Quoting Joan Chittister...
I realize that many people may say there is no distinction, but for me the Christian religion is the organized institutional expression of the following of Jesus; regulation for the way we go about worship.
Spirituality, on the other hand, is the personal expression of that following of Jesus; of living Christian values at every level of our lives. For example, we could go to church every week throughout every year of our entire lives and never develop our own spirituality. We could jump through every religious hoop, and at the end of the day, still not have any real spiritual consciousness.
Religion is meant to lead us to a spiritual life. That's why some people say they are both the same. But religion does not necessarily lead us to spirituality. We have to do that for ourselves. I am reminded of a story in which a Sufi Master is dying and his disciples say to him, "Oh, do not leave us master, because we won't know what to do." The master looks at his disciples and says, 'You must understand that I am only a finger pointing at the moon. When I go, hopefully, you will see the moon." Religion is like that, a finger pointing at the moon.
Ted sez..Many different fingers point upward-our earth has only one moon.
My Source: Sacred Journey Article Vol 61 No 1 Winter 2010
An Interview with Joan Chittister, member of the Benedicting Sisters of Erie, Pennsylvania
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