A Soul's Journey into Interspiritual Space: Reflections for Christians, Catholics and Contemplatives

By Len Schreiner

The open, inclusive, invitational style of Jesus’ life and ministry provides a template for how love, compassion and equality are meant to be practiced between diverse kinds of believers from the world’s many religions and spiritualities.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John R. Mabry
• Release date: Dec 8, 2022
• ISBN: 9781958061121

Book preview

A Soul’s Journey into Interspiritual Space

PRAISE FOR A SOUL’S JOURNEY INTO INTERSPIRITUAL SPACE

In this time of increasing tribalism, Len Schreiner invites us to leave behind the boundaries of religious doctrine to embrace the experience of interspirituality. In these theologically wise—and authentically personal—reflections, A Soul’s Journey into Interspiritual Space takes us beyond belief systems, even beyond ecumenism and interfaith dialogue, to explore deep mysticism as the future of human consciousness. This book will challenge your assumptions. It will also expand your heart and your horizons.

—John Heagle, Ph.D., is a Catholic priest, psychotherapist, and the author of Justice Rising: The Emerging Biblical Vision (Orbis).

In our frothy society, a spiritual odyssey this long and serious seems vaguely counter-cultural. Yet for fortunate readers, it’s a chance to eavesdrop on the inner journey of a thorough, careful, honest, earnest seeker. Those whose experiences have been similar to the author’s, moving from a narrow Catholic upbringing to a larger world-view, will find here a mirror that reassures: you’re not alone, not crazy. Shifting from external to internal authority, Schreiner comes finally to interspirituality, the hope that might save us all.

—Kathy Coffey, author of 16 award winning books, is a mother, grandmother, national and international retreat leader. Her writings include: Hidden Women of the Gospels and More Hidden Women of the Gospels (Orbis), When the Saints Came Marching In (Liturgical Press) and Dancing in the Margins (Crossroad). Her blog is kathyjcoffey.com.

In this very thoughtful work, Len Schreiner weaves an extensive knowledge of theology, church history, and scripture, with his personal story of outgrowing the confines of a rigid Catholicism, a constricting experience of religious life, and a priesthood whose focus was too insular for his evolving understanding of faith. Len’s is a journey inspired by the likes of Daniel Berrigan, Thomas Merton, Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King Jr., Simone Weil, and so many others who, like him, had come to recognize and embody the full meaning of an incarnate spirituality, one that honors the sanctity of the person and the validity of all religious/spiritual traditions. Reading this book with an open mind and heart will challenge the reader to look closely at their cherished, but perhaps limiting notions regarding God, Jesus, church, faith, and the like.

—Tom Stella: author of A Faith Worth Believing (HarperSanFranciso), The God Instinct (Sorin), and Finding God Beyond Religion.

A Soul’s Journey…walks the reader through the author’s personal process of transitioning from denominational control and strict dogma, to a place of acceptance for all forms of spirituality—and that one is as valid as any other—no questions asked. Schreiner carefully challenges the arguments favoring one right way, and exposes the fallacy of the dogmas set in stone for centuries. How refreshing to hear clear evidence that One-ness and God’s love for all people is truly a path to follow.

—Kerrie Anderson, Co-Founder of Mary of Magdala Ecumenical Catholic Community, Ft. Collins, CO.

Whether our spiritual home is a church pew or a private hermitage or a walk in nature, Len Schreiner reminds us that we are always on our own spiritual journey. Schreiner helps us consider what our tradition equips us with, what we may leave behind, and most importantly, where our journey is taking us: into the realm of interspirituality. May you find your compass and your courage in this book.

—Rev. Victor Nelson, retired Lutheran pastor, spiritual director, practicing mediator, marriage and family therapist.

A SOUL’S JOURNEY INTO INTERSPIRITUAL SPACE

REFLECTIONS FOR CHRISTIANS, CATHOLICS, AND CONTEMPLATIVES

LEN SCHREINER

ECKHART & MAY PUBLISHERS

ECKHART & MAY

An imprint of the Apocryphile Press

PO Box 255, Hannacroix, NY 12087

Copyright © 2023 by Len Schreiner

ISBN 978-1-958061-11-4 / paperback

ISBN 978-1-958061-12-1 / ebook

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that neither the author nor the publisher is engaged in rendering legal, investment, accounting or other professional services. While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional when appropriate. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, personal, or other damages.

Book cover illustration by Marika Popovits.

