Buffet Spirituality
Do you like buffets? One of the most sumptuous meals I’ve ever enjoyed was a seafood buffet at Caesar’s, Lake Tahoe. I remember huge orange knots of king crab legs, piles of oysters, and shrimp of every size. The lobster ravioli were to die for—rich, creamy, very satisfying.
Buffets are fun–load up a plate with your favorite food in just the right amount. A friend reports that Disneyland puts on an awe-inspiring buffet for their signature character breakfast; she laughed when she noticed her son-in-law spent more time filming the food than filming his daughter meeting the Disney characters.
One of my favorite writers, Frederica Mathewes-Green, suggests that, for many of us, the "buffet" mentality extends to our spirituality. Here’s what she says in her book Gender: "The presumption is that we should explore the spiritual realm and discover what best pleases and supports us, and discard the rest."
Goddess spirituality suggests, I think, a buffet spirituality. Pick and choose your favorite goddess, god, myth, metaphor, representation, symbol, ritual, tradition, teacher, and history. With a religion based on experience, and a perception of reality based on an "open metaphysic," (the notion that reality is multiple and diverse so no one person can comprehend it) it sounds like anything goes. It’s a me-first and me-always spirituality.
I don’t know about you, but at my core, without Christ, I am most unholy. Any religion based on me-first would be self-serving, corrupt and untrustworthy.
Instead, I yearn for a holy God, pure, unblemished, and worthy of worship. God is not a choice in the buffet; he created it.
"We are inheritors of a faith tradition that is coherent, rich, and profound," continues Mathewes-Green. "We have no desire to tamper with it. Instead, we want to listen attentively to it and learn … We come to our faith as followers and disciples, not as critics or shoppers."
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SUSY FLORY is a New York Times best selling author, speaker, and journalist who searches out big stories with happy endings. She's I'm always looking for true stories that inspire and challenge her readers to embrace a life of passion, boldness, & adventure. 
