Spirit Talk & The Professional Medium Issue 2 | Page 5

Spirituality & Religion
I was asked a tricky one
yesterday and I thought it
would be a good subject to
blog about. What is the
difference between religion
and spirituality?
Is there a difference? Isn’t being
religious the same as being spiritual?
Ok that is more than one question but
it definitely got me thinking. I wasn’t
raised in a religious household, in fact
it was more like hell than anything
even remotely God respecting so I
suppose my perception of religion is
personal to me.
For some people their religion is their
support, it is what makes sense of
their lives. Everyone has faith in
something or someone. I realised
when trying to think up a vaguely
intelligent response that spirituality is
a search for something within
whereas religion is an education that
gets foisted upon us from without.
We are brought up or taught religion
and how to be religious. Spirituality is
unique to the individual and we have
to decide to go looking for it,
ourselves. There is no book just You
and the universe and it is up to you to
decide what that means and
represents to you. No one can decide
for you.
We discover our own spirituality but
we are told what each religion means
and what it holds true. There is no
arguing with religion because it is
written.

Spirituality is more like science, it is
a constant journey of discovery and
sometimes we have to get it wrong
and accept that to eventually get it
right and believe it, know it to be
true by our own experience rather
than rely on the words of others.
We find our own truths when we
become more spiritual in our
outlook, they aren’t forced upon us
by some book that may or may not
have been doctored to suit the
power brokers and the pollies
throughout the ages.
Something that also came to mind
is that there can often be quite
negative connotations attached to
religion; wars start over them,
people have and continue to be
slaughtered purely for their faith
but no one has ever sought out or
segregated those who exist within
their own spirituality. Mediums
don’t start territorial wars or scar
others because they won’t be told
to believe in the same God as we
do.
Another interesting thought that
came to my mind is that organised
religion, in my opinion, all but
erases God, Allah, Buddha or
whoever is the focal point of your
particular worship from the scene
anyway. We appoint “mere
mortals” and they become the ones
who decide what God meant when
he said it! We are told where our
faith lies according to our heritage
and another human being.

We go to confession and speak to a
cleric, prayers and hymns in
organised religion are written out for
us, supposedly handed down by
whom and who decides what is
written and how it is used. In short
there is much more human
intervention and very little free will
is involved in organised religion.
Spirituality is all about the