Author: Soulman77

In a recent post on a creedal faith (https://www.patheos.com/blogs/loveopensdoors/2024/04/a-creedal-faith-after-deconstruction/ ), I offer these thoughts on deconstruction: 

We are hearing a lot of chatter and seeing a lot of literature these days concerning the act of deconstruction, especially from a faith perspective. Indeed, it seems that the number of people who identify as not religiously affiliated or “nones” is increasing.  

The idea of asking questions about our faith is not a new phenomenon nor is the idea of deconstruction. The philosopher Jaques Derrida is often linked to this modern concept.  

According to Pragati Kalive (https://www.sociologygroup.com/deconstruction-theory/ ) 

Deconstruction theory, derived from the works of philosopher Jacques Derrida, is a theory of literary analysis that opposes the assumptions of structuralism. Its primary purpose is to discern the relationship between text and meaning (Kalive, 2021) 

Deconstruction for Derrida was a means to explore the relationship between text and meaning. His work “asserts that meaning is not static and instead continually evolves and varies across time and space”. (Kalive, 2021) This is important linguistically because language is always changing and meaning also changes year to year. For example, the word gay meant something completely different in 1904 than it does in 2024. In biblical studies, contextual criticism is important, and one must consider the socio-political and historical context in which something was written. 

In this post, I want to talk about reconstruction through the lens of a faith without religion for a moment to focus on the development of a healthy spirituality.  

Early Desert Contemplatives 

In the Christian tradition, during the 4th century, common era, we saw the desert “father” (there were women too) movement. In fear of reprisal and persecution, early Christians took to the “desert” to pray and think or meditate on the scriptures. The Western order of the Benedictines and the Rule of Saint Benedict comes out of this early tradition.  

The first person attributed to the monastic dessert movement was Paul of Thebes, but it was Anthony the Great who launched the movement that became the Desert Fathers. It was believed that around 270 CE Anthony heard a Sunday sermon stating that perfection could be achieved by selling all of one’s possessions, giving the proceeds to the poor, and following Jesus. He followed the advice and made the further step of moving deep into the desert to seek complete solitude (Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_Fathers ). 

The early desert parents can teach us a lot about the importance of spirituality within religion. “Their journey into the desert was a movement toward growing intentional awareness of God’s presence and recognizing that worldly pleasures bring little long-term satisfaction. Their aim was to experience God in each moment and activity by reducing their needs and committing themselves to the discipline of regular prayer and self-inquiry.” (Valters Paintner, 2020) 

Hard Stop Affirmations 

One may read my heading of this essay and think that I have lost my religion. I have not. As I have matured in my faith, I have tended to focus on what I feel is most important in one’s faith experience, relationships and cultivating a healthy and mature spirituality.  

One can recite all the scripture passages and eloquently pray all the “just Jesus” prayers all day, but if they do not know the depth of their spiritual being, they are simply empty vessels with no cultivated awareness. Indeed, I feel we all need to have deep mystical experiences and regular spiritual awakenings to truly be alive with the Holy Spirit. It is for this reason that I never took the time to memorize scripture.  

I still affirm the Apostles and Nicene Creeds and the theologies around them, though for many of the people I talk to on most days, they could care less. It is the relationship aspect that the “nones” are looking for.  

For the Christian church today, it’s leaders need to lean into the pulse of the “nones” and the growing contingent of “spiritual but not religious” seekers among them. (See this article from The Atlantic and this article from Psychology Today  

Incorporating Spirituality into Religion 

Churches can still maintain their orthodoxy and still help seekers cultivate a deeper relationship with thier spiritual selves  

5 Ways to find a sense of spirituality within a religion 

1. Consider the Contemplative Traditions 
2. Consider the Mystical Traditions 
3. Consider Pluralism 
4. Consider Deep Ecumenism 
5. Learn how to foster inner peace by taking time to Center Yourself 

Let’s explore these briefly.  

