Reviving European spirituality

During the Christmas festivities, the Archbishop emphasised the need for our country to rediscover its values. Agreed. However, to be relevant and to have impact, these values, while extolling the spiritual, should also be earthbound and pragmatic.

Spirituality is not an abstract notion. It is about the "total" world in which we all interact; the inclusion of the poor, the acceptance of those who are ethnically and culturally different, the respect for nature.

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of the Catholic Church, in a book which he co-authored with Marcello Pera, Senza Radici, talks about the dangers arising out of the "spiritual deficit" of Europe. He warns that a soul-less Europe is doomed.

This "spiritual deficit" is adversely affecting our psychological well-being, leading at times to a loss of identity, stress and mental exhaustion. It is also resulting in the erosion of the sense of community as reflected through passivity, indifference and the lack of trust and social cooperation.

Spirituality is about liberation from selfishness, ego and pride and helps build justice, harmony and sustainability. Spirituality, in this day and age, has to be seen as being complementary rather than a substitute to material well-being.

Cardinal Ratzinger adds that is his opinion the Catholic Church itself is paralysed. It is suffering from the same disease, relativism, that is stifling Europe's lay institutions. The relativist holds that there is no such thing as "absolute truth"; no morality and no culture is better than any other.

The Church's flirting with relativism started with Vatican Council II. Catholicism is being caught between the universality of its teachings (Christ is the only way for Salvation) and ecumenism, with its emphasis on religious inclusion and tolerance.

And yet, just as for the Church, it has not always been so with modern Europe. Some 500 years ago, Europe was very fond of its new ideas and changed way of thinking. It actively sought their universal dissemination. The ascendancy of reason over belief had triggered a deep transformation of European societies. Political. Social. Economic.

These changes led to the emergence of capitalism as an incredibly powerful wealth generating force. Mammon became the new god. Individualism led to increased ego-centrism and selfishness. The individual's drive for utilitarian worldliness intensified. The "I am" soon became "I have".

These developments made Europe powerful and rich. The need for cheap agricultural produce and raw materials led to imperialism and increased infighting among European states. Imperialism led to nazism and fascism. Capitalism to communism. Two world wars scarred the European psyche. A guilt complex, a sense of uncertainty crept in. Europe was losing its love for itself. It was the dawn of relativism.

However, while Europe's thinking process may have become what many consider blurred and anaemic, its wealth accumulation did not abate. Europe evolved into a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The empires melted away. So European (and American) capitalism changed the ballgame. A new economy emerged which was technology (knowledge) rather then material intensive.

Consumer needs were redefined through a combination of marketing techniques and programmed technological obsolescence. A new class of poor people emerged; they are poor not because they do not have but just because they do not have as much.

Technological growth paved the way to globalisation. Consumerism was exported to every corner of the world. The consumption of technology/marketing based products imparts a superficial sense of modernity in traditional societies and unavoidably leads to tensions and conflicts.

Reactionary movements to this permeating process often have nowhere to look and end up seeking refuge in past pieties. Islam, with its tight grasp of society, is the most glaring example of this. And yet, European societies themselves are not excluded from these same contradictions. This is leading many Europeans towards Christian renewal.

Secularism and relativism should not hinder Europe from promoting spiritual objectives. This has to start with the re-dimensioning of globalisation. It has to forget about "economic growth races" with the USA and others and adopt a broader and more holistic approach to humanity.

Looming global conflicts may warrant that Europeans revitalise their spiritual dimension. This could be a unique opportunity for the Church to carve a redefined role for itself within the European landscape. A role that finds its justification in the future rather than the past.

Cardinal Ratzinger says that the Church should help Europe rediscover God through reason, rather than through appeals to tradition and biblical reference.

And yet, the clock cannot be turned back. Christianity has to accept that its teachings and practice are just one path among many. The wisdom of the faith traditions have a great deal to contribute to the evolution of humanity. This provided we escape from the "ark" mentality.

fms18@maltanet.net