Whatever is inside a human being likewise requires sustenance. The knowledge of calculus must be consumed repetitively lest one forgets. The emotional ecstasy of love between lovers need to be felt again lest they split. Our organs need to be repaired with proteins lest we die. Likewise, when faith is in us, it needs to be nourished lest it disappears. To nourish faith, one must use faith to perceive of the spiritual things.
I observed that faith can be nourished primarily through the rational and the emotional (spiritual). In rare cases, it can also be nourished through bodily means.
Bodily
The bodily perception of the spiritual is unique to Christianity. In the Catholic and Orthodox traditions, the sacrament of communion is also a bodily perception, one that surpasses all others. No matter highly regarded the perception it may be, the perception is nonetheless reliant on the spiritual and the rational part of spiritual perception, the the ascending order as is reflective of the well-ordered soul.
Spiritual
By spiritual perception, I do not mean the whole of spirituality. Rather, I mean the spirited perception. In other words, emotional experience of the spiritual.
The spiritual experience (again, which is not exclusive to Christianity) bring us to feel that some sort of divine being exists. Such experiences can be had in countless different ways. Naturally, we tend to experience them in nature and in communion with loved ones. Artificially, we use emotional praise and worship musics to bring out spiritual experiences.
The vast majority of the faithful remain at this spiritual stage. Most have shallow understanding of the faith for they lack robust rational perception of the spiritual.
Rational
The rational aspect of perception is not necessary to move onto the next stage. However, it is a necessary component of the third stage, which will be discussed at length in the subsequent post. But a brief note will be given here.
Those who perceive God rationally are those who perceive that, in the inner-workings of the cosmos, an ultimate metaphysical entity is required to give the cosmos existence. Lemaitre, Mendel, Galileo, Aristotle, Plato, Laozi, Ramanuja, and countless others believed in an ultimate metaphysical entity (that is not necessarily the Christian God) through their intellectual labors.
As it is used to understand one's spirituality and faith deeper, the rational perception is crucial to further the spiritual development.
I observed that faith can be nourished primarily through the rational and the emotional (spiritual). In rare cases, it can also be nourished through bodily means.
Bodily
The bodily perception of the spiritual is unique to Christianity. In the Catholic and Orthodox traditions, the sacrament of communion is also a bodily perception, one that surpasses all others. No matter highly regarded the perception it may be, the perception is nonetheless reliant on the spiritual and the rational part of spiritual perception, the the ascending order as is reflective of the well-ordered soul.
Spiritual
By spiritual perception, I do not mean the whole of spirituality. Rather, I mean the spirited perception. In other words, emotional experience of the spiritual.
The spiritual experience (again, which is not exclusive to Christianity) bring us to feel that some sort of divine being exists. Such experiences can be had in countless different ways. Naturally, we tend to experience them in nature and in communion with loved ones. Artificially, we use emotional praise and worship musics to bring out spiritual experiences.
The vast majority of the faithful remain at this spiritual stage. Most have shallow understanding of the faith for they lack robust rational perception of the spiritual.
Rational
The rational aspect of perception is not necessary to move onto the next stage. However, it is a necessary component of the third stage, which will be discussed at length in the subsequent post. But a brief note will be given here.
As it is used to understand one's spirituality and faith deeper, the rational perception is crucial to further the spiritual development.
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