Every religious tradition has a contemplative and alongside of the contemplative, a mystical tradition. Here, we find seekers who dig deep into their tradition, often thinking deeply about spiritual concepts and their relationship with the divine, however the divine is perceived. Here I not only think about the Christian monastics and mystics, but notably Rumi of the Suffi tradition within Islam and Buddha of the Buddhist tradition.  

Diana Eck and Matthew Fox are the two names that come to mind when I think of pluralism and Deep Ecumenism.  

Professor Eck is the founder of the Pluralism Project at Harvard Divinity School (https://pluralism.org/dr-diana-eck ). According to the Harvard website, the Pluralism Project is “an ongoing research effort, the Pluralism Project studies and interprets religious diversity and interfaith relations in the United States”. I have taught from this project in my World Religions class and have found it to be a powerful and easily accessible bridge to learning about the different religious traditions of the world.  

Matthew Fox made us aware of the concept of deep ecumenism when he introduced the world to “One River, Many Wells: Wisdom Springing from Global Faiths” in 2004. In this text, Fox points out that “we get to the core of religion by going to the heart experience, not by dwelling on doctrines that so easily divide even within religious traditions (https://www.matthewfox.org/ ). 

To center ourselves then, sometimes means doing work outside of our faith and spiritual tradition. I am often writing on the spiritual practice of you. The spiritual practice of you sometimes starts with going to therapy and working out past hurts, worries and doubts. In a world of broken systems, meaning is not being made. People often turn externally for validation without really affirming the goodness within them. Therapy can help with this. Once one is at a place where they feel emotionally safe, then they can begin deeper learning about their spiritual selves.  

Currently, the Christian church is part of this broken system. It makes meaning by prescribing a faith that is often out of touch with the needs of the seekers who are looking for meaning. We need to consider a new theology, a new understanding of humanity and openness for exploration that cannot be found within a prescribed faith.  

Reference: 

Rohr, R. (2015, October 12). The Two Halves of Life. Retrieved April 28, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/two-halves-life-2015-10-12/  

Valters Paintner, C. (2020, January 31). The desert mothers and fathers showed all life is sacred. The Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved April 29, 2024, from https://uscatholic.org/articles/202001/discover-the-sacredness-of-life-with-the-desert-mothers-and-fathers/  

Why is everyone anxious?  

In this post, I want to look at what the 16th century philosopher Jaques Rousseau can teach us about being anxious. One of the many questions I field in any given week is “what is wrong with the people these days?” I don’t claim to be an expert, but I have a high amount of training and exposure to psychology, theology and philosophy to competently answer, “it is complicated”. 

There is a concept in psychology known as the invisible or imaginary audience. Showing up somewhere between 9 and 11 years old, the concept of the ‘imaginary audience’ is a psychological phenomenon predominantly observed during adolescence. It refers to the belief that a group of onlookers are constantly watching and evaluating one’s appearance and actions, leading to heightened self-consciousness. It is thought that as a child grows up, moves into later adolescence, then finally adulthood, the pressures of the imaginary lessen and finally go away.  

Unfortunately, these days, I see a lot of people in my professional counseling practice stuck under the pressure of the invisible audience. I attribute many factors to this phenomenon, specifically, the breakdown of family and societal systems and the prevalence of electronic mediums such as TikTok, Facebook and other platforms. Pathologically, I have observed an increase in depression, body dysmorphias, phobias and other anxiety conditions related to these pressures.  

The Problem with Narcissism 

The problem with the imaginary audience is that I have observed it to lead to a number of manifestations of narcissism. In classic psychology, narcissism (Greenberg, 2017): 

Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) is the name for a series of coping strategies that began as an adaptation to a childhood family situation that left the person with unstable self-esteem, the inability to regulate their self-esteem without external validation, and low empathy. As with all three of the major categories of personality —Borderline, Narcissistic, and Schizoid—people with NPD also lack “whole object relations” and “object constancy.” 

The problem with any personality disorder is that it is awful for maintaining and sustaining long term friendships and relationships.  

