Science + Spirituality - Both/And
I wanted to pull this down from my {instagram} stories, as it’s been something I’ve been noticing and struggling with for a while now. Specifically the trend in the “wellness” community to skew towards anti-vax, QAnon teachings.
I feel I need to preface this with the statement that I love the diversity of human thinking. I think that is what makes us able to evolve. And there will always be polarization. But for me, any rhetoric that involved harming (or shaming) another group does not feel true. And in an industry built on “love & light”, allowing this kind of thinking to infiltrate and take root feels counter-intuitive.
In the most recent egregious example, white male comedian JP Sears recently used his platform to announce the safe home birth of his child & make transphobic comments at the same time. And, because he has a giant platform & the ability to hide behind the white male rape anthem: “Geez, can’t you take a joke?” He feels privileged enough to be safe enough to say it.
But here’s my litmus test of woo-woo things: would believing in this - whatever this is - HURT A CHILD? And if the answer is yes, then it’s a no-go for me. It doesn’t feel like it would fit into a wellness category.
Will following astrology & wearing crystals in my bra hurt a child? No, though my family may think I’m nuts 🤷♀️
Will believing that LGBTQ+ (and Black Lives) NOT have as much value as other hurt a child? YES! Even (especially) that sweet baby in JP’s arms. What if he, the baby, grows up to be non-binary or feel more called to a female gender than his born male body? And what if this long-forgotten Instagram post surfaces and that sweet child, now a confused teenage or angry adult feels all that shame?
Is this belief now worth it? If JP feels it now, that child will feel that energy growing up. Any parent will tell you they - children - feel and see all. Especially the things you try to hide.
Obviously, this is a huge umbrella, covering many hot button issues for many people with different perspectives. More than I can even imagine understanding, but I can respect those perspectives as different - again, as long as it’s not hurting a child. Meaning it’s allowing a child to BE THEIR OWN SELF - whoever that is, despite their parental/family of origins thoughts and beliefs.
This is where I am so grateful for connecting with people like Jess. Those are her words in the image, but I couldn’t have said it better myself. We met at a moon club retreat and have followed each other through the Capricorn heavy astrology of 2018-2020. As we both learned to navigate UNLEARNING. Unlearning being told that who we are - neurodiverse, “different” - wasn’t real. And we can find common ground on the science + spiritual issues that seem to be the upcoming focus on 2021 & beyond. Especially as we move into the true Age of Aquarius.
And if my referencing astrology negates the very rational arguments I laid out above, I invite you to ask yourself WHY?
Because science has to be all? Science is God? No, I don’t believe that. But I do believe these vaccines will save lives and that’s a good thing. I am also personally terrified of them. There is space for both.
Or because if you believe in astrology means you also believe in the QAnon Great Awakening? Fuck Capitalism? Fuck the Patriarchy? Also, no. I believe we are definitely in a period of consciousness growth, but anything CULT is going to hurt people, needlessly.
So I’m choosing to follow influencers* that believe in BOTH. SCIENCE + SPIRITUALITY. Black Lives Matter. LGBTQ+ Lives Matter. Wear a mask when in public as the pandemic rages, it won’t hurt you and may save a life. Be Kind. And keep working on those shadows to find out what your inner child is desperately trying to say to you. Who knows, you may enrich the life of an actual child or children by doing this work.
It can be both/and. I believe in humans. I believe in the earth. I believe in us.
*I really hate the term influencers 🤢but … I’m leaving it.
(image on blog page by Joel Filipe on Unsplash)
