Radical Integrity

We are neither human beings having a spiritual experience nor spiritual beings having a human experience. This contrast between spiritual and human is a false dichotomy and sets up all the other forms of dualism. When we understand this, we can more and more just drop into the fullness of our humanity. Some Native American groups call people they especially respect a “real human being”.

One of the great paradoxes of human life is that, while we are absolutely one with all of life, which is one big tapestry containing all of us, we still have our own sparkling individuality – and our path into oneness unfolds through our own uniqueness. Thus there are as many paths up the mountain as there are unique beings. Any “spiritual” or personal growth path can potentially open up for us another shining facet of being human. But no one path, discipline, teacher or holy book can adequately contain or express who we are. We are meant to learn what is there for us in this particular path and then move on – at least internally, even if we maintain our connection with that path (or church) as part of our spiritual community.

Integrity here refers not to ethics, but to integrating all the different elements of who we are – and “radical integrity” means an unqualified commitment to this unfolding, making it more important than any other purpose for our lives. To attempt to remain a student of a particular path or teacher – whether A Course in Miracles or gestalt therapy or Majo John Madden or Buddhism or Jesus – after we have learned what we were there for, will ultimately be confining and confusing.

(The Buddha said, “Doubt everything – find your own light.” I feel sure that he would have included Buddhism in this principle and that he no more intended to create a religion than did Jesus.)

We can be “inspired” by all these teachers, paths or religions – they can give us breath or wind beneath our sails – but they are not the boat. This we craft, bit by bit, as we discover our own path through this life.