16th Century Insight 

Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) was a Swiss philosopher whose work both praised and criticized the Enlightenment movement. Although a believer in the power of reason, science, and the arts, Rousseau was convinced that a flourishing culture hid a society full of inequalities and injustices. Rousseau believed in a Stoic simplism and that human beings were good by nature. Among the plethora of ideas and works Rousseau was known for, here, I would like to comment on his competing notions of amor de soi and amor prope.  How we approach these two concepts can determine how we sometimes experience being anxious. 

Amour de soi (self-love) 

Rousseau attributes to all creatures an instinctual drive towards self-preservation. We can call this the righting reflex. Babies and children are necessary narcissists because they have not yet learned self-control and sometimes have not gained the trust of their caregivers that they will be provided for. Second to this point is that parents sometimes do not set good boundaries and enact healthy discipline for their children. I am always telling parents that if you do not create meaning for your children, they will create their own.  

The human drive towards self-preservation according to Rousseau directs us to attend to our most basic biological needs. For Rousseau, “humans, like other creatures, are part of the design of a benevolent creator, they are individually well- equipped with the means to satisfy their natural needs. Alongside this basic drive for self-preservation, Rousseau posits another passion which he terms pitié (compassion). Pitié directs us to attend to and relieve the suffering of others (including animals) where we can do so without endangering our own self- preservation. In some of his writings, such as the Discourse on Inequality, pitié is an original drive that sits alongside amour de soi, whereas in others, such as Emile and the Essay on the Origin of Languages, it is a development of amour de soi considered as the origin of all passions.” (Bertram, 2023). 

Amour prope – (love of self, pride, vanity) 

Amour propre makes the need to be recognized by others as having value and to be treated with respect central to the felt interests of each human being. Here, we see the toddler and school aged child (5-7) who needs constant validation in their world. Here again, we see the adolescent who is jockeying to be seen and validated by their peers.  This inevitably leads the child or teenager to feel anxious. 

Here, Rousseau sees amour prope a negative passion and a “source of evil” (Bertram 2023. And here, we begin to see the Stoic simplism that pervades Rousseau’s thoughts. Rousseau believed much of this behavior developed from modern civilization/ urbanization. “Although Rousseau held that the overwhelming tendency, socially and historically, is for amour propre to take on toxic and self-defeating (‘inflamed’) forms, he also held that there are, at least in principle, ways of organizing social life and individual education that allow it to take on a benign character.” (Bertram, 2023) 

Rousseau’s concepts are part of a larger body of work known as his social contract. I am lifting them out of context a bit to highlight an existing problem we are observing in our world these days. We are not outgrowing the imaginary audience and we are not living our best lives for the sake of building up of others. We instead are living our best lives for the sake of ourselves, our image. We worry too much about what people think about us.  

Finally, thoughts on anxiety 

Carl Jung, the psychoanalytic psychiatrist suggested that there are two halves of life. According to Jung,  

“The first half of life is spent building our sense of identity, importance, and security —what I would call the false self and Freud might call the ego self. Jung emphasizes the importance and value of a healthy ego structure. But inevitably you discover, often through failure or a significant loss, that your conscious self is not all of you, but only the acceptable you. You will find your real purpose and identity at a much deeper level than the positive image you present to the world. 

In the second half of life, the ego still has a place, but now in the service of the True Self or soul, your inner and inherent identity. Your ego is the container that holds you all together, so now its strength is an advantage. Someone who can see their ego in this way is probably what we mean by a “grounded” person”. (Rohr, 2015) 

We need to go through this second half of life, and we need to feel anxiety. Both experiences are normal and signs of growth. In the second half of life, it is normal to not care so much about what people think of you. You are no longer interested in keeping up with others. Perhaps you have your family, your career and you may well be entrenched in life. You often no longer have to become anyone; you simply need to let life become present for you. See my previous post on becoming: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/loveopensdoors/2024/04/becoming/

Reference: 

Bertram, Christopher, “Jean Jacques Rousseau”, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2023 Edition), Edward N. Zalta & Uri Nodelman (eds.), URL = https://plato.stanford.edu/cgi-bin/encyclopedia/archinfo.cgi?entry=rousseau

Greenberg, E., PhD (2017, August 17). The Truth About Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Psychology Today. Retrieved April 28, 2024, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/understanding-narcissism/201708/the-truth-about-narcissistic-personality-disorder

Rohr, R., PhD (2015, October 12). The Two Halves of Life. Retrieved April 28, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/two-halves-life-2015-10-12/

 

In Book VII of the Republic, Socrates tells us the story of the “Parable of the Cave.” 

