My spiritual path has seen me involved with a number of organizations. Some of them call themselves churches or religions but others would not claim those words. All of them, however, teach a spiritual path. Although some would say I have rejected most of them by leaving them, I would say I have gotten what I can out of them and have moved on. I am grateful for all of them, because all of them have been part of my never-ending discovery of who I am and why I am here.
I had no choice about being a Catholic. The baptismal waters were poured over me when I was barely a few weeks old. Now some of you may expect someone like me, a gay man with very liberal religious beliefs to complain about the Catholic Church, and of course I could, but I am not here to show what is wrong with it, rather to point out what I have gained by my participation.
What the Catholic Church has going for it most is tradition. It has a tradition of education, and even though time and again the most educated Catholics have been at odds with the Church, it continues to offer an elementary to graduate level education. Some of it quite excellent, including my high school and college, Fordham Preparatory School and Georgetown University, both run by the Jesuits.
Likewise the Church has a tradition of valuing art, beauty and ritual. It
is through these things that I experience ecstasy and higher wisdom and their pursuit has been a mainstay of my spiritual journey. In college I went on retreats which explored the meaning of ritual and exposed me to the ideas of Carl Jung (author of Man and His Symbols).
Finally the Catholic Church has a tradition of dissent, sometimes tolerated, sometimes not. I was introduced to this in High School first by my freshman theology teacher, who among other things organized "experimental" liturgies which would have been banned by the local bishop if he knew. We sang folks songs, had readings from non-biblical sources, stood around the altar, held the communion in our hands and said the words of consecration with the priest. All these things are quite commonplace today, something that shows me someone has to do something forbidden first before it becomes accepted.
Strangely it was through the Catholic Church that I came out as a gay man. In 1978 I first went to Dignity, an organization of Lesbian and Gay Catholics. Of course this was another "underground" phenomenon. I consider my first Dignity mass and subsequent involvement in the group as my coming out.
Mainly because Dignity was not very active in the new city I moved to, I joined MCC. MCC is an Independent Christian Church for the Lesbian and Gay community. Through MCC I experienced my own priesthood. On a few occasions I led the service, including performing the ritual of bread and wine. Furthermore, I was active in the administrative side of the church, serving on the board of directors and also serving as moderator. I truly felt like an important part of the church.
It was through MCC that I was exposed to some very liberal ideas. Through my involvement at the denominational level, I sat on a commission which explored the sexuality/spirituality link. Although we did little more than talk, it was the beginning of a new road on my journey. I was also exposed to feminist theology, including new imagery of god as female.
Most of all I felt among friends at MCC, friends in front of whom I did not have to keep my sexuality quiet, and even some with whom I could be overtly sexual and not regard it as inconsistent with a religious setting.
In some ways, Unitarian Universalism was a step backwards, away from an "underground" church to something more mainstream. Unitarians and Universalists have a tradition, and are accepted by most people as a mainline denomination. In their beliefs (or lack thereof) they are quite radical. Yet they have a history as a Christian Church (which they are no longer) and many valuable resources. Among these are UU camps, one of which is Ferry Beach in Saco, Maine. Ferry Beach has a week-long retreat/party/experience for gay men every year called GAYLA . GAYLA was an incredible experience for me. Being in a group of over 100 gay men allows you to get beyond thinking of yourselves as just a minority so that you can explore in depth the meaning of being gay and what special opportunities we can take advantage of as gay men. One of the things I experienced at GAYLA was Erotic Massage, see Body Electric below for more detail. GAYLA also provided a space to learn who I am and what my life means to me. However, GAYLA has much to offer the less spiritually inclined. It is for many a week long party.
Unitarian Universalism offers no dogma as a denomination and believes each individual must choose to believe or not believe what he/she will. 
Unitarian Universalism has a tradition of questioning authority, and a traditional UU sermon includes feedback comments from the congregation. The UU also has a tradition of liberalism and supports many causes few Christian Churches will get behind, like gay rights or abortion rights. Most of all, I value Unitarian Universalism because it provides a context within which people can create their own content.
