We all experience basic alienation; separation from ourselves, separation from each other and, ultimately, separation from the divine. God has this incredible compassion and love for us that God is trying to fix that alienation. The essence of spiritual community is to engage in practices that allow our bubbles to disappear. Entering deeply into a life of prayer is entering into a darkness where we experience nothing and we know nothing so that we may find love and knowledge that is beyond all of what we know and what we experience.