Beyond Religion

If there is no common conception of God between religions, no common revelations, no common morals, nothing that can be identified as a core religion, what is it that is common between religions? The common element is a notion of spirituality.

Spirituality is the idea that man has a non-physical element and that the non-physical element is part of a greater reality. Man is more than an individual, and this non-physical reality is more important than the material world. Spirituality is a feeling of being part of some non-physical thing which is greater than the individual.

This is the thing man cannot get beyond regardless of rational scientific progress. This is the god-shaped hole. It is not god-shaped at all. From a cultural of monotheism, it is interpreted as a god-shaped hole. It is actually a spiritual gap. Spirituality is usually expressed through religion, but it is not intrinsically religious. Spirituality does not grow out of religion. Religion grows out of spirituality.