Spiritual Intelligence

Spiritual intelligence is both experiential and empirical. Unlike other forms of “intelligence”, we have not yet discovered a meaningful way to measure either the existence or effectiveness of spiritual intelligence. We have not yet reached a level of consciousness in our spiritual evolution as humans that would allow us to consistently appreciate the utility of spiritual intelligence. However, we can still make some empirically based observations about the presence of spiritual intelligence, and from those observations we can extrapolate a sense of how spiritual intelligence can advance us in our individual and human development. Once we get a better handle on what spiritual intelligence is and how it manifests, we will get a clearer picture (as discussed in the next chapter) of how the exercise of our spiritual development can indeed further the cause of the system of life and its agenda of integration.

Cataloguing the presence of spiritual intelligence is fundamentally about noticing and observing our experiences of “knowing”. When I refer to “knowing”, I mean that there is a conviction about something that cannot be traced directly to verifiable, scientific proof or to logical, deductive explanations. Sometimes we experience such knowing in the intuitive feelings we have prior to making certain decisions, and we call this “operating from our gut”. Other times the knowing appears stronger but less defined, as in the experience of suddenly feeling peaceful, powerful, loved, or purposeful. These “knowings” show up as strong energetic impetuses, but we are not always certain how to act on them. Still other such “knowings” can only be expressed in senses and “felt thoughts”. What fundamentally distinguishes humans from all other animals is that we not only “know” but we know that we “know”, which is in itself a form of consciousness. Here is a sampling of some of the many “knowings” that I believe point directly to the presence of spiritual intelligence:

            Knowing that God exists and the purpose of life involves integration of living things.

            When friends ask me why I am so sure of God’s existence, I reply quite simply, “it’s just a knowing that I have from my experience of life”. I don’t expect God’s existence to be proved to me. I live with a fundamental faith and reflect regularly on my life experiences to reinforce and confirm the small voice within me that continues to help me see as God reveals Itself to me and others. Each of us has a unique journey to undertake and each of us will know God in accordance with the nuances of that journey. My “knowing” of God has come from different sources, ranging from constant exercise of faith issues to sensing God’s presence in church, in ways that are difficult to describe but altogether “real” to me. I have talked with enough people to be convinced that many others have had similar experiences and many others have had experiences I have not that have provided them with their own “knowing” of God’s existence.

            Knowing there is eternal life for the soul.

            Knowing of eternal life for the soul comes from deep self-knowledge. When we examine ourselves honestly, especially our way of being when we are under pressure, we learn a great deal about our souls. We learn more about the many purposes that souls take on in this world in order to fulfill the Will of God, and those purposes necessarily involve eternity. When you discover your particular purpose, which I would describe as more of a process or journey than a specific function or destination, you come to implicitly “know” about eternity.

            Sometimes the “knowing” occurs simply from tapping into a collective consciousness much greater than your own. I remember distinctly when I came to this knowing of eternity. I was 15 years old and was reading Martin Luther King’s book, I have a Dream. In that book he made the point that 80 years of life on this earth (which was considered to be a long and healthy existence at the time) is barely a recognizable blip on the screen of eternity. For some reason (doubtless this was a significant spiritual experience for there seemed no particular “reason” at the time for being as moved as I was), that visual image hit home with me and from then on I never questioned that I wanted my life to be directed by what would be meaningful in the context of eternity rather than the context of what I might accomplish on earth.