Spiritual Experience
“It may be possible to find explanations of spiritual experiences such as ours, but I have often tried to explain my own and have succeeded only in giving the story of it. I know the feeling it gave me and the results it has brought, but I realize I may never fully understand its deeper why and how.”—Bill Wilson in As Bill Sees It (Alcoholics Anonymous, 1967), p. 313.
Bill Wilson was not the only one to have a spiritual experience. I daily meet with people who gradually, reluctantly, and sometimes embarrassingly tell stories about their spiritual experiences. We are still under the influence of the Age of Enlightenment and Reason. We only know what we can explain.
We may fear sharing anything that comes from mystery.
For many people, these spiritual experiences occur outside in nature as we connect and are overwhelmed by observing the ocean, trees, and mountains. Suddenly, we feel arms holding us up by something greater than ourselves. We want to respond with gratitude by whatever means we know. We sense a presence beside us. Some have the experience in a house of worship. A flickering candle produces what looks like holy smoke. Some grow into awareness at the Eucharist. They leave the rail at peace with what is going on in their lives. Many people remember a religious experience at the birth of a child or seeing a newborn for the first time.
Birds often contribute to a transcendent experience. I remember the Sunday after the death of a dear friend, Jane Murray. I saw a wild goose fly by a window at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, where Jane and I worked together. I had never seen that before and haven’t seen it since. The wild goose is the Celtic symbol for the Holy Spirit.
Candles often contribute to our enlightenment. I recently met with a friend for spiritual direction, who noticed the reflected light of the burning candle beside us through a window, and the reflection appeared to be burning on a tree outside our window. He spoke up, “I see a burning bush!”
These are all times when we are aware of “burning bush” experiences, and we should take our shoes off and say thank you when we encounter them.