While Unitarian Universalism has no theological beliefs, it does have values and these are embodied in the Principles of the Unitarian Universalist Association.
Sometime in the mid-80's I was in a bookstore when a book jumped off the shelf and into my hands. That book was Drawing Down the Moon by Margot Adler. (Actually, I was attracted to it by the beautiful cover, but that does not sound so magical.) In that book Adler described the modern neo-pagan movement and its largest component, the Wiccan religion. She spoke of three Pagan principles and how they translate into the neo-pagan world view. Polytheism, literally the belief in many gods, leads us to accept alternate realities and alternate beliefs. Accepting the paradox that two contradictory things can both be true leads us to accept diverse world views in others, and even within ourselves. Pantheism is the belief that the Godhead is the 
world (not only the physical world but the world of mind, feeling, dreams and imagination). As opposed to transcendence, it teaches that Divinity is not somewhere up in the clouds, but that we are a part of it. Because of this we all have an inherent value and dignity. Animism, the belief that all beings have a life, a soul, if you wish, teaches us to respect all things and that everything, even a rock, has 
something to teach us. This world view that rang true with me.
The practice of Wicca for me involves participation in a coven and celebrating with them the eight sabbaths of the year, occurring at the beginning and middle of each season. It involves respecting the world around me and looking there for the source of enlightenment. As Dorothy said in The Wizard of Oz "When I search for my heart's desire, if I do not find it in my own back yard I will know I never lost it in the first place." Although Wiccans claim a history from the Stone Age, the fact is that most of the religion has been made up, and in that vein I can make up the religion to suit my needs. This is a very radical idea, and to some may seem foolish, but I do not believe in absolute truth (although I do believe tradition is valuable) and I believe that religion is a tool to serve humanity and should be changed when people change. Therefore Wicca, like UUism allows me to be open to many spiritual ideas and even to bring them into the practice of Wicca.
Early on I went to a gathering in Western Massachusetts called The Rites of Spring and later that Fall to another called Twilight Covening that were run by The EarthSpirit Community, a group from the Boston area. This was an excellent chance to meet other Pagans, learn what they do in their practice and listen to their ideas. EarthSpirit also put on some excellent group rituals and provided some good information. Aside from that, it is a great way to socialize with a very nice group of people. I recommend it highly to any Pagan or wannabe.
Published about the same time as Adler's Drawing Down the Moon was The Spiral Dance by Starhawk. The Spiral Dance, a how-to book as well as a book of ideas has been a major impetus in the neo-pagan movement. There are many good books on this subject, but these two are must-reads for anyone interested in neo-paganism and Wicca.
Now my coven has dissolved. It existed for 20 years but it seems to have run it's course. It has become physically difficult for me to do outdoor rituals and that is one reason I am willing let it go. For a a year and a half I attended a Unitarian Universalist church, a different one from the one I had belonged to in the past. I finally came to the conclusion that that congregation was just not for me. Yet, I felt a need to be connected to a spiritual community. I had heard that a UCC church in town had a gay pastor, so I went there to check it out. What I found was much more, and although as I write this, it has been less than two months, I feel this church is the place I belong. I am grappling with the fact that I do not believe in most Christian doctrine, at least not literally, but that doesn't seem to be a problem for anyone else. They say you are welcome no matter where you are on the journey. My beliefs have not changed. Perhaps they will over time, perhaps not, but what has changed is my spiritual practice. I'm learning there are some good things about Christianity that UUism and Wicca didn't have, so I see possiblities here. To those who would say I am reverting back to my original religion, I say that this journey does not go in reverse, even when you return to something familiar you "know it again for the first time."
The following are not religions or religious in nature, however they have helped me in my spiritual development.
This philosophy was started by Werner Erhart and once known as est. I don't know what they are calling it now. Although est is a hard sell, and I spent much energy resisting the pushiness, when I could relax and reflect I realized that they had many valuable insights into life. For example, Identity. People have a driving need to define themselves, they do this with their affiliations (religion, ethnic, racial, gender, clubs) and with their ideas. This is why people are so resistant to change, because they are afraid they will lose themselves if they change too much. 