See: https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/seyer/files/plato_republic_514b-518d_allegory-of-the-cave.pdf 

In this story, Socrates recommends that political rulers be philosophers. In this treatise, Socrates is describe a just city where rulers must rule by wisdom and not from opinion or self-interest.  

The Allegory of the cave: from Kleinman (2013):  

People mistake the appearance of what is in front of them as reality and live in ignorance (quite happily, for ignorance is all these people know). However, when parts of the truth start to emerge, it can be frightening and can make people turn back. If one does not turn away from the truth and continues to seek it, he will have a better understanding of the world around him (and will never be able to return to that state of ignorance). The freed prisoner represents the philosopher, seeking a greater truth outside the perceived reality 

In the cave, you find the conundrum that surrounds our political system and many problems that have existed for years in society. There is a move with the most influential of our different systems to keep people ignorant to keep them in the dark. In this ignorance, we gain a sense of trust and complacency. We begin to fear when we start to realize the truth of the situation. In religion, true growth happens when one moves from prescribed faith to experiential faith. This is the same process that happens when you go to college and learn new things that may be distinctly different from what your family and socio-cultural upbringing has exposed you to. 

Commentary on the Parable 

We are like the prisoners in the cave. Ignorance keeps us shackled and forced to look at the cave’s wall. I am not one usually to comment pointedly on the situations that our country faces, but I feel it is a pastoral duty in this case.  

For too long, our Christianity in America has pushed a narrative of naivete and ignorance. It is shown us shadows projected on our walls of life by the fire of reality. The shadows are the objects the church and other well-meaning religious leaders have placed before us to alter the narrative.  

A prescribed, often fear based faith keeps our heads shacked to the walls of our faith so that we continuously see only shadows. But a new phenomenon has begun to arise in the form of deconstruction and a gradual movement towards a more mature faith. See my previous post about deconstruction: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/loveopensdoors/2024/04/a-creedal-faith-after-deconstruction/ 

As I have been teaching an intro to philosophy course over the last three weeks and realistically been studying for almost six months getting ready to teach it, I am continually reminded of the normalcy of questioning.  

Questioning is normal 

When our faith is based on believing what we are told to believe, we become frightened when our shadows which we accept as true are questioned. Yesterday, I was talking to a young man about his faith tradition. He was of a more conservative, literal bible approach kind of believer and when asked why I was no longer a pastor, I told him the church and I no longer saw eye to eye theologically. You could physically feel him revolt in disgust and visibly see him withdraw from the conversation.  

A friend posted a Rachel Held Evans quote the other day which said, “most young adults I know aren’t looking for a religion that answers all of their questions, but rather a community of faith in which they feel safe to ask them.” After years of private clinical practice, I continually find this to be the case.  

In the cave, some of the prisoners are liberated and they begin to turn around to face the fire. In doing so, they begin to climb out of the cave, and they begin to see the world as it is.  

Transformation 

Transformation is a spiritual practice that enhances healing and growth.  

I remember when I was transitioning away from the Catholic Church to The United Methodist Church. I was in my early twenties and the Catholic Church and my call to ministry there was all I knew. I remember the intimidation, fear and anxiety that came with this. Suprisingly for me at the time, all my Catholic friends were supportive and loving towards me and my new transformation.  

Transformation usually involves letting go of old ways of thinking. It requires a vulnerability that can be intimidating, especially if you have been looking at shadows all your life. Each one of us holds the potential for change.  

Transformation begins by asking questions – 

What beliefs do we have that may be harming our soul because they do not serve the common good? 

