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In the West, the phenomenon of disaffection with historical religious traditions is increasingly spreading. In this sense, there has recently been talk of the “none”, that is, those who claim to have no religious affiliation. At the same time, we are witnessing the rapid affirmation of individual and community practices centered on inner refinement, personal growth and meditation. These are three aspects attributable to the so-called mindfulness ( inner awareness, full consciousness), which today, between online courses, workshops and magazines, can count on an industry in the sector estimated at 4 billion dollars and on a publishing market of 60,000 books. Interpreting the practices of “inner awareness” in the context of the traditional categories of spirituality would be inappropriate as well as being rejected, in all likelihood, by the practitioners themselves. Also for this reason, in general, it is preferable to bookmark the mindfulness within the new age. In reality, a subtle disparaging intent operates in this inscription. In fact, the new age movement, initially widespread in the 1960s to refer to forms of spiritual counter-culture, later merged into a constellation of ideas and attitudes of dubious coherence, such as alternative medicine and mesmerism, astrology and occultism , shamanism and crystal therapy, just to name a few. It should certainly be recognized as the mindfulness is not free from possible criticisms. By claiming that all we have to do is close our eyes and watch our breath, it effectively becomes a new religion of the self. Furthermore, the insistence on individual awareness, non-judgmental attention and resilience risks binding practitioners to the neoliberal socio-economic model that has produced the problems they would like to free themselves from. For this reason, as Ronald Purser argued in the “Guardian”, “advocates of mindfulness, perhaps unknowingly, support the status quo”. In this scenario, if the transformations of the morphology of contemporary spirituality seem difficult to contest, focus only on the limits of mindfulness it appears as an excessively defensive strategy, which moreover risks making us miss the understanding of the reasons underlying his affirmation. One question above all should ask believers: why, when it comes to establishing the kinship of mindfulness or to go back to its roots is almost exclusively referred to oriental religions? Obviously, we do not intend to dispute this ancestry: there is no doubt, in fact, that there are connections with Buddhism, just to make one clear. However, doesn’t silence towards Christianity sound a little suspicious, which is second to none in matters of asceticism, interior perfection, contemplative life? Really in the matter of spiritual exercises can one reasonably consider irrelevant what the Christian tradition has developed? These “oversights” should be questioned in depth since it cannot be excluded that they refer to a not very effective presence of Christians in the world. Some years ago, as many will remember, to define the style of presence of Catholics in society, recourse was had to the two categories of presence and mediation. These were complementary styles: for the purposes of the inculturation of the faith, the Christianity of presence was mainly oriented towards the affirmation of Christian identity while the Christianity of mediation insisted on the value of dialogue. If today the combined disposition of the two styles just mentioned is represented by the lack of influence reserved for Christianity, as precisely confirmed by the emerging forms of spirituality, are we sure that the time has not come to review the style of presence of Christians in society and culture? The need is felt for a new “active testimony” which, in recovering the best of the two previous styles, knows how to refer without hesitation to the word “effectiveness”, in the sense given to it by Simone Weil when she observed that « Nothing that is ineffective has value ». The hope is that the new posture of active witness will contribute to circumventing that marginalization in which Christians would like to be confined, restoring centrality to the Good News entrusted to them.
Spirituality. This is why mindfulness can challenge Christian believers