Please join our mailing list at

www.apocryphilepress.com/free

We’ll keep you up to date on all our new releases,

and we’ll also invite you to download a FREE BOOK.

Visit us today!

DEDICATION

In memory of my mother Lydia,

whose life  taught me perseverance,

dedication, and faith…

and my father, Edwin, who

showed me the power of humor,

and love for strangers and life.

More than gratitude.

Deep love for Nancy, my wife,

for her constant support, guidance,

and faithfulness on the journey.

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Introduction

I. AWAKEN — Truth in a Different Voice

1. Walking with My Soul

2. The Word in Crisis

3. A Biblical Basis for a New Worldview

4. A Prophet Comes from the East

5. The First Parliament of World Religions

6. Facing the Mirror in the Well

7. A Terrible Beauty and Simone Weil

8. The Second Parliament of World Religions, 1993

II. EVALUATE — The Shadow of a Holy Ideal

9. Open and Closed Systems: Choosing Contraction or Expansion

10. The Dangers and Dynamics of Religion

11. The Constantinian Virus: A Sickness Unto Death

12. The Vitruvian Man and Constantine’s Legacy

13. The Loss of the True Cross

14. The Corruption of the Center

15. Openness to the World—John XXIII

16. The Church as Fullness: An Impossible Equation?

III. Embrace—Beholding Revelation

17. A Metaphysics of Beholding through Direct Experience

18. The Supreme Identity: An Infinite Relationship

19. Revelation: Searching for the Complete Christ

20. Logos: The Mind of Christ within Humanity

21. The Long and Winding Road

About the Author

Glossary

Select Bibliography

Notes

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ENCOURAGEMENT AND SUPPORT

My gratitude to Kerrie Anderson, for her generous donation of skill and care, in editing the manuscript; to Stanilaus Manickam, my fellow priest and friend, for theological consultation; to Victor Nelson for creative brainstorming and manuscript review;  to Reggie Urban for editing and consultation. With deep affection for my mentors and teachers: Daniel Berrigan, Thomas Merton, John Heagle, and Richard Rohr. This book is made possible through the generous financial support of Fr. Reggie Urban, Roger & Mary Schreiner, Mary MacEnany, Victor Nelson, Greg & Kae Madden, and Rev. Stan Manickam.

COVER ART

Deep appreciation for the original painting for the cover design, A Celebration of the Qualities of Original Light, which manifests the intermingling of divine and human consciousness. The use of the painting was generously gifted to the author by internationally recognized painter Marika Popovits who has mastered the Renaissance technique of layering to radiate translucent hues. Fired by her meditation and inner life, Popovits sees her hands gently guided as she creates manifestations of our evolving human consciousness. To view more of Marika’s art, see www.marikapopovitsart.net.

BIBLICAL & LITERARY QUOTATIONS

Unless other noted, biblical quotations are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, Garden City, N.Y., Doubleday & Company, ©1966. For other Scriptural verses the following abbreviations are used: NAB, New American Bible; NEB, New English Bible; NTPIV, New Testament and Psalms, Inclusive Version; GNT, Good News Translation; RSV, Revised Standard Version; TLB, The Living Bible;  (NJB) New Jerusalem Bible. In limited instances, verses are paraphrased or translated by the author and indicated with my initials LS.

Appreciation to the following publishers for permission to reprint previously published works: The Long Waters, ©1962, Beatrice Roethke, from COLLECTED POEMS by Theodore Roethke. Used by permission of Doubleday, an imprint of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.  All rights reserved. One Song,  Rumi, from The Big Red Book; trans. Coleman Barks. Used by permission of the author.  The One Coming Closer, Robert Bly, in Like the New Moon, I Will Live My Life, Buffalo, N.Y., White Pine Press, ©2015. Used by permission. Music lyrics by Mark Pearson, Simply Everything to Me, CD: The Missing Piece, ©2003; Mountain Prayer, album, One of Those Times in Life, ©1991. Used by permission of the songwriter. Select lines from The Four Quartets, T. S. Eliot, Collected Poems 1909-1962. Used by permission of Faber & Faber, London, England.  Music lyrics by Gregory Norbert, Journeys Ended, Journeys Begun, Spirit Alive: Songs to Celebrate the Healing Spirit ©1977. Used by permission of The Benedictine Foundation of the State of Vermont, Inc.

God is more and more trying to move 

the human race to the next stage of consciousness. 

—thomas keating

We are already one. But we imagine that we are not.

