Connie
Zweig, Ph.D., and The Holy Longing
An
interview with Connie Zweig by J. Kelly Groves
KG:
What is the “holy longing,” as you call it? 
CZ: In the mystical part of every religious tradition, saints
and teachers speak of their yearning for union with the divine, their
longing for the holy. I believe that we all actually have a thirst
for something that transcends our individuality, a moment that lifts
us out of our limitations and into a greater life. I think this yearning
is a part of our human soul, if you will, that demands attention in
a number of ways.
KG: How do we experience holy longing?
CZ: Some people detect the holy longing as a nagging awareness
of a lack, a restlessness that keeps us always wandering, always seeking,
never at home within ourselves. Sometimes we feel it as a yearning
for romantic love, which compels us to seek fulfillment from another.
Some people seek it through communion with nature. Others set it in
a spiritual framework and feel it as a yearning for the light, which
compels them to purify themselves through fasting, prayer, yoga, meditation,
or strict adherence to religious law, as we see among fundamentalists
in every religious tradition.
KG: Is this yearning real or neurotic?
CZ: I think that this timeless urge is actually a yearning for
transcendence, an innate drive toward the next stage of our development.
But if these concrete objects of our longing-such as a romantic partner,
a perfect child, or an idealized religious figure-are forced to stand
in for what is essentially a spiritual desire, they will mask the
real purpose of our longing. On the other hand, if they are used properly,
they can pull us forward on the journey to self-discovery and lead
us to a profound sense of wonder and awe at the majesty of the world.
Divine
Union Article continued on next page
Divine
Union 
