The Integral Message
Relational Spirituality is an approach to life that illustrates the emerging Integral era of consciousness. I present it as capturing the essence and character of Panikkar’s Cosmotheandric integral vision. Relational Spirituality is based upon an integral reflection upon the traditional teaching of scripture often referred to as the Shema - the Hebrew word for hearing the call to love God and one’s neighbour as oneself. In detail and context it reads,
Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live. (Lk 10:25-28)
In Luke’s version of the law of love, he sets the teaching in the context of the lawyer’s question, ‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’ I treat this question as an archetypal question, for it comes close to capturing the innate longing of humans for what is one of life’s ultimate questions, to know of eternal life. It finishes with the simple affirmation by Jesus, ‘Do this and you will live.’ (Lk. 10:28)
It touches the eternal, for all cultures have formed their own replica of this Golden rule of life (commonly emerged through the first millennium BC). The more we love the more we grow in its’ ways, and learn of its inter-relational nature.
This famous teaching introduces the famous parable of the Good Samaritan. The heart of its teaching, points to the secret of love being within the discovery of the sense of neighbourliness within ourself. When you know of your own neighbourliness all people become your neighbour.
David Augsberger captures this in his words,
"I come to know myself truly as a spiritual being by knowing God. I come to know who I truly am by being known by God. I come to know others by seeing in them the reflected image of God, the other. I come to know this other when meeting God in others, sister, brother, neighbour, stranger, friend or enemy."
Panikkar spoke of his integral world by describing the polarities created by the poles of Creator, Creation, Creature. Creator-Creation. Creator-Creature and Creation-Creature.
Relational Spirituality replicates this process by similarly exploring the polarities of the three poles described in the Shema, the golden rule of love; God, Neighbour and Self. God-neighbour, God-self, and neighbour-self. Relational Spirituality views these polarities involving meditation, psychology and social justice, meditation-psychology, meditation and self, psychology and social justice.
To further describe these polarities, it is helpful to clarify one’s theory of personality. Such a description will follow with a basic introduction to the theory of Carl Jung, with a specific focus on the relationship between the ego and the Self Archetype.