I witness a lot of angry and fearful people today. Fear causes one to be reactive. When we are reactive, our minds get clouded by emotions. IN this state of being, our ability to think rationally is impaired and we inadvertently hurt those around us.  

In the same vein, what attachments do we need to let go of?  

I also talk to a lot of people who are stuck on their allegiance to toxic systems, whether it be family, society or even church. I teach clients to eventually name this and then notice the feelings that arise and then eventually learn to feel this and let this go.  

None of this is easy for my clients and more than likely it will not be easy for you. If you are beginning to question, your faith, the shadows on the wall, understand that God is a God of love and will sit by you lovingly as you go through this. No matter how long it takes. Just like a loving parent would.  

Reference: 

Klienman, P. (2013). Philosophy 101: From Plato and Socrates to Ethics and Metaphysics, an Essential Primer on the History of Thought. Adams Media. https://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-101-Socrates-Metaphysics-Essential-ebook/dp/B00EKPKRPO/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1NK28D9WMEOXV&keywords=philosophy+101+paul+kleinman&qid=1701359454&sprefix=Paul+Kleinman%2Caps%2C327&sr=8-1 

Roochnik, D. (2013, July 8). An Introduction to Greek Philosophy [Lecture]. The Great Courses. https://www.audible.com/pd/An-Introduction-to-Greek-Philosophy-Audiobook/B00DCY39RC?action_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp  

 

You As a Spiritual Practice  

You are a spiritual practice. We are all works in progress. The spiritual practice of you challenges us to become all we were meant to be in God’s eyes – beloved children who are wonderfully loved. 

In addressing the word beauty, we need to consider what it is. Beauty is from God and is a result of God’s creative hand. Beauty is good when it is not corrupted by sinful nature. Humanity, however, is obsessed with the notion of beauty. We desire to be beautiful, and we want the things we own to be beautiful.  

Across millennia, beauty has had a relative and empirical orientation to it. Beauty is also prone to relativism.  

As I pondered how to write this essay, I considered all the “Christian” teachings I have been offered and consulted a few in preparation, but I found them all to fall short. I tend to be allergic to offerings entitled “What does the bible say” as I find them problematic. (See my article on deconstruction (https://www.patheos.com/blogs/loveopensdoors/2024/04/a-creedal-faith-after-deconstruction/ ). As someone who spends a good amount of time in the book of Psalms, I do enjoy the images of beauty found there.  

Ancient Notions of Beauty 

If we really want to turn to the bible and see what it “says”, we must turn to the philosophies of the time that led the early bible thinkers to record their thoughts on what beauty is. Among the early Greeks, beauty was seen one of the ultimate values. The ancient philosophers Aristotle and Plato largely saw beauty as objective in the sense that it is not localized in the response of the beholder. Aristotle’s thinking would permeate the notion of beauty through what is recorded as the bibilical period, influencing Roman ideology up to Aquinas and into modernity.  

Consider this idea from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy on this observsation around Roman notions of beauty based on the architect, Vitruvius https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/beauty/ : 

Architecture consists of Order, which in Greek is called taxis, and arrangement, which the Greeks name diathesis, and of Proportion and Symmetry and Decor and Distribution which in the Greeks is called oeconomia. 

Order is the balanced adjustment of the details of the work separately, and as to the whole, the arrangement of the proportion with a view to a symmetrical result. 

Proportion implies a graceful semblance: the suitable display of details in their context. This is attained when the details of the work are of a height suitable to their breadth, of a breadth suitable to their length; in a word, when everything has a symmetrical correspondence. 

Symmetry also is the appropriate harmony arising out of the details of the work itself: the correspondence of each given detail to the form of the design as a whole. As in the human body, from cubit, foot, palm, inch and other small parts come the symmetric quality of eurhythmy. (Vitruvius, 26–27) 

So, for example, when we reflect on what the bible says around beauty, especially when looking at the New Testament, we must consider the source from which they are drawing their standards of beauty.  

