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THE SACRED PATHWAYS ASSESSMENT 

How do you relate to God? Take this assessment and find out which of the Five Spiritual Pathways best describes you. Score the following statements on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being not true at all and 5 being very true.

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I feel closest to God when I am joining God in standing up for justice: writing letters to government officials and newspaper editors, protesting at a place of injustice, urging people to take action or becoming informed about current issues.

I feel closest to God when my emotions are awakened, when I’m reminded of God’s love and presence. I would rather be alone with God contemplating God’s love than participating in a formal liturgy or large group gathering.

A book called Nature's Sanctuaries: A Picture Book would be appealing to me.

The book Fighting Modern Day Slavery or something like it would be appealing to me.

Rituals and spiritual practices move me more than anything else.

I feel closest to God when my senses to come alive - when I can see, smell, hear and almost taste God’s majesty.

The words “concepts” and “truth” are very appealing to me.

The words beautiful, colorful and aromatic are very appealing to me.

I enjoy a rigorous conversation with other Christians about deep subjects that stretch my mind.

I get frustrated when the church focuses too much on feelings and spiritual experience. Of far more importance is the need to understand the Christian faith and the reasons why we believe what we believe and do what we do as Jesus followers.

When I think of God, I think of love, friendship and adoration more than anything.

I'm naturally drawn to museums and concerts more than I'm inclined to take a walk in the woods, work in a soup kitchen or read a book by myself.

I feel close to God when I do a deep study of scripture or read about subjects that engage how I think about my faith.

The most difficult times for me are when I can't feel God's presence within me.

I would really enjoy drawing exercises, art or classical music playing in the background to improve my prayer life.

The terms “courageous confrontation” and “social activism” are very appealing to me.

I really enjoy having 30 minutes of uninterrupted time each day to sit in quiet prayer and enjoy God’s presence.

I would really enjoy developing a personal rule (or ritual) of prayer.

Activities such as confronting a social evil, attending a meeting of the local school board to challenge injustice and volunteering on an activism campaign are important to me.

I enjoy attending a liturgical service with a formal communion and prayers

I feel closest to God when I'm surrounded by what God has made - the mountains, the forests, lakes, or the ocean.

Beauty is very important to me, and I have a difficult time worshiping through second-rate Christian art or music.

I feel cut off if I have to spend too much time indoors. Nothing makes me feel closer to God than being outside.

I would rather stand in the rain for an hour to confront an injustice than sit in a room by myself for an hour and pray, take a walk through the woods or spend an hour reading a book.

Seeing God's beauty in nature is more moving to me than understanding new concepts, participating in a formal religious service or participating in social causes.

I get very frustrated if I see apathetic Christians who don't become active. I want to drop everything else I'm doing and help the church overcome its apathy.

If I could escape to a garden to pray on a cold day, walk through a meadow on a warm day and take a trip by myself to the mountains on another day, I would be very happy.

A book tackling a challenging theological concept that I am interested in would be appealing to me.

I feel closer to God when I learn something new about God that I didn't understand before. My mind needs to be stimulated.

I would rather worship God by spending an hour beside a small brook or lake than by participating in a group service.