Spiritual DNA

There was a time when I did some genealogical research.  I knew a little about some of the folks who were up my family tree and thought a longer look might prove interesting.  I also happened to live in a community which took pride in its genealogical library which made things easier.  Of course, this was the day before all the on line research sites.  Getting information required more than clicking and moving a mouse. 

 

Maybe the next on line service will help us discover our spiritual DNA.  When we do genealogical research, we are never sure where it will take us.  Maybe the same would be true if we started doing some research into what religious influences affected our spiritual lives.  As I allowed my mind to start wandering down this track I thought about my theological training at a United Methodist seminary.  I also thought about the influence of a United Methodist Junior College as well as the evangelical school where I got my degree.  Having grown up in the Methodist Church, it is certainly plausible to say that a good portion of my spiritual DNA is Wesleyan.

 

But, not everyone has such an academic exposure and the more I reflect upon sources of influence, the more I realize what a mixture of spiritual influences have shaped me.  I think some recent readings into Celtic Spirituality have caused this kind of reflection.  Some of what I have been reading really resonates in my spirit.  And, in these years after the pulpit I have found some Roman Catholic writers who really have set me to thinking in some new ways.  One of the things often discovered in genealogical research is the way we are a mixture of different cultures.  The further I go along, the more this also seems true of my spiritual life as well.  Maybe we are mostly something but still souls with a good portion of other stuff.