Throughout history, people have tried to remake society by changing its outward form and organization. The "Arab Spring" going on today in the Eastern nations is a good example of revolution, just as the American Revolution was. The problem with most violent overthrows of government, however, is that the radicals then split into separate factions and fail to 'breathe together' to form a new organization that works. Soon, there is a new dictatorship or regime as oppressive as the one formerly overthrown.
Spiritual conspirators, however, first undergo radical shifts within themselves, shifts that enable them to find inner strength and a larger wisdom. As they awaken to new possibilities within themselves, they begin to recognize the same transformation occurring in others around them. For most people, they do not first join a group and learn "spiritual lessons" and then change. Rather, there is either a sudden (as in the case of St. Paul) or a gradual awakening to new spiritual depths. As they follow the gentle nudge or the sudden jolt of this spiritual awakening, as they learn to walk in new paths, their eyes are gradually opened to the same process going on in people around them. They find themselves "breathing together" with others on the same spiritual wavelength, even without knowing how it is happening.
The process begins in almost every case, not by consulting the authorities or any "how-to" book, but by some kind of opening to the Divine Presence -- a Presence Who is a Person and Who calls forth in us some kind of new creativity, or release, of our own spirit. In this Presence, we suddenly or gradually discover a loving embrace, a freedom to be ourselves, and a new kind of knowledge or enlightenment. As we learn to "breathe in" or "inspire" this Presence, as we learn to "breathe with" this Divine Spirit, as we learn to love in a non-hostile and safe environment, as we learn to walk on ground that does not shift beneath our feet, we gain confidence and courage. Soon, we are no longer afraid of ourselves or of others, and we are ready to learn "breathing together" not only with the Divine Presence, but with others around us.
There is no school or manual that can teach us "how to do" this kind of conspiracy. We learn it from the Master Teacher, or not at all. None of us can set out to be Master Teachers for others. You learn it from your relationship with God; I learn it from my own unique relationship with God. He is the bond of unity between us; He Himself teaches us to breathe together in Him. There are no shortcuts.
When I attend church, or a bible study, or a prayer group, there is no guarantee that everyone there has first experienced "breathing together" with God. Some are present, but hope that nothing will upset or disturb the equilibrium of their lives. But there are some who want to heal, to learn to forgive, to love unconditionally. Some are present, hoping to find something more than the physical and mental world offers them. Some want to find meaning in their lives; they long for deep friendships and for union with God. They want wisdom more than "ideas." And if I want to connect with these people on a spiritual level, there is no better place to begin than in church.
First, though, I have to allow God to "guide my feet into the way of peace." I have to want Him to direct my paths and lead me. If there is no church as a starting place, I have to cultivate a relationship with God first, trusting that He will "lead me in straight paths for His Name's Sake." We have to trust the Good Shepherd to lead us beside still waters and into green pastures.
Some years ago, I met someone who came just a couple of times to a bible study I attend. Instantly, we began to "breathe together;" somehow, we recognized one another from the start as of one spirit and one mind. Since then, our lives have touched lightly only once or twice, but each time, we come away refreshed, renewed, re-strengthened. Our "breathing together" indeed helps us to re-connect with the Divine Presence as well as with one another.
When we meet others who breathe on our wavelength, it helps us to live up to our own best potential. In Man's Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl tells the story of the loving connection he felt with his wife through his internment:
As my friend and I stumbled on for miles, slipping on icy spots, supporting each other time and time again, dragging one another up and onward, nothing was said, but we both knew: each of us was thinking of his wife. Occasionally I looked at the sky, where the stars were fading and the pink light of the morning was beginning to spread behind a dark bank of clouds. But my mind clung to my wife's image, imagining it with an uncanny acuteness. I heard her answering me, saw her smile, her frank and encouraging look. Real or not, her look was then more luminous than the sun which was beginning to rise.
Though Frankl had nothing left, though he and his wife were separated physically, he knew the spiritual presence of one who loved him beyond all measure. And that spiritual presence was more real to him than his material and physical circumstances.
Scripture tells us that God is love, and those who dwell in love dwell in God. If we learn to dwell first in God, we learn to love one another. There is a rhythm to love, but we cannot learn it on our own; it must be taught to us by "inspiration" or "breathing in" of the Divine Presence.
* Note: the basic ideas on this page, as well as the term "breathing together," comes from the introduction to Kything: The Art of Spiritual Presence by Louis M. Savary and Patricia H. Berne (Paulist Press: 1988). I have interwoven my own reflections and commentary into their foundation.
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