Tenets for a Spiritual Wanderer

I have come to a scary place. This scary place consists of doubt, skepticism, and uncertainty. Although these terms might be trendy labels in some progressive tribes, I admit my close relationship to them with much apprehension. In other words, the doubts I have about my faith frighten me.

To rewind a bit, I must explain...in the past  year or so, my faith in many Christian tenets of certainty have come crumbling down. My presupposed assumptions of the Bible's vitality in my life, Jesus as God, and even the Trinitarian view of God are no longer left unquestioned.

So, what's left? Well, I don't have much certainty in theological ideas any more. My interest has moved from theory to practice, from theological ideas to real life stuff. For example, I don't care any longer what you believe about the divinity of Christ, but I do care a lot about how you treat homosexuals and any other group that has been treated as sub-human by many others.

So, for my own benefit (and possibly others who are in a similar place) I wanted to make a list of my spiritual tenets.

1. Be open to every idea.
This does not mean I do not have values or beliefs, rather, I will always listen to other                           people and be open to changing my beliefs and values.

2. Be a healthy skeptic.
I will not be a pessimistic critic whose aim is simply to critique for the sake of critique,                       rather, I will question and doubt before easily accepting any idea--especially an idea that                     one claims is directly from God.

3. Be inclusive to all people.
This does not mean I do not have a backbone or stand up for my values, rather, I choose to                 accept and love those who are different than me, especially minority groups that are often                   attacked. This does not mean I accept those who are promoting violence or harming others.

4. Be humble.
This means I admit my shortcomings and let go of certainty in all my beliefs. I                                     choose to see the value that every person has and to allow them to be my teacher. I admit                   that I really don't know that much, and that life is a continual journey of learning and un-                     learning.

5. Be a pacifist.
This means that violence is never the answer. I refute the idea that war can bring about                         lasting peace. This has never worked in history and never will. I adhere to the teachings of                   Jesus of Nazareth about radical enemy love. This does not mean I allow violent people to                     walk all over others. Instead, it means I do what I can to stand up to injustice, without                           supporting methods that take a life.

The guiding force behind all these tenets is LOVE. It sounds cliche and this word has been hi-jacked by groups who only give lip service to being loving; nonetheless, love is the best way to experience True Life. Others-focused love will lead to practically living out these five spiritual tenets. This list is not exhaustive and might not be relate-able to everyone, but it is what makes sense right in my life as a spiritual wanderer.