Accomplishment . We seem to have an inborn drive to accomplish things, if we do we feel good, if we do nothing we often feel useless. Concepts. Every "thing" is actually a concept and we use these concepts to define our world. Just like there are different languages, different people have different concepts and therefore see the world very differently.
Al-Anon is an organization for the relatives and friends of alcoholics, however if all it was good for was to learn to live with an alcoholic in your life it would not merit a place on this page. Al-Anon teaches that we must keep the focus on ourselves, and to this end it does not spend much time focusing on what problems alcoholics cause, but focuses on restoring the "sanity" of people who have had their lives disrupted by someone else's alcoholism. Al-Anon teaches that the road to happiness is to change your own attitudes. Al-Anon largely follows the same teachings of Alcoholics Anonymous, it has the Twelve Steps and slogans. Let Go and Let God taught me that there are some things over which I have no control, namely other people, places and things. On the other hand I learned that I do have control over my own thoughts, feelings and behavior. In case the word "God" gives you problems, a belief in God is not required. Al-Anon speaks of a Higher Power but allows to you define that however you wish. In the same vein, you are not required to swallow the entire program hook, line and sinker. Instead, they say "Take what you like and leave the rest" Another slogan How Important Is It? taught me to 
look logically at a situation and evaluate it before getting completely bent out of shape. One day at a time taught me to be patient with myself and not to be overwhelmed at the task ahead. Although not religious in nature, Al-Anon is a spiritual program which shows you the path to serenity.
When I was at MCC I was introduced to the idea that sexuality and spirituality are related. It wasn't until I attended a seminar for men called Celebrating the Body Erotic, that I experienced the real life application of this idea. Founded by Joseph Kramer, a former seminarian and a massage therapist, it incorporates the spiritual teachings of Taoism and Tantra with massage and Rebirthing (a practice utilizing intentional breathing). We were told, "you will be breathing the entire weekend" and they meant this quite seriously. The deliberate, directed breathing we did is an essential ingredient in creating the ecstatic experience of this seminar. The breath is used to increase oxygen in the body without 
hyperventilating and makes your entire body feel more alive. The Erotic Massage is done in a very controlled way, so that its result is not to bind two people together but to bind the entire group. The activities are playful, and often include laughter. Nudity and touching of the genitals is gradually worked up to, so the men can feel comfortable when it happens. Three quarters of the workshop involves activities done standing and constantly switching partners, in groups of 2, 3, 4 and 6. The activities involve totally safe sex and do not involve any penetration of bodily orifices. The last part of the workshop involves actual massage on massage tables. There are two shifts so that in one you are giving massage, and in the other you are receiving massage. Once again, partners are switched every few minutes, so that all the men on the table are massaged by all the masseurs. During this entire section, the breathing is very deliberatly guided by the leader to build energy higher and higher to a climactic point. As a finish, the people being massaged do the "big draw" in which they clench every muscle in their body and then release. Although there is no orgasm in the traditional sense and no ejaculation, this is very much a "full body orgasm." During the massage I saw visions and felt myself becoming quite different from what I had been before. The experience from start to finish was incredible and transported me to another level of being. The seminar is a bit costly, but if I could afford it, I would do it on a regular basis. By the way, there are many people around the country who try to duplicate this work or a part of it at a much lower price. Some of these are authorized by Body Electric, some are not. Some are good, some leave out to much of the basics. But even done wrong, it can still be a pleasant experience.
The Silva Method is a technique of using meditation. Although the program is put forth very much in scientific terms, it is what I would call a course in Magic. In the Silva program I learned how to easily achieve a meditative state (alpha brain waves) and to function in that state. By utilizing the alpha state you can do some pretty amazing things like improve memory, give your unconscious suggestions and even do psychic healing. It is a version of self-hypnosis in which you are under no one else's power but your own. Meditation and its ability to work with the unconscious/ subconscious mind is at the heart of spirituality. The Silva course is 4 days, usually done over two weekends. As with many of these programs you will have to make a financial decision, but I think Silva goes right to the meat of what you need to learn for any spiritual journey without any of the cult-like aspects of some others.
