When someone says "I am spiritual but not religious," what do they mean?  In this episode we will look at two possible answers.  One is that someone shares some of the beliefs of a particular tradition but does not participate in organized religious observances.  A second answer could be a person who has pieced together beliefs from several religious traditions.  While these answers are helpful, they are missing a key element of spiritual- commitment to a community.

            In the next episode we will look what I believe is the best understanding of spirituality.

    Before we can get an idea of what is healthy spirituality, we must have an idea of how religion is not the same thing as spirituality.  In this episode, we will look at what I think is a good understanding of religion.  Many people, perhaps most, are comfortable with organized religious services, some simple forms of devotion and activities with their religious community.  They seek nothing more in their religious faith.  But for others, especially younger people, this is not enough.  People with a more mystical attitude want to experience the divine in their daily lives.  They might tell people that "I am spiritual but not religious." Here we begin to see how spirituality is not the same as religion.  Next time we will look at what people mean by saying they are spiritual but not religious. 

     This series is based on my new book, Why Are we Here?, which can be viewed at

http://www.amazon.com/Why-Are-We-Here-Seeing/dp/0578073749/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1312128443&sr=1-7



     In this episode we are moving in a new direction.  This will be the first of several episodes that looks at the question 'What is healthy sprituality?'  We do not have to look far to see examples of bad spirituality, so it is important to know what the good kind looks like.  Before we can answer that question, though, we must look at several issues.  First, what is religion?  What is faith?  Is spirituality different from religion and faith?

     In this first installment, we will look at a couple of definitions of religion, one positive and one negative.  We will learn something from each that helps us get closer to a workable understanding of what is religion.

This new series is based on my new book "Why Are We Here?' which can be viewed at

http://www.amazon.com/Why-Are-We-Here-Seeing/dp/0578073749/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1312128443&sr=1-7

    Perhaps the ultimate question we all face is do we survive beyond death?  In the context of this series, the question would become 'Does love survive beyond death?'  Many of you listening have lost loved ones, as have I.  You cannot help but wonder does the love we still feel for the ones we lost tell us anything?  Is it futile to still love someone who is no longer here, or is it a sign of something beyond this life?

     In the the next episode we will start a new series about faith and spirituality, based on my recent book WHY ARE WE HERE?

     In this episode, we will look at a love that is closely related Marital Love, which is Family love.  I offer a suggested definition of family love and then examine it phrase by phrase.  Not everyone who is in a marriage chooses to have children, but for those who do, my suggested definition might be helpful.

     In the next episode, we will look at the question of whether or not love survives beyond death.

This podcast series is based on my book, The Six Faces of Love, which can be viewed at

http://www.authorhouse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000279633

Hear my original music at http://cdbaby.com/all/cowen

     When is a marriage no longer workable?  This is a difficult question to answer in a short podcast.  I discuss the spirituality of marital love to offer a suggested answer to the question.  I look at two common mistakes couples make regarding the spiritual stages and rates of spiritual growth of their partners. Very seldom are a husband and wife at the spiritual stages or experiencing spiritual growth at the same rate.   Failing to understand these two things can cause stress in a marriage that is completely unnecessary.  I also offer one measure of the health of a marriage regarding both partners' approach to each other's spiritual growth. 

     In the next episode we will look at family love, one that is closely related to but not the same as marital love.

This podcast series is based on my book "The Six Faces of Love" which can be viewed at:

http://www.authorhouse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000279633

Check out my original music at

http://cdbaby.com/all/cowen





     When is a couple ready to get married?  In the past, one answer was that individuals must first do therapy and become emotionally mature before they should get married.  When I gave pre-marital counseling to couples and tried to use this answer, I found something unusual.  No couple I counseled seemed to meet this test, where both people had completley reached emotional maturity.  I discuss how I modified my approach in counseling engaged couples, changing the 'therapuetic' model that was unrealistic in its demands.

     Next time we will look at two closely related questions: How do you keep a marriage going? and How do you know when a marriage will no longer work?

This podcast series is based on my book "The Six Faces of Love" which can be viewed at http://www.authorhouse.com/BookStore/BookStoreSearchResults.aspx?SearchType=smpl&SearchTerm=craig+Owen

Check out my original music at:

http://cdbaby.com/all/cowen



     In this episode, we begin one of several in a series on what is marital and family love?  These first few will focus on what is marital love.  We begin by recalling Peter and Cheryl, the couple we looked at in the episodes about romantic love.  Peter and Cheryl have worked through there problems, and now they desire to stay together indefinitely.  Are they ready for marriage?  I suggest a definition of marital love to help answer the question Peter and Cheryl are facing about should they get married.  In my definition I suggest that companionship is the heart of marital love.

     How can a couple reach the point of being ready for marriage?  This is the question we will take up in the next episode.

This podcast series is based on my book "The Six Faces of Love" which can be viewed athttp://www.authorhouse.com/BookStore/BookStoreSearchResults.aspx?SearchType=smpl&SearchTerm=craig+Owen

Check out my original music at:

http://cdbaby.com/all/cowen

     In this episode we look at joyful faith and how it impacts the experience of community love.  Joyful faith is focused more on the future and our efforts to become better people.  The joy in joyful faith comes from the belief that God gives us the strength and guidance to become more than we are at our worst.  In contrast, fearful faith focuses on our sinfulness, imperfections and failures.  The key values of joyful faith are forgiveness and reconciliation, the two values I have used in my definition of community love.  In comparison, fearful faith has the key values of anger, judgment, and exclusiveness.  Jane's rejection of her life long friend Laura shows that Jane is acting out of fearful faith.  Perhaps Jane would have kept her friendship with Laura if Jane had experienced joyful faith instead of fearful faith.

     In the next episode we will begin several installments on what are marriage and family love.

     In this episode, we look at fearful faith and how it can have a negative impact upon community love.  Fearful faith usually has an image of God as being angry and judgmental of sinful humans.  Unless we believe the right things, we are all condemned to eternal punishment.  While this kind of faith is quite common, it creates problems for the experience of community love.  Anger and judgmentalness may become the primary values of community love as practiced by a group that believes in fearful faith.  Jane's rejection of her lifelong friend Laura shows that Jane has fearful faith.  Anger and judgmentalness are directed at Laura by Jane, which may be the key values in Jane's religious community. 

     In the next episode we will look at joyful faith, which can provide a more positive experience of community love.

This podcast series is based on my book "The Six Faces of Love" which can be viewed at http://www.authorhouse.com/BookStore/BookStoreSearchResults.aspx?SearchType=smpl&SearchTerm=craig+Owen 

Check out my original music at:

http://cdbaby.com/all/cowen