The Reluctant Mystic: Reflections on The Spiritual Journey; looking at the promises and pitfalls of the spiritual path

The Reluctant Mystic: Searching and Seeking Answers for the Inclusive Spiritual Path

An introduction to my blog: The Rev. Peter Lanzillotta, PhD

Why the reluctant mystic? That is a strange approach when you can often read about how glorious and wonderful the results of following a spiritual path can be! As you peruse the Internet and follow various websites that hold fantastic promises and rapid ways to achieve enlightenment, you can be sure that there is a workshop, nutritional product, or book that one is required to buy as your invaluable guide to all of those claims and and all of those phenomenal results!

In this introduction which can also act effectively and concisely as a personal summary ,let me say this: To fully experience God (or whatever inclusive name you choose!) in all of its majestic and mysterious facets and dimensions is, at its baseline, a noble attempt to live an extraordinary life; to live as if you are completely present, and totally infused with the Spirit of Life; liberty; and love, which is most often a rare and elusive experience. maybe because of this reality, such lasting sense of connection remains a rare, gracious and remarkable occurrence!

However demanding this quest might appear, it has remained a constant aspiration of my life. This quest has costs me dearly1 I have been compelled to relinquish many of societal norms, and personal pleasures that can be obtained by fully living in our culture. It has required me to reject, or at least com to uncomfortable terms with the ongoing pressures of conforming to the cultural expectations of how it is that one lives successfully in our world.

I have always been inspired and informed by St. Theresa’s advice: ” We have not been called to be successful, we have been called to be faithful.” I have sincerely, and imperfectly reached to attain this quality and depth of faithfulness. Those who do know me, will see this pattern repeat itself through my personal and professional life…this striving to follow an informed conscience, and listen heartfully to my intuitions and senses of inspiration. Whether I was in the roles of college instructor, psychotherapist, minister, priest, theologian, or now as an interfaith spiritual life coach… I have remained a spiritual pilgrim in search of those risky and transformative understandings that will further enlighten my mind and warm my heart…

My admittedly unconventional approach to following the spiritual life is one that is not filled with social obligations and then searching for social approval; I can painfully attest to that dead end! Instead, as the years advance and the outside obligations diminish, I have continued my efforts to live simply, freely, intentionally- based on those principles and values that are more universally accepted as compassionate ethics and as holy practices that will give earnest evidence of how best I can express the gifts and graces of the Spirit.

This aspiration has taken me to the edges of social rebellion, insecurity, and the feelings of marginalization. What is of great consolation for me is that these feelings and experiences are nothing new! They have accompanied many of the artists, poets, and mystics and prophets throughout human religious culture and history. Because I have had excellent company, the lessons still sting, but they do not discourage me in the ways that would stop my quest. Across all the world religions there has been a reluctance to accept those men and women whose vision and ideals took them beyond the comfortable norms of their communities. They were made to feel like misfits, derided, and even punished as outcasts! Mystics and prophets you see, have never been graciously accepted. At best, they were met with skepticism and disdain. They have had to live out their lives gingerly and insecurely, yet bravely and with the ability to befriend the circumstances around them.

The startling advice that has been meaningful to me comes from the poet and beloved mystic, Rumi. Rumi stands defiant and declares: ” Run… Run from the comfortable. Forget safety. Live where your fears live; destroy your reputation. Be notorious!”

Now, that is not an invitation to a life of crime! Unless, you understand that to be a mystic or a prophet- the two main dimensions of the spiritual life- were always treated with disapproval and consternation! Rarely, if ever, is a spiritual person welcomed by those who cherish the dysfunctional, yet safe status quo, or who would certainly not welcome any threats to their money or power- especially if they challenged the exclusive social and cultural reign of privilege, piety, and power.

For me, however, to be a spiritual person means you are willing to aspire; to always keep your heart open; to be willing to care deeply about the world we lie in, and all the forms of life on the planet -whatever is in need of our compassionate care. It means we are willing to stand up forthrightly, holding tight to your sense of truth, and then be courageous… in short, to be willing to risk:

“To risk: To laugh is to risk appearing to be the fool; To weep is to risk appearing to be sentimental; To reach out to another is to risk exposing one’s true self. To place our ideas- our dreams- before the crowd is to risk loss. To love is to risk not being loved in return. To hope is risk failure. To live fully is to risk dying; From going through the motions of an unlived life.”

To choose the mystical or prophetic life can mean that you have to leave all religiosity behind; It might mean that you will have to shed all of your conventional notions and expectations of what it means to be safely religious; to be unquestionably faithful; and what it means to live by the rules of the pious. it is as Emerson stated, ” To be a [man]. one must be a non-conformist.” He also said, that ” You can have the truth or you can have repose… choose!”

To be a mystic or a prophet decries any need to be safely tucked within convention or to keep in line with any dogmatic restrictions. It asks for a depth of commitment to the God of your understanding; you are asked to live intentionally, conscientiously yet be without judgment; to live with an open acceptance that your path might not fit with anyone else’s journey, but it must be honest, and authentic and real for you…