Religious orientations, such as intrinsic (IRO), extrinsic (ERO), and quest (QRO), may influence individuals’ sense of meaning in life and life satisfaction. This study examined these relationships among 392 Spanish Catholic undergraduates using the Religious Orientation Scale, Purpose in Life-10 Items, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. Correlational analyses showed that IRO was positively related to both meaning in life and life satisfaction, while ERO showed no significant relationships, and QRO was linked to life satisfaction but not meaning in life. Mediation analysis using bootstrapping indicated that meaning in life significantly mediated the relationship between IRO and life satisfaction. These findings suggest that intrinsic religiosity enhances life satisfaction by fostering a sense of meaning, highlighting the importance of cultural context in understanding the pathways from religiosity to well-being.

Although numerous studies have linked social media use with lower well-being, little is known about the ways in which social psychological resources might mitigate the psychopathology. In this study, we examine the intersection of social media use, religion/spirituality, and well-being. Drawing on data from a sample of over 4,500 respondents from the United States (ages 13–25), we find that each additional hour of reported social media use is associated with lower levels of flourishing. Although identifying as religious or spiritual failed to attenuate this association, religious participation and religious cognitions (believing in God’s plan, perceiving a sacred presence, and maintaining a close divine relationship) were found to buffer against the adverse psychological consequences of social media use. We outline the contributions of our analyses and explore important directions for future research on the ways in which concepts related to religion and spirituality may help to advance our understanding of the toxic effects of social media use.

Novena (Latin: novem ) is an ancient Christian tradition of devotional praying repeated for nine successive days or weeks. There are multiple Christian denominations in contemporary India, with several churches having popular Novena praying traditions. This article is a single-group pretest–posttest survey on well-being and thriving (or flourishing and prospering) outcomes of Novena-goers of various churches in an Indian city. Results suggested that there was a statistically significant improvement in the post-test well-being ( d = 0.90, 95% confidence interval [ CI ] = [0.82, 0.99]) and thriving scores ( d = 0.93, 95% CI = [0.84, 1.02]}) of Novena-goers. Results of the logistic regression analyses indicated that odds ratios of the well-being and thriving outcomes were in favor