12 Ways, 12 Questions, 12 Traditions

The Spiritual Paths process for spiritual education and development is based on the premise that there are twelve families of spiritual learning styles, questions, and traditions.  We help each person to recognize and honor her/his own dominant styles and questions as a basis for their spiritual growth.  Once a spiritual student and teacher recognizes the dominant learning style of the student, it is easier for them to develop a meaningful path for spiritual study and practice.

The fascinating variety of spiritual teachings, methods, and paths have been developed in response to the variety of learning styles among students.  Contemporary spiritual malaise and dysfunctionality is in part due to the fact that religious institutions are not providing relevant teachings geared toward the spiritual learning styles, questions, and issues of their constituencies.  

The twelve families of spiritual styles or paths are: The Path of the Arts, the Path of the Body, the Path of Contemplation and Meditation, the Path of Devotion, the Path of Healing, the Path of the Intellect, the Path of Love, the Path of the Mystic, the Path of Nature, the Path of Prayer, the Path of Relationships, the Path of Wisdom.  Entire religious genres, schools, and even sects owe their formation to one or more of these spiritual styles and paths.

Effective spiritual education also should address the major questions that students have -- perennial questions that have been asked by people throughout the world and throughout time.  These questions pertain to the following twelve categories: God, Ethics, Soul, Freedom, Happiness, Immortality, Reality, Spirit Beings, Supernatural, Transformation, Truth, Beginning/End.

Simply for the sake of pedagogic symmetry, I have divided the world's religions into the following twelve groups.  The first five,are:  Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism.  The remaining seven, are divided by places of geographical origin: Africa, America, Europe, East Asia, South Asia, Middle East and Oceania.

The Spiritual Paths process encourages and supports students to develop their spiritual paths beginning with the perspectives of their own dominate spiritual styles, and then asking  their big spiritual questions of the world's great spiritual traditions.  Gradually, our teachers, seminars, books, television and web site are providing materials to help people engage in the process of spiritual study and self-discovery. Our web site is gradually expanding to include readings and discussions on each of these subjects that will form the basis of a curriculum for college credit as well as life-long learning.

Ed Bastian