And what we have to recover is our original unity.

—thomas merton

INTRODUCTION

On the night of his last meal with his closest friends and disciples, when his death was imminent, Jesus offered this passionate cry to God: Father, the time has come for your son to give back to you, the glory (the shining Reality of eternal love) you gave to me, the life we shared before the world began. Unite those you have given me, just as we are united. My prayer for all of them is that they may be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are Father, you in me, and I in you. Everything I have is a gift from you, and I have shown them the glorious unity of being one, as we are, so that the world will know you love them as you love me. I will keep revealing this love to them, so that the magnificent love you have for me, will live in them, as I live in them (cf. John 17; Jn. 14:20, LS).

We followers of Christ have forgotten his dream of unity, in our blind quest to hold so tightly to non-essential differences between Christian and non-Christian believers. Jesus’ prayer on his last night was cosmic, global, and universal in nature. The cosmos is a magnificently multifaceted, integrated whole, brimming over with varieties of life forms. An early Church father, Clement of Alexandria said, humans ought to become one within their own being, and with others, since God is one in the unending flow of good things. Jesus was praying for each disciple to become whole, but simultaneously praying for the wholeness of the community of all persons who belong to God. Do Christians understand or even appreciate the depth and breadth of Jesus’ prayer?

It is time to awaken to a deeper evolving consciousness, one in which we see our life as described by Jean Houston: nested in several realities, each one greater and more encompassing than the other, so that beneath the surface crust of consciousness we discover that we are citizens in a much larger universe ¹ than we first knew. This is the theme of Part I, illustrated by my transition as a young cleric from a parochial worldview to a larger ecumenical, interspiritual movement growing every day around the world. I invite you to accompany me on this interior journey to discover how the divine gift of the living Word, the broadest Reality in the universe, shows up endlessly wherever breath, flesh, and beauty live. In chapters 4-8, I present a brief overview of the First and Second Parliaments of World Religions in Chicago (1893 & 1993). There, a wide spectrum of spiritual leaders took early steps toward a new stage of evolution, in an auspicious awakening that Merton called for in 1968: We are already one but we imagine that we are not. And what we have to recover is our original unity. ²

Genuine reform and renewal begins with ourselves and those we belong to. My first spiritual home was the Church, and so Part II focuses our attention on the shadow side of the Roman Catholic Church that once gave me so much, but today is breaking millions of hearts. The shadow, understood as our inferior self, is the part of our personality repressed for the sake of the ego. Jung was convinced it is also a social problem of immense importance which should not be underestimated. Both the personal and collective shadow are insightfully characterized by Fritz Kunkel as unconscious efforts of the ego to defend and protect itself to further its own ambitions. ³ While I was confronting my own priestly inconsistencies in light of the spirit of Christ, I examined in some detail the dangers and dynamics of religion (chapters 9-14) as it struggles to escape exploitation by politics, authoritarian thinking, and social forces around us. Tragically, the Roman Church has been infected for most of its history by the Constantinian Virus, a spiritual affliction evident in its monarchical leadership structure which clings to its imperialistic character, while it eclipses early Christianity’s communal origins.

Religion can become a false ultimate according to Paul Tillich, as can the Church, a nation, or even a human figure posing as both a holy and daemonic character (awesome and dangerous) which creatively but destructively demands our total surrender while promising total fulfillment. In chapter 10, we will explore this dynamic in great detail, with Tillich’s insights and warnings about such holy imposters in our midst.

For most of us, it is inevitable that we will experience disillusionment over a beloved ideal (our family, church, government) that is corrupted, or chronically ill, or about to implode from a spiritual virus. John’s gospel reminds us, the light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it (Jn. 1:3, TLB). Our inner work with both our demons and angels prepares us to embrace more authentically the light that shines endlessly from the fullness of Christ, a unique Presence (chapter 16) that transcends the Church itself, while it fills the universe in all its parts (Eph. 1:23, NAB).

The fruits of my searching, questioning, and learning are featured in Part III, which draws us further inward, into walking and talking with the Cosmic Christ. In the course of my journey, I have come to believe that God is a mysterious Center, the still point of the turning world as T. S. Eliot described it, although he was quick to add, but do not call it fixity. ⁴ The divine is a dancing, relational presence ever with and among us. In contrast to Aristotle’s notion of an absolute unmoved Mover, distant and separate from all that is—God is the between; the holy Spirit living within and between all beings and all life. The mystic and fourth century theologian, Gregory of Nyssa, believed our souls are not solitary or separate. Rather, in each self, or soul, there is the potential for a unity that blends and harmonizes things (which are ordinarily) mutually opposed, so that many things become one. In their natural state, living things tend toward relationship and interbeing.

