Earthy Mysticism: Spirituality for Unspiritual People

by Tex Sample

This book, says the author, is “a testimony of narratives where [a] strange God appears. Such appearances supply the mystical states that have come to shape my life. I am not helped much by conventional approaches to spirituality. I find it almost impossible to do ‘devotions.’ Daily Bible study in the sense of devoting twenty to thirty minutes a day never worked for me. I cannot get around to scheduled times for prayer on my knees with head bowed. I find labyrinths and prayer beads boring. I am ever and again distracted in silent meditation. I simply cannot sustain a spirituality based in such things. “I do not regard myself as unusual or special. My hunch, and it is more than that, is that a host of people will recognize themselves in what I describe here. What is here is, clearly, my story, but it is not about me. It is about a God of surprises, of One who comes in the ordinary and the seamy. It is about a God who will goose you. It is about mystical moments when clearly the only thing that finally matters is this God who will never leave us alone, especially in the ordinary and angular places of life. It is, I hope, a spirituality for unspiritual people.”From the Circuit Rider "Tex Sample’s new book, Earthy Spirituality for Unspiritual People, simultaneously says a whole lot and very little about the subject of mysticism. The word “mysticism” itself only shows up in the introduction and the last chapter, bracketing the book with a concept that Sample doesn’t fully define or even directly reflect on the meaning of. That being said, Sample never claims to be writing a scholarly view of what mysticism might be, but instead attempts to show how one can recognize the presence of the holy in everyday life. In this he succeeds powerfully." (Click here to read the entire review.)

Genres: Spirituality, Theology

121 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2008

About the author

Is a specialist in church and society, a storyteller, author.

Reviews

[Gary Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

My spiritual formation group read this book as part of our weekly meetings, one chapter per week. The chapters are short, each telling a story in its entirety. The writing is exceptional, some chapters so powerful that some of us had trouble speaking because we had been touched so profoundly. The book shows us that God and spirituality can be found in many unlikely people and places. I found it easy to make connections between these situations and my own, and the reading and our discussion of it led me to a deeper understanding my own experience.

[Shawnananana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can clearly see how many perceive me to be a Unitarian Universalist version of Tex Sample. Or a fledging version at any rate. I very much enjoy reading someone else who believes that God is not just in the high places inaccessible from us, but in the low places and loves all people, even the ones who fail to met the standards of the community. I fully appreciate his approach towards having an all loving God that 'allows' for evil to happen, and the God of the working-class.

[Kelsey Grissom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very short book of very short stories, but every one of those stories made me tear up. Tex Sample is a powerful theological-story teller.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the stories in this book...so inspiring!

[Amy A · Rating 3 out of 5]

My husband had gotten this book from the library and I saw it laying on our counter and was intrigued. The subtitle is "spirituality for unspiritual people". I guess I thought that the author would be someone that was not associated with the church, but had had spiritual experiences that would help others to realize that God is not just in church. I guess that's pretty much what the book was, except that he is a very big part of his church- the pastor, even. The examples that he gives for where God is found were very obvious to me- I guess I see God in what some would consider unusual places, too. I guess I had never considered that others wouldn't see spirituality in every day situations.

Also, the author mentioned God's "loud silence"- the void of God being a protest against the sad things that happen to people in the world. I don't think that I agree completely with this notion, but I also don't feel that I understand it completely.

Finally, I can't say that this author is a gifted writer. Honestly, the stories are written in a way that most any educated person could have written (pretty average). Most of the stories, though, were engaging. My favorite part was on page 97, when he is writing about marriage: "...a host of practices of intimacy: touching each other as you walk by, a look of affection especially in a trying moment, making the bed together,... caregiving when one of you is sick, or sharing with a glance a personal response when at a party or in another public setting. All these and a thousand more constitute practices of intimacy that form us and make us one." These things help you know that you are special to each other and that you help to carry each other.

[Amos Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a one of kind book. What's so refreshing about Tex's style is the honesty and grit. Tex does not try to sugar coat the hard truths. He looks at them in the eye. Tex's word choice is unencumbered and original. Some of my favorite lines from the introduction to give you a sense of his style (don't want to take up too much space with all the sentences I underlined throughout):
--(when contemplating going into ministry) "The very thought that I would have to go through life as some sanctimonious mouther of platitudes drove me crazy (XI)
--In that mystical moment, I remember how small and petty my life appeared before me: the people I did not like, my own egocentric strivings, the silliness of my worries, and the sense that I had given myself to too little. (XI)
--God shows up in unexpected places, in unseemly events, and in the "wrong people." (XIV)
Review by Amos Smith (author of Healing The Divide: Recovering Christianity's Mystic Roots)

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a simple yet powerful book. Sample's stories provide great examples of what it means to engage earthy mysticism; a mysticism that is found in the raw, dirty, unkempt aspects of our lives. Sample presents them with humility and a teachable spirit that seeks to help others learn from his experiences. They speak of a God who will "get your goose" and who is present in the ordinary and mundane. His umbrella phrase of "earthy mysticism" help me think about my life being grounded in everyday activities while still encountering the Divine in very grand and inexplicable ways. This is a book I will to which I will continue to return. I anticipate its fostering my own sense of connectedness to the world around me and to the Divine presence moving in my life.

[Adam Loveridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best story tellers I've read. This book had me in tears at multiple chapters. A compelling vision allowing for a nuanced but approachable image of belief.

Tex is a great example of Richard Rohr's "Holy Fool" who has experienced both life and death, activity and inactivity, success and failure, seeing God in it all.

I read this book in two hours. It was like sitting down and listening to a favorite grandparent or older uncle tell stories in the evening. Absolutely wonderful and meaningful.

[Eric Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've thought of myself as a Christian mystic for some time now, but it was not until I read this book that I understand what that means. In this book, Sample tells story after story of how and when God showed up in the most unlikely places, breaking down and challenging the separation that supposedly exists between the Sacred and the Profane.

[Edward Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found myself reading this with more of my gut than my brain. The soul of each story pierced my heart evoking emotions that startled me. Steve, Jim, Jay, Aunt Betsy, and Peggy are now new traveling companions in this earthy mystical experience called life. Thanks , Tex.

[Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this book reminded of places of Communion no where near church.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for a divinity school class, Warrior Chants/Unquiet Spirits. Sample is an excellent story teller. Really enjoyed this and plan to keep re-reading parts of it.

[Jamie Harwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good read for seeing God in areas other than the organized church.