Finding Your Religion: When the Faith You Grew Up With Has Lost Its Meaning

The Spiritual Path Less TraveledIn an age when the average American can expect to change jobs, if not entire career tracks, at least five times over a lifetime, it should come as no surprise that we possess a similar range of freedom when it comes to our spiritual lives. From Roman Catholicism to Zen Buddhism, from Kabbalah to Sufism, American culture offers a panoply of religious traditions to sample.Within the wide range of offerings upon which to feast our spirits, it’s often a wise idea to find like-minded people to share our experiences with. Scotty McLennan’s book explains both the pitfalls and the peaks of seeking an authentic and satisfying spiritual road. He envisions the quest as a mountain climb and himself as a guide along the way. Well accustomed to playing such a role as a university chaplain, McLennan shares the breadth of his extensive experience with the varied traditions of the world that have flourished in America.Based upon the idea that like individual psychological development, spiritual development can be understood to pass through six different stages — magic, reality, dependence, independence, interdependence, and unity — Finding Your Religion shows how each stage influences and deepens religious experience, as well as reflects a different understanding of ultimate reality. These stages are best navigated, McLennan argues, within a community. Like a mountain climber seeking the safest conditions, the spiritual seeker will be best served in the company of others. Encouraging us to move beyond the stage of reading about religion to become active in our quests, McLennan proves a stable, trustworthy, and knowledgeable companion — just the sort of guide you’d want with you once you’ve pitched your tent as darkness falls and the wind picks up off the side of the mountain, and you need someone to help you build a fire to stay warm through the night.—Sara Laurent