Grappling with Spirituality

Today’s service is part one of what we are aiming to be an ongoing series on spirituality, and addressing the question of what the spiritual needs of our congregation might be. I wanted to launch this series, because I think that a lot of us have a complicated relationship with spirituality, with religion, and with the concepts and language that surrounds them – I include myself in that group. Some people here are longtime members of either this congregation, or of other progressive religious traditions. Others, like myself and several of the other service leaders, come from backgrounds where religion was a painful and oppressive part of life.

And yet, many of us have ended up here, because we’re looking for something – something that I think we can loosely call “spirituality”. I know that for me, walking into a church and choosing to spend time here was a difficult thing to do, and I don’t think I’m alone in that. What I’m hoping to foster here today, is an ongoing dialogue about what we might mean when we use words like “spirituality” or other language associated with religion, and what role those concepts play in our lives. We have all taken different paths in getting here, and today I will share a bit of mine.

Ruby Johnson

Reflections on a Spiritual Journey

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Can spiritual journeys be something other than finding a religion or a God? A personal interpretation. My story’s a bit different – but maybe it’s yours too ….

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Maria Hayward

Reflections on a Spiritual Journey
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Maria Hayward © 24 May 2026

What is a Spiritual Journey?

According to AI, “a spiritual journey is a personal, non-linear quest to deepen self-awareness, connect with a higher purpose, and find inner peace”. The definition continues: A spiritual journey “involves shifting from ego-driven living to authenticity, often marked by meditation, mindfulness, and self-reflection. The process often starts at the heart, nurturing compassion and a deeper connection to the cosmos.”

I quite like that definition – although a connection to the cosmos might not be the words I’d use. And churches or religion are not mentioned. I also think that it doesn’t matter whether our spiritual journeys include a concept of God or religion or church. These are all personal worlds and we make our own decisions about which aspects of spirituality have relevance or meaning for us. It doesn’t matter that there are differences in our spiritual journeys or beliefs or credence. In my opinion, what matters is how we live our lives. And how we make decisions in our lives – what guides us? It is interesting to hear the variety of spiritual interpretations and journeys that we’ve been hearing over the last few weeks.

Today I’ll share my journey. Mine is not so much about waka jumping (or faith/church swapping) – it’s more about that ethereal thing, the development of my moral compass, perhaps, that steers or guides me in my life. This is today’s ‘take’, the theme or topic for today’s service.

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Grappling with Spirituality, Second in the personal journeys series

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How I came to Unitarianism and am still not sure how I define or participate in spirituality.

Speaker & Worship Leader:- Kate Lewis

Grappling with Spirituality, Second in the personal journeys series
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Kate Lewis © 10 May 2026

A few weeks ago Ruby introduced our series of talks on personal journeys of spirituality. She titled her talk Grappling with Spirituality, which is perhaps an appropriate title for the whole series, since here we all are in the Auckland Unitarian Church, and most of us did not start our religious or spiritual lives as Unitarians.

After volunteering to do this talk I started to wonder if I am, in fact, a spiritual person. What does that word even mean? It reminded me of teaching and lecturing at the university; there’s nothing like teaching a subject to make you realise you do not understand it at all.

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Grappling with Spirituality

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Speaker & Worship Leader:- Ruby Johnson

Grappling with Spirituality
Listen, or download the MP3

Read below, or download the PDF

Follow this shortcut to the bottom of the page for the various readings, videos, etc. shared in the service.


Ruby Johnson © 29 March 2026

Opening Words:

Today’s service is part one of what we are aiming to be an ongoing series on spirituality, and addressing the question of what the spiritual needs of our congregation might be. I wanted to launch this series, because I think that a lot of us have a complicated relationship with spirituality, with religion, and with the concepts and language that surrounds them – I include myself in that group. Some people here are longtime members of either this congregation, or of other progressive religious traditions. Others, like myself and several of the other service leaders, come from backgrounds where religion was a painful and oppressive part of life.

Continue reading Grappling with Spirituality