What is Spiritual Naturalism?

Spiritual Naturalism (also called religious naturalism) is a worldview, value system, and personal life practice. The term appeared by at least 1895, but as a concept it has been around for thousands of years. A religion to some, philosophy to others, Spiritual Naturalism sees the universe as one natural and sacred whole – as is the rationality and the science through which nature is revealed. It advocates principles and practices that have compassion as their foundation, and it finds wisdom and inspiration in innumerable rich traditions and ethical philosophies from around the world.

The focus of Spiritual Naturalism is happiness, contentment, or flourishing in life, and a relief from suffering. It is a spirituality whereby we work to become wiser and to live better over time through continued learning, contemplative practices, and character development. It is by walking such a path that we become more capable of helping to make the world a better place, and in so doing, come closer to the flourishing ‘good life’.

To explain in more detail, it is helpful to take each word separately:

Naturalism is a view of the world that includes those things which we can observe or directly conclude from observations. Naturalists’ conception of reality consists of the natural world as outlined by the latest scientific understanding. As for claims for which we have no evidence, we do not hold any beliefs in these and do not make any other claims about them. It is quite possible, even likely, that many things exist which we cannot detect, but we believe in a humble approach to knowledge. With humility, we can recognize that human beings are imperfect in their ability to know all things. Therefore, we are careful to limit our claims about reality to what we can experience and measure, as well as reproduce and show to others. On all else, we are content to admit “we don’t know”.

Spirituality is the other word in Spiritual Naturalism. For many, the word ‘spirituality’ has an association with the supernatural. However, we mean the term in its more general and original sense. The Latin root word spiritus meant ‘wind’ or ‘breath’, or the essence of something. As we might speak of the ‘spirit of the law’ or ‘school spirit’, the spiritual is that which is concerned with the essence of life – or the essential things in life. Thus, a person with no sense of spirituality would be a person that lives on the surface, always dealing only with the shallow or the mundane; perhaps even a materialistic person. But to have spirituality is to be concerned with the larger, deeper, and essential matters of life and to apply ourselves consciously toward them in a committed practice or ‘walk’. This includes, as Socrates put it, the ‘examined life’, and this is what we mean by spirituality.

Spiritual Naturalism and Other Worldviews

Because it is a general term that overlaps with many viewpoints, it is possible for a person to be a Spiritual Naturalist and several other things simultaneously. Spiritual Naturalism cuts across traditional or familiar categories. Many Humanists, Unitarians, Freethinkers, Jews, Pagans, Buddhists, skeptics, atheists, agnostics, and others may also be Spiritual Naturalists, though not all of them.

Many Traditions Inspiring Spiritual Naturalism

Spiritual Naturalism is a broad category of concepts and practices. Naturalistic forms of spirituality can be found emerging within nearly all religious, spiritual, and philosophical traditions. The Spiritual Naturalist Society is here to help those who find their way into these movements to come together and learn from one another, across these traditional boundaries. Here are just a few examples of some of the more active and emerging Spiritual Naturalist communities. In fact, many of us include a variety of influences in our own personal practice, without the need to adhere to any one set of ideas…

• Secular Buddhism
  Many naturalists find great wisdom and efficacy in the teachings and mindfulness practices of Buddhism.
  
  
• Naturalistic Paganism
   There are many traditions even within Paganism. Naturalistic Pagans find the experiential rituals and inspirational imagery of Pagan tradition to be helpful in their practice.
  
  
• Stoicism
  Ancient Stoicism is making a comeback in many emerging communities. Not all Stoics consider themselves naturalists, but many naturalists find the teachings and practices of Stoicism highly compatible and powerful.
  
  
• Humanism
  Modern Humanism (both ‘secular’ and ‘religious’) is fully naturalistic. Those Humanists interested in applying naturalistic forms of traditional contemplative practices and learning about their effects can be found among our members.
  
  
• Science & Spirituality
  Popularizing scientists and authors like Carl Sagan have communicated well how spiritually fulfilling and awe-inspiring science can be in our lives.
  
  
• Humanistic Judaism
  Jewish tradition is followed in forms that do not require supernatural interpretations. Humanistic Judaism has long been one of the traditions at the forefront of naturalistic spiritual practice.
  
  
• Pantheism
  Some forms of pantheism see the world as sacred while framing this in ways compatible with modern naturalism. Pantheists have a robust tradition of including naturalists.
  
  
• Christian Naturalism
  This is one of the newest and emerging groups, but naturalists who practice within the Christian cultural tradition are growing in number.

Further Learning

Spiritual Naturalist Society - Their website contains educational materials from many traditions within Spiritual Naturalism.

Spiritual Naturalism on Wikipedia