Spiritual Practice of You – Cultivating your Inner Beauty 

Focusing on You as a spiritual practice enhances your authenticity and counters our tendency towards low self-esteem or the other extreme: grandiosity. As noted above, a war rages within us daily. We sometimes fight to see ourselves as God sees us, beautiful creatures created out of Divine love. To live life spiritually is one that requires us to think of ourselves in a high enough regard and be able to serve others. This balance is delicate and one that I observe people struggling with daily; most often, focusing on serving others to the detriment of themselves. What can you do to better cultivate your inner beauty? 

Attune to Our Outer Selves 

Who do you see on the outside? When you look in the mirror. What do you see. Or don’t you. Do you avoid mirrors because they show your scars? You are a gift. You were and are wonderfully made. All your wrinkles, your scars, your weight. You are loved.  

If you do not like the view though and if you can do something about it. Then do it. It may take a few months, it may take a year, it may take a couple of years. But you are a spiritual practice.  

Attune to Our Inner Selves 

Often these days, I see so many storms ravaging people. Storms of fear, anger, sadness, loss. This point goes with my last point, see a therapist. But attuning to our inner selves is more than our trauma. It is also cultivating a healthy emotional intelligence and becoming aware of how our body feels at any given point in time. What does it feel to be happy? What does it feel to be sad? What does it feel to be free?  

Taking a deep breath in, I smile. May I be safe, may I be healthy, may I be at ease.  

Cultivate Pride and Humility 

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. If you have accomplished much, and you have accomplished little, it does not matter in God’s eyes. There has been a persistent problem in Christianity around pride. It has and continues to be seen as a vice and a behavior that is often frowned upon. I know in my early days of preaching; I would have preached against pride. The old saying, “pride goes before the fall” has prohibited many from sitting back and being proud or amazed at their accomplishments.  

Humbly we must always be aware that we are always seen by God in heaven, that our actions everywhere are in God’s sight and are reported by angels at every hour (Rule of Saint Benedict Chapter 1 vs. 13). 

Cultivating Pride and Humility balances our awareness of our accomplishments with the knowledge that God sees our accomplishments. Pride is not being boastful, not going after adoration, because we know that God sees us. Pride then is having a sense of accomplishment and having a feeling of elation over it.  

Begin to See All Obstacles as Places to Grow 

I love ancient philosophy, especially the Stoics. The Stoic view of adversity emphasizes the importance of focusing on what we can control and accepting what we cannot. By accepting the reality of the situation, we can shift our focus to finding solutions and opportunities for growth. As Epictetus once said, “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” 

I sometimes get called out on this; people think I am out of touch. What I can’t often tell people is how I have been stabbed in the back and betrayed by the institution that was supposed to support my career. I remember the first time it happened, shocked and dismayed of course, I simply said, ok and figured it out. It is easier now that I am older, but it took some work. You can do it too.  

Consider Therapy to Begin to Unpack Why You Don’t See Your Goodness 

There are a lot of self-help gurus, influencers and books galore to help you find your inner beauty. There are two components that are lacking from these sources. The one-on-one connection and the evidence-based practice one gets when they see a therapist.  

Life is hard. Bad things happen. Our society does a terrible job of encouraging proper and healthy emotional growth. A therapist can be that connection you need to help you begin to stabilize your mental health so that you can move along Maslow’s hierarchy and reach for that self-actualization of awesomeness that within all of us.  

Nothing I have presented here is easy or quick. I first began to lose my career 20 years ago. I kept it on life support for another 16 years before officially pulling the plug and pulling the plug. You are a work in progress. Getting yourself straight and seeing yourself as God intended is a spiritual practice. You are worth it.  

 

 

Reference: 

Sartwell, Crispin, “Beauty”, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2022 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2022/entries/beauty/&gt;. 

 

A Spiritual Practice of You 

 

 

 

It is curious when you realize that you are the same age as the people you thought were old in high school. In an article from a website entitled “Do You Remember” (https://doyouremember.com/169911/retrospective-aging-influences-perspective which references this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjqt8T3tJIE&t=104s ), the author considers the idea of “retrospective aging”. Here, the author discusses why people of the past looked older even though they may be same age as the person looking at the picture in the present. Essentially, the author and the presenter in the video point out that people look older due to clothing and hairstyles. The presenter does note that people are generally healthier and living longer now and this correlates with other research in this area.  