In chapters 17-21, I explore the Cosmic Christ; the reality of ongoing incarnational Revelation (born and living in sacred matter, as spirit); and the divine All in all (Eph. 4:6; I Cor. 15:28). I illustrate the relationship between the infinite and the finite which gives us the freedom to enjoy the original unity of Creation as spiritual siblings on a human journey. Concepts and images in spirituality can be complex, so I have given you a set of keys to open spiritual, metaphysical, and mystical doors through deep seeing, a synonym for the skills of contemplative-active lifestyle. This stage of our growing pains draws us beyond comparing religious texts, and finding common ideas and themes. We open ourselves with trust to a gentle commingling of consciousness, a spacious communion of the sacred wisdom, treasures, and even rituals present in our sister religions, and emerging spiritualities. There is no need to abandon our original identity, as we learn the two-step rhythm of transcending and including (Ken Wilber, key #1) that is essentially reconciling what once appeared to be separate with all we now see within the whole. This is a method of prudent, peaceful reconciliation.

Key #2 places italicized questions both within the text and at the end of each chapter for reflection and discussion. Key #3, paradox, an element both of gospel literature as well as nondual philosophy is a basis for contemplation and metaphysics. Paradox has played a central role in my life, in the writing of this book, and of course, in the gospels. It is central in Jesus’ teaching, so do not be surprised that paradox is a core element in interspiritual peace and understanding between religions. In John’s gospel cited earlier, Jesus speaks of his life in the Father, yet he never loses his own identity in the glorious unity of being one. This relationship illustrates the nature of paradox, which the Oxford dictionary describes as apparently contradictory ideas (images, beliefs, revelations) that, when investigated, both prove to be true. Or, as Niels Bohr put it: the opposite of a profound truth, may be another profound truth. ⁵ So we can rejoice, since doxos means praise, and para means next too; things placed next to each other inspire awe and praise. Might this also be true when religions commingle consciousness or share their wisdom? The most well-known gospel paradox is: to save your life, you must lose it. Does this not apply to religions as well as to individuals? Spiritual surrender is a trustworthy path leading to a life greater than our present life. Use the principal concepts and tools I provide for deep exploring.

Since the gospel truth and story is found outside of Christianity, as well as within it, in the final chapter I provide ten principles for walking the interspiritual highway. In touching other traditions, as Thich Nhat Hanh said, you touch your own. Quite spontaneously, other religious traditions and their teachers have deepened and expanded my sense of Christian discipleship. I have no reason to reject my Catholic DNA, and yet the first sign of my spiritual transformation appeared with the thought: I am no longer Roman Catholic. I am catholic, a universal human being, just as the word implies.

Today, millions of believers and seekers are with you and me on this pioneering path. Christ’s dream of humanity evolving toward peaceful communion and unity is now in our hands. Come take my hand…Let us begin.

PART I

AWAKEN — TRUTH IN A DIFFERENT VOICE

1

WALKING WITH MY SOUL

I crossed a frontier that once seemed impassable.

I too was beginning to think differently and to realize

that assumptions that had hitherto held me in thrall

were by no means cast in stone. From now on

I must be scrupulous about telling the truth,

especially to myself.

—karen armstrong

When my adventure across strange inner landscapes began, I was a young, idealistic, naïve priest. I was just beginning to wonder whether my insular, provincial worldview was true. It was as if I caught a scent of a wider world, one with a breadth a hundred times greater than the comforting sounds and smells of home. Curiosity was pulling me into a spiritual universe, to foreign territories, nearby, just beyond my familiar horizons. I kept moving, but it was impossible to see beyond the right angles, nor ignore the constant black and white pictures of my 1950s childhood; that sincere, serious Catholic outlook, packaged with moral force and caveats. I often wondered about those comfortable signposts, especially as strange spiritual figures and teachers and authors crossed my path just long enough to point me down unfamiliar pathways, which I admit with a smile, were often of the delicious and daring variety.

Before my story unfolds, I want to invite you to be my companion on this surprising and adventuresome inner journey. Whether you are Catholic or Christian or Jewish or identify with another faith or spirituality, or none, a meeting is about to take place. All real living is meeting, ¹ Martin Buber wrote. In this life of encounters there is the I and the We, and also the in-between, and it is there that the Divine, the holy (sacred/God), the Spirit commingle and something beautiful happens.

