Religion vs. Spirituality

“Unlike religion, spirituality does not require a particular place for its existence, nor does it require a priesthood. Its temple is the mind of the individual, and its altar is the state of consciousness that comes about through
deep meditation and prayer.”

- Ervin Laszlo

Saw this quote, and thought you'd like to know that I disagree completely with two statements about religion:

1. Religion in fact does not require a particular place. Evidence: this little song I learned in kindergarten:

"I am the church, you are the church, we are the church together,
All who follow Jesus, all around the world, yes we're the church together.
The church is not a building. The church is not a steeple.
The church is not a resting place, the church is a people."

2. Religion doesn't require a priesthood. One of the key emphases of the reformation, way back in the 1500's was the priesthood of all believers. I guess you could get technical and say that means that there's still a priesthood, if all the believers are priests (i.e. able to communicate with God without someone in-between to help them). Ordained people in most Protestant traditions are not priests. We're leaders and representatives of the church, but this is not the same thing as being a priest.

So, what is religion, then? I've been reading a book about Schleiermacher, a theologian I was extremely annoyed at during seminary, but who I've found much more accessible in summary. Schleiermacher argues that religion is neither action nor belief, but feeling--a feeling of connection and unity with the entire creation, and connection and dependence on the being that undergirds it - God. Feeling, in this sense, is not about short-term emotions, but more like a long-term attitude.

What does religion require then? It requires community. And this is where it diverges from the spirituality that Laszlo describes. Spirituality is an individual enterprise, it seems -- one in which people make their own way without outside help or consultation. And one in which they don't share what they've been given. Religion, on the other hand, is participation in the life of a community - strengthening that sense of connection with the divine, and working together to live out the values that spring from the experience. To me, that is the real difference between religion and spirituality.