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Spirituality is lived religion. It is a practice—something we do.
Beliefs or feelings, in and of themselves, are not spirituality. Rather,
spirituality is the concrete difference that beliefs and feelings make
in how we live. Spirituality involves the disciplined observance of rituals
such as daily prayer and scripture study, weekly worship, yearly commemorations,
and rites of passage. Spirituality also includes a commitment to values,
norms, and traditions that govern our daily lives: what we eat and drink,
how we dress, how we use our time and money, how we treat others. Living
these disciplines gives our lives a distinctive shape. Spirituality thus
plays a fundamental role in constructing and maintaining our identity.
Ultimately, spirituality means living in the Spirit (Gal.
5:25). The worth of any spiritual tradition—Mormon, Protestant,
Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, and so on—is the tradition's
ability to help practitioners experience the gifts of the Spirit: to obtain
insight and direction, to grow into the best of their being, and to use
their talents to serve others. LDS tradition is one vehicle through which
the Spirit operates in people's lives to do all these things.
The term "liberal Mormon" is often applied to intellectuals
who explore controversial issues in Mormonism. The term may also refer
to individuals who have become distanced from Mormon faith but still claim
a connection to Mormon "heritage" or "culture." This
website has a different focus: liberal Mormon spirituality.
The website offers resources for liberally inclined individuals who wish,
within a Mormon context, to nurture their relationship with God and to
be instruments in blessing others.
Nephi Jensen: Spirituality
is that liveliness of spirit that intensifies appreciation of the
beautiful, deepens loyalty to truth and kindles love for the good;
it puts the heart in harmony with the moral forces of the world;
promotes delight in the realization of high ideals; and quickens
in the heart the joyous glory of being in actual partnership with
God in the purification and ennoblement of mankind. |
| "The Abundant
Life," Improvement Era, July 1935 |
David O. McKay: Spirituality
is the consciousness of victory over self and of communion with
the Infinite. Spirituality impels one to conquer difficulties and
acquire more and more strength. To feel one's faculties unfolding
and truth expanding the soul is one of life's sublimest experiences.
Being true to self and being loyal to high ideals develop spirituality.
The real test of any religion is the kind of [people] it makes.
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| Man May
Know for Himself (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1967), 114-15 |
Lowell L. Bennion:
Why should a man be baptized? Why should he partake of the sacrament?
How can these things help a man to be a true disciple of Christ?
. . . There is not an ordinance mentioned in the Doctrine and Covenants
or the Book of Mormon that is not inseparably aligned with a religious
life. It is only efficacious as it prepares or inspires us to live
righteously.
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| The Best
of Lowell L. Bennion, ed. Eugene England (Salt Lake City: Deseret
Book, 1988), 60 |
Spencer W. Kimball:
The righteous life is achieved as we magnify our view of life and
expand our view of others and of our own possibilities. Thus, the
more we follow the teachings of the Master, the more enlarged our
perspective becomes. We see many more possibilities for service
. . . and we cannot have spirituality without service! |
| President
Kimball Speaks Out (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1981), 39 |
Ezra Taft Benson:
Spirituality—being in tune with the Spirit of the Lord—is
the greatest need of Latter-day Saints. |
| Come unto
Christ (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1983), 22 |
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