Every chapter, starting with this introduction, will be an encounter with a carefully selected question or questions. We begin this chapter by asking: Am I living within the expansiveness of my soul, or on some narrow, bordered highway?

I set out on this journey quite unexpectedly, drawn by a deep desire that would not let me go, a desire that still burns inside of me like a quiet fire in a forest. The burning began with the feeling that my belief system separated me from most of humanity, and this was somehow wrong. A core part of me was held captive by invisible walls that darkened my natural heart of love.

Authors and their readers meet in the in-between, in the words and images and stories, and with the characters who give a tale, a drama, or a true story its heart. In this book you will meet wise teachers, writers, risk-takers, saints, and seekers who are still moving on the pathways they have traveled toward interspiritual space to form a new communion of souls. It was Buber’s conviction that we have an I-Thou relationship with all that is. With life as a continual meeting, we discover an in-between Presence that is a given in reality, lives within religions, and beyond them. This Presence transcends and includes all that is, and in that, is like God—is truly Spirit.

In retrospect, I know that this Presence was the generator of all my desires, the force behind the curiosity that fueled my ecumenical search for the truth that lives within all things, a multifaceted Life which is waiting to fill our souls. But how, you may wonder, can the full truth ever be found? My first mentor taught me that wild wondering, when tempered with an anchor in tradition and intelligent openness, was honorable. Years later I discovered a sacred alignment, an evolving union that showed up for me in the nick of time, once I was ready to live my faith as an opening to all the many mysterious things in Creation. Walk neither slower nor faster than your own soul, Paulo Coelho wrote. It is your soul that will teach you the usefulness of each step you take. ² I learned to trust that the journey could be neither rushed nor forced. Truly, my journey has always been a series of gradual, careful steps rather than one radical departure without a backward glance. Hurry slowly, as the Zen saying goes, and be ready for the long path as your creative inner life unfolds. ³

However, it all began for me in a different way. Growing up within a traditional Roman Catholic milieu, I was tortured during puberty with piercing scruples over all things sexual. Internally, I was busy maintaining the good boy image throughout my school years. On the whole, my childhood had been safe, healthy and soaked in parental love and sibling rivalries. My controlled Catholic, morally dualistic world began to expand as I lived in a high school boarding school on the edges of a large city. Later, during college, living in Denver, Colorado in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, I let my soul expand in friendships with older students, through literature, music, and a discovery of the poetry within the gospels. The quiet self-confidence nurtured in me by a small-town rural lifestyle gave me a mental cornerstone to lean on each time I entered unfamiliar territory. I wrestled with the loss of my youthful innocence, as I evolved from a traditionalist to a rule-breaker, a risk-taker, and a budding existentialist. You may discover that this necessary estrangement expands the soul.

I had been raised on a pocketful of parochial truths, completely unaware of any broader truths that pulsed within the whole world, as the garment of the Lord (Isha Upanishad). My habit had been to follow the official form of things. While I tarried in secure shelters of the mind, an interior Word—an unexpected guest—came whispering to me of certain essential truths. I have come not for peace, but to bring a sword, Jesus said (Mt. 10:34), revealing the sharp edges of his discriminating mind. Here was Someone who recognized the face of a false peace, could read hearts, and put his finger firmly on established social injustices.

One night, on a midnight walk outside my college dormitory, I felt something unusual. And moments later, beneath the dim chapel lights, I saw the words of the Gospel rise up on the pages of the New Testament, like bold print on a billboard. I was just beginning to hear a soft voice that resonated with my soul, and still speaks to me in myriad ways. Call them whispers, or intuitions, but I learned to trust that inner Voice again and again. It led me into religious differences with siblings, to sad goodbyes to good friends, and to choices that took me far outside the cultural comfort of Roman Catholicism. I could not stop breaching the next horizon and the next…as I followed those beckoning whispers. As Jesus put it, the wind blows wherever it pleases; you hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going (Jn. 3:8).

I was slipping awkwardly into the gospel scene. If Nicodemus had been so blind to the spiritual birthing which Jesus spoke of (Jn. 3:4), was it possible I was equally deaf to the voice in the holy wind all around me? As my journal notes recall, "for so long I have been like a man leaning into the wind, to make something happen…come up with an ingenious scheme to make my dream work. I thought I knew how things should go. I fully believed I