Though I would classify myself as a believer, I have a very difficult time being "spiritual". Feeling any kind of transcendental emotions or connection to the universe. I feel very disconnected when people talk about there souls or there spirit being affected by something. My mind accepts it, but I feel like the emotional component is missing. Other people seem to have the opposite problem, some people have it all going on and other don't accept any of it.
Obviously a certain answer would be that there is no emotional feeling because there is nothing really divine, but I don't really want to get into a debate of the existence of supernatural forces.
:roflmao:
Yeah, I dont think that obvious or certain answer would stand, for the simple reason that if you have not feeling about the orbital paths of the planets around the sun it still happens.
I used to contemplate this topic in the way you have described, perhaps I still do as I actively think about and pursue spiritual experiences, although I kind of put it down to being a strong NT, a lot of spiritual people and writers appear to have been strong feelers or perceivers instead. I like to read Aquinas or other scholarly authorities who have a sort of NT or cataloguing streak in them too.
Now and again I've had random frequently occuring coincidences which I could construe as divine response or planning with respect to myself or my prayers, although I've read a lot about confirmation bias and when I've able to see it and criticise it in others, especially athiests, I have to be able to do likewise for myself. More recently I've had humbling and terrifying experiences to do with my own health, it has made me think seriously about God and my own spirituality, it has not shaken it to its foundations as an earlier, brief, crisis of faith did, although it has made me think again some of the pop, positivity of contemporary spirituality, life may not be a bed of roses, things are sent to test the faithful.
This is not something I think people think about too much, instead of mystical epiphanies and joyful uplifting transcendent contentment you could, if you're spiritually open and orientated, invite the trials of God damned Job, that's just as much a possibility.
If you decide to pursue an exclusively thinking variety of spirituality, one which precludes supernatural or cosmic dimensions, I would recommend Eric Fromm's reinterpretation of the old testament You Shall Be As Gods, it proved interesting to be in the "soul" is synomous with psyche is synomous with psychology sort of way. I believe that he was mistaken ultimately, although its intriguing to see how he felt that spirituality and religious traditions had a significant relevence despite being an avowedly marxist humanist and non-theist (his terminology) materialist.
