What is Spiritual Life Writing?

Spiritual life writing comes in many forms and in many voices

Life writing is an umbrella term for personal accounts of human experience. It’s that simple. Think journals, diaries, confessions, letters, autobiographies, personal essays, memoirs, biographies, ethnographies, or profiles. Spiritual life writing (SLW) refers to personal accounts of whatever the author deems spiritual, sacred, faith-based, or religious. So, when you try to wrap your head around the notion of spiritual life writing, think broadly.

Heather Walton’s Not Eden: Spiritual Life Writing for this World argues for the need to think way outside the box, well beyond the notion that the only SLW worth its salt is theological reflection. We agree. Life writing about the sacred goes well beyond belief to touch on every aspect of human experience. Psychology. Health. Sexuality. Education. Vocation. Social status. Food and folkways. And, of course, family. So much is bound up with notions of what’s sacred, beyond plumbing mystery, sensing the presence of something numinous or divine, discerning the guidance of a higher power, or receiving ancestral wisdom.

Spiritual life writing comes in many forms and in many voices. We’re here to celebrate all of its expressions.

Take, for instance, the 4th Century classic, The Confessions, by Augustine, Bishop of Hippo — a volume still in print, still seen as the cornerstone of autobiography and spiritual autobiography in the western literary canon. (You knew that, right? Okay, maybe not.) Or maybe a college student has given you Meditations, by the 2nd Century emperor and Stoic philosopher, Marcus Aurelius, whose assertion that “everything is connected, and the web is holy” is still echoed by mystics, pantheists, and Wiccans. Now, consider a contemporary memoir by a Canadian music icon. At first glance, Bruce Cockburn’s Rumours of Glory might seem a far cry from a philosopher’s musings or the North African bishop’s magnum opus. Yet the singer-songwriter wrestles with many of the same themes, including sexuality, the nature of divinity, and what it means to live a purpose-driven life. For obvious reasons, Cockburn’s book is marketed as a music memoir. But make no mistake: it is spiritual life writing hiding in plain sight.

The rub is in the labeling.

There’s an assumption that the steep decline in religious affiliation in western countries corresponds to a drop in consumer interest (that is, sales). That seems logical, doesn’t it? And yet, we’re seeing just the opposite. More than ever, people want to express themselves authentically, to speak openly and freely about all aspects of their lives, the sacred and profane included. And with declining participation in institutional religion alongside the surge in self-described seeking, it’s more important than ever that we strive to understand one another’s histories, needs, and interests. Historically, faith has been a common denominator in many cultures. Pluralistic societies simply can’t afford to sideline faith as a key marker of ethics, values, and meaning.

So, where do you fit into all of this?

We hope you’ll think about all the books that have awakened you, or spoken to your spirit. Could it be Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, James Baldwin’s Notes of a Native Son, Richard Wagamese’s One Native Life, Joy Harjo’s Crazy Brave, Maxine Hong Kingston’s Warrior Woman? Did Unorthodox by Debra Feldman, or Tara Westover’s Educated, surprise you? Of course, what counts as spiritually significant depends on the author and their reader. Naturalist Sharman Apt Russell authored several award-winning works before sharing her worldview in Standing in the Light: My Life as a Pantheist, whereas naturalist Terry Tempest Williams made her mark with her searing debut memoir from the Mormon heartland, Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place.

Even a passing interest in these titles is a testament to the enduring power of deeply personal works that open up to bigger questions.

Now, where would you place yourself? Wherever it is, may you find yourself in a bold lineage, or a place you can return to for grounding and wisdom. May you converse freely with other authors, living and dead. May you close your eyes and see your book in some magnificent library, shimmering alongside self-published volumes, the latest best-sellers, and classics that have stood the test of time. Whether you’re tackling a memoir, drafting a slim volume of poems, collecting personal essays, spinning beautiful tales for children, or inventing a compelling YA series, we are here to help you realize the story that is yours to tell.

[This content is an excerpt from Susan Scott’s introduction to The Spiritual Life Workbook: from Concept to Bookshelf.]