The soul of religion is not always to be found in severe moral statements or extreme rationalistic presentations of doctrine; it is more evident in the ceremonies, traditions, paintings and sculptures, architecture, stories, and biographies. The soul of religion is its base and foundation, and it includes a spiritual life inspired by nature, an appreciation of the invisible depth of commonplace objects and activities, and a profoundly poetic imagination that sees through literal events to their deep stories and motifs.
— Thomas Moore, The Education of the Heart