Quotes

I appreciate the spiritual search of the non-churched, non-synagogued people as being full of imagination, discovery, and satisfaction for the individual. But I once saw a bumper sticker that said, “Spirituality doesn’t make hospice calls.” Spirituality remains, normally, individualistic. You may gather for a retreat, and then you disperse. You may gather at the coffee shop or the bookstore, and then you disperse. The people who are handling the homeless and dealing with addiction and trying to improve senior care and who care about the training of the young—they have to bond together. If they don’t do it in old-fashioned churches, they’ll do it in new-fashioned churches. But I don’t think it adds up to much unless there is some development of community, some bonding. — Martin Marty