The aspect of mindfulness and meditation as a framework towards spiritual development is dependent on the individual.  Individualism is a system of morals, feelings, ideas, and institutions in which individuals can be organized by their mutual isolation and defence (sic).  Therefore, this paper will look at man in the simplest of forms; individuals unattached to any natural community.  This isolation is necessary to focus on individual exploration of the personal interior and exterior.  The personal interior being psyche and the personal exterior being the exploration of mindfulness and the interaction of individuals such as I an Thou described by Buber.

It is because of my personal narrative and interaction with mindfulness and my distaste and simultaneous enjoyment of a mindful and meditative practice that I explored a definition of my self-described failures and successes.  The fundamental focus of this paper will be a hypothetical seven stages of personal mindful and meditative development as a comparison to the seven sacred sacraments in the development of a practicing Roman Catholic.  The seven stages compared to meditation, time, and psychological development are as follows:

Stage One—Baptism into the Body of Mindfulness

Baptism is a means of erasure.  In a sense, it is a point of starting over.  In the Roman Catholic Church, baptism is a means of preparation of the spirit to enter into the presence of God.  When one assumes they are being mindful this should be done based on practice and simply being around others who are mindful; nearness to the divine does not make one divine.  Discussions at residential retreats for Saybrook University  had as a key point whether or not someone could teach mindfulness meditation if they themselves did not participate in such an activity.  It is the admonition of mindfulness practitioners that it would be impossible for someone to teach a mindfully meditative practice without themselves having a dedicated practice (Dale-Miller, L., 2011).  While baptism in a spiritual sense it a sacred ceremony bringing someone into the practice and declaring them the newest member of a flock, it is a similar process when entering a meditative practice.  The process happens as the individual is attempting to move from a chronological time into a more infinite space.  This Chronos time is challenging as the individual moves from appointments, text messages, and children into the vast openness of meditation.  This baptism beginning and the difficulty it holds has been recognized in the training of medical professionals. Thoughts, random and unwanted are the greatest common difficulty during meditation (p.476).  I look at my own beginning, or this baptism into meditation on a level consistent with survival.  This is the struggle with ones own needs and how to fit this practice in to life without the specter of self-sabotage.  The practice of mindfulness and meditation brings forth the essence of being with one's self, and while you are entering into a new practice you are essentially alone.  Beginning meditation brings up inner dialogue and aspects of fear deep in the psyche of individuals.  Once the bonds of baptism have been formed and one enters the waters of meditation this allows for a communion with emotions and a deeper enrichment of the practice.

Step Two—Mindful Communion with Emotions

Communion is generally believed to be a sharing.  In Catholicism, communion is not simply communing with God or the Divine; it is also a communion with other people of shared faith and belief.  When one is set to take communion in the church they are prepared and placed into the mindset of communion by the clergy.  With a simple prayer, "the body of Christ", the sacrament is placed in the mouth or the hands and the participant returns to their seat to reflect on their relationship with the Divine.  This step moves in the same form of Chronos time as baptism, but moves you from the inactive baptism to the active mindfulness of communing.  Reflecting in the sacred while taking Holy communion increases intimacy with the Divine and similarly couples exercising mindful awareness towards each other experience greater emotional bonding through developmental of deeper emotional repertoires.  It is in this second stage of mindful development that one comes face to face with their own emotional struggles, however facing these struggles can lead to greater symptom relief and personal growth.  Stepping through the first two stages of this proposed meditative practice are similar to baptism and communion in spiritual progression in the Catholic church because they are both involved with beginning and coming to grips with struggles.  There is also communion with others who are participating this practice.  For some, as with religion, there may be a search for a guru or leader in the field, while some will decide to proceed solo.  Mindful communion with others and with oneself is a progressive strep towards oneness or discovery of enlightenment.  The progression from baptism and communion, or through the mindful struggles with survival and emotion give way to the third stage of development and spiritual progression called confirmation.  This is the last step in a Chronos or linear timeframe

Step Three—Mindful Confirmation and the Ego of the Holy Ghost