Jeremy Patrick <jhaeman@hotmail.com>

Stepping Out v. 1, n. 3 (June 2000)

"Spirituality" is a buzzword in queer and left-liberal circles. "I’m not religious," they say with disdain, "I’m spiritual!" as if the latter is somehow better or more rational than the former. The existence of disembodied spirits, crystal magicks, or "Earth Goddesses" is not more credible an assertion than that, when eaten at a particular time and place, a really thin cracker will "transubstantiate" into the flesh of a long-dead shepherd from the Middle East.

The queer movement towards "spirituality" is understandable. Many churches of mainstream religions still exclude GLBT individuals from active worship; they treat queers like lepers and speak of us as abominations. The lure of a non-judgmental "spiritual" world-view is obvious; it provides the satisfaction of feeling you are "part of something larger than yourself" without the guilt of being labeled a sinner.

I suppose, to some degree, it is better to be "spiritual" than "religious." The particular ideas and beliefs "spiritual" people have are usually so vague and tenuous that it becomes difficult to impose these beliefs on others. Lacking the money or organizational strength, spiritual movements do not have the power that traditional religious groups have to force their beliefs on others through laws or social customs. As a result, the social effects of being "spiritual" are probably better than the social effects of being "religious."

The problem, however, is that spirituality and religiosity both suffer from the same defect; they are irrational beliefs. Believing in the existence of things without evidence is an invitation to sheer gullibility. A "spiritual" person may be even worse off, as they are less likely to be able to clearly articulate their beliefs. When a person cannot express what they believe in a manner that can withstand rational analysis, they have not thought about it carefully enough.

The particular problem with queers and spirituality is that we constantly preach tolerance and open-mindedness as the highest of virtues. Being open-minded, however, only means considering all ideas, not accepting them. Believing in what someone tells you (about God, unicorns, angels, etc.) without thinking about it is not tolerance, but submission. Being open-minded is not the same as being empty-headed.

It would be great if God, Mother Nature, or Karma existed. The only thing that seems certain, however, is that our community will get better only if we make it better. We can improve our lives by relying on each other and those around us, not mystical figures floating around invisibly.

Instead of spending an hour on Sunday morning sleeping in the pews or playing solitaire with tarot cards, donate an hour of your time to a homeless shelter or a community center. This is the only way that progress will be made towards a better life on this world, instead of some future, imaginary one.

(c) 2000 Jeremy Patrick