In fact, this quest for personal fulfillment and Divine relationship may be infiltrating the spiritual territory of traditional religious organizations and structures, siphoning off energy and enthusiasm from the already foundering mainline congregation. Instead of waiting for the fad to end, perhaps we might explore this "secular spirituality," understand it, and use it as a point of connection for those without religious affiliation.

"I’m spiritual but not religious" is shorthand for a search for the meaning of life, a sense of transcendent connection, or deeper growth and understanding. Spirituality revolves around the intangible components of human life—often connecting thoughts, emotions, and experience with something beyond the self. Traditionally explored through organized religion, this search is now fair game in a variety of non-religious settings.

This phenomenon isn’t new—aspects of this search for meaning undergirded the peace and love movements of the 1960s, the "me-ism" of the 1970s, and the New Age spirituality of the 1980s and 90s.

What is new is the breadth of the expression of secular spirituality. God-talk used to be a societal taboo. Now it seems to be everywhere in one form or another. In the entertainment industry, TV shows such as Touched by an Angel and Joan of Arcadia deal specifically with God and faith. Don Brown's The Da Vinci Code and Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ attracted thousands of Christians and non-Christians. Hugely successful movies such as The Lord of the Rings and The Matrix deal with the conflict between good and evil as entities in the universe that humanity fights for and against. (The Matrix has generated a lot of press—to learn more, consider this article from the Christian Science Monitor: "The Gospel According to Neo"). Christian rock groups cross over to top billboard charts with pop culture audiences. Twelve-step programs, which rely on a "higher power," exist to cope with almost any life addiction or challenge.