Abraham Heschel

☆ Spirituality is the transcendent in our own existence
“Nothing exists for its own sake, nothing is valid by its own right. What seems to be a purpose is but a station on the road. All is set in the dimension of the holy. All is endowed with bearing on God…This is what we mean by the term ‘spiritual’: It is the reference to the transcendent in our own existence, the direction of the Here toward the Beyond…It is impossible to grasp spirit in itself. Spirit is a direction, the turning of all beings to God: theotropism. It is always more than – and superior to – what we are and know.” Abraham Heschel, God in Search of Man, 415-416

Audacious longing, burning songs, daring thoughts
☆ “Faith is not the clinging to a shrine but an endless pilgrimage of the heart. Audacious longing, burning songs, daring thoughts, an impulse overwhelming the heart, usurping the mind – these are all a drive towards serving Him who rings our hearts like a bell. It is as if He were waiting to enter our empty, perishing lives.” Abraham Heschel, Man Is Not Alone, 174
This is part of what I think of as being my true self.

☆ Something sacred is at stake in every event
“The awe that we sense or ought to sense when standing in the presence of a human being is a moment of intuition for the likeness of God which is concealed in his essence. Not only man; even inanimate things stand in a relation to the Creator. The secret of every being is the divine care and concern that are invested in it. Something sacred is at stake in every event.” Abraham Heschel, God in Search of Man, page 74

A bridge flung across an abyss
!☆ “In the dimension of the holy the spiritual is a bridge flung across a frightful abyss, while in the realm of nature the spiritual hovers like the wafted clouds, too tenuous to bear man across the abyss.” Abraham Heschel, Man Is Not Alone, 239

Normal consciousness is a state of stupor
! “You grasp the essence of the here by conceiving the beyond – for this world is the reality of the spirit in a state of trance. The manifestation of the mystery is partly suspended, with ourselves living in lethargy. Normal consciousness is a state of stupor, in which sensibility to the wholly real and responsiveness to the stimuli of the spirit are reduced. The mystics, knowing that man is involved in a hidden history of the cosmos, endeavor to awake from the drowsiness and apathy and to regain the state of wakefulness for their enchanted souls.” Abraham Heschel, The Earth is the Lord's, 71

“They were sure that everything hinted at something transcendent, that what was apparent to the mind is but [think] surface of the undisclosed.” Abraham Heschel, The Earth is the Lord's, 56

Relish the taste of life eternal in the fleeting moment
“The new thing in Eastern Europe was that somewhat of the Sabbath was infused into every day. One could.” Abraham Heschel, The Earth Is the Lord's, 97

Raise man to a higher level of existence
"The Biblical answer to evil is not the good but the 'holy.' It is an attempt to raise man to a higher level of existence, where man is not alone when confronted with evil.” Abraham Heschel

The importance of spirituality
What is the unique quality that religion has (which, say, morals can't provide)?
"Unless I feel that my life is accountable to Him, who's much greater than I am, I could not always control my mean leanings. I would not always be ready for self-sacrifice....” Abraham Heschel, Moral Grandeur, 411
“Number two, my life would be poor. The deepest passion in any real human person is a craving for meaning of existence....God is the meaning beyond absurdity. Wherever I go, I encounter absurdity." Abraham Heschel, Moral Grandeur, 411.

We build or destroy, sanctify or profane.
“Every man constantly produces thoughts, words, deeds, committing them either to the powers of holiness or the powers of impurity. He is constantly engaged either in building or in destroying. But his task is to restore, by fulfilling the Torah, what has been impaired in the cosmos, to labor in the service of the cosmos for the sake of God.” Abraham Heschel, The Earth is the Lord's, 61

Not an answer but an urgent demand
“God is not an explanation of the world’s enigmas or a guarantee for our salvation. He is an eternal challenge, an urgent demand. He is not a problem to be solved but a question addressed to us as individuals, as nations, as mankind.” Abraham Heschel, Man is Not Alone, 92

Redeem the sparks of holiness
“The meaning of man’s life lies in his perfecting the universe. He has to distinguish, gather, and redeem the sparks of holiness scattered throughout the darkness of the world.” Abraham Heschel, The Earth is the Lord's, 72