explains:

It follows the same pattern we use in getting to know another human being…we have to hang out together. At first our exchanges are awkward. But we gradually move from acquaintanceship into friendliness and familiarity. Friendliness evolves into friendship.

Our relationship with God then evolves beyond friendship, “somewhat like that of an elderly couple who have lived together a long time.’’ Keating explains that while they love each other, they don’t have to talk all the time. They might hold hands or look into each other’s eyes and just enjoy each other’s company. They have moved beyond conversation to communion.

The process of Lectio Divina is broken into four parts.

As mentioned, Keating’s version of Lectio Divina is a little looser than you might find in official Catholic channels. But the four categories of the practice—read, reflect, respond, rest in God—remain the same. Using Keating’s direction, I’ve tailored his message to an SBNR audience.

1. Read. Whatever material is sacred to you. I find the Bible to be a desert with few watering holes, but maybe that works for you. Personally, I’m more drawn to writers like Richard Rohr, Stephen Mitchell and Thomas Moore.
2. Reflect. This is a time to meditate on what you’ve just read and its meaning to your life. Let the message permeate your being.
3. Respond. Express any feelings or gratitude that have arisen from your reflection in a silent conversation with God. You don’t have to go anywhere. God is already with you.
4. Rest in God. Recognize and be open to the presence within you. In Keating’s words, “do not say or do anything, but engage in a special kind of action that might be called alert receptivity. Move through your innermost being or true self into the divine presence itself.”

Keating teaches that the four parts of the practice are like “moments on a circle, not rungs on a ladder.” You can begin at any moment at any place you like. Do what feels right to you. But the key part to Lectio Divina can be found in step four, resting in God. Here, Keating gives some hints as to how we might proceed:

• Move to the center of your being. There is no particular thought, reflection, or feeling, but a sense of being loved or embraced by God in your innermost self.
• Settle into the present moment which is the only place that God actually is. God is not in the past and not in the future. God is right now, totally present, totally available.
• If difficulties arise in your mind because you’re thinking of other events or people, surround them with God’s presence.

Keating reminds us that God’s first language is silence. “We have to cultivate interior silence to hear the full message.” So, 99.9% percent of the time, do not expect to hear the voice of God. But do expect to feel the love and comforting presence of the Divine deep within. Once the practice is complete, you may be able to carry this sense of God with you in all you do. He writes:

This abiding awareness of God’s presence becomes a part of all reality, especially our reality. It adds a fourth dimension to our three-dimensional world.

If this doesn’t work for you, start with centering prayer.

If you haven’t meditated before, or have done so with little success, you may have trouble quieting your mind as you “rest in God.” If that’s the case, then I suggest trying your hand at centering prayer before attempting Lectio Divina.

In centering prayer, you focus on the breath or a sacred word, or gaze at a sacred icon or space. You let thoughts pass by, in Keating’s words, “like background music at the supermarket. You have come to buy groceries and the music plays on. Since you can’t turn it off, you simply disregard it.” The goal is to enter into a peaceful and restful state. You can learn more about the practice here and here.

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