Every now and again, something comes up in the media or in the world of sports where an older person is particpating and people think that they should not. It was once believed through most of the last century (1900 – mid 90’s) that older people could not participate or even should not participate in exercise.  

The Psychophysiology of Aging 

The HEALTH AND PLACE INITIATIVE (HAPI) https://research.gsd.harvard.edu/hapi/files/2014/10/HAPI_ReserachBrief-Aging-PhyPsy-102814-FINAL.pdf  investigates how to create healthier cities in the future, with a specific emphasis on China. Bringing together experts from the Harvard Graduate School of Design (HGSD) and the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), they produced a research brief entitled “Physiology and Psychology of Aging, Health and Place”.  

In this brief, I found this point, “no single theory or mechanism to explain aging has emerged. Rather it seems to be a result of multiple causes”. I find this point to be encouraging, multiple causes. Furthermore, the brief points out that chronic diseases associated with aging are preventable or modifiable, and related to social, cultural, environmental, and lifestyle factors. 

Physiology 

It is understood that certain things change when one gets older. For me, cresting the mid forty hump and in concert with some post covid issues, recovery has been a surprising turn of events. Twelve years ago, when I got into endurance running, it would be common to crank out fifty-mile weeks without a sneeze. Post Covid malaise and normal aging have created new challenges.  

The research bears this out. Starting at age 30, one will experience changes in muscle, and this declines precipitously after 50. Ligaments that were once loose and limber become thicker and less stretch. There are many physical changes that occur, but none of these imply that one must stop exercising or being physically active 

Psychology 

Not everyone gets dementia or forgetfulness when they get older. The notion of the fragile, hard of hearing and sometimes forgettable senior is a trope that many like to make. This could not be farther from the truth for many seniors. Consider this thought from the bulletin referenced earlier, “Until around age 85, typical aging causes only minor declines in mental functioning. However, after age 85, rates of dementia increase dramatically.”  

Fit over Fifty 

If you have been sedentary for a period of time, there is no better time than now to get started. When I tell this to my clients, many naturally get overwhelmed, especially because many of them know what I do for physical activity. I stress that they do not have to go hard and in fact, much of the research and recommendations in the field of fitness start new exercisers over the age of 50 at a very low intensity. Trainers like myself must consider a number of factors when starting a new person with exercise.  

When considering your second half of life and how to fitness routine into it, you must consider what you want that second half to look like. Do you want to travel with your spouse, or independently? Do you want to be able to play with your grandkids? While I am not 50 yet, I have a 15-year plan to complete as many sections of the Appalachian trail as I can. When one gets fit after 50, they gain a whole new lease on life that puts them in optimal shape to navigate all the challenges that they will face both physi and mentally. See https://www.polar.com/blog/fit-over-50/  

A Daily Prescription 

We are called to honor our bodies; we are all God’s creation. The spiritual practice of you is a practice of intentionality. High blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol and obesity are all preventable depending on your genetics. All are attributed to modifiable factors in your life such as diet and exercise. If damage is already done and you are on statins or metformin, all is not lost. Sometimes, one can reduce their dosage of these medications and regardless, any movement is good movement.  

Start with talking to your doctor to get cleared for exercise. Then seek out a personal trainer who understands senior fitness. Then take a walk. My standard prescription is walking as a base for about 3 months, gradually building time and speed. If you can only handle 5 minutes, be patient. If you are older and this is a new experience for you, your lifestyle has done a lot of damage to your system. You may be walking around with a few more pounds than you need and your joints may not be very happy about it. But, if you can stick with it, it will get easier.  

Secondly, see a nutritionist.  

Finally, consider these thoughts from Kristin Jeffery Johnson:  https://www.patheos.com/topics/faith-and-aging/every-wrinkle-tells-a-story-kirstin-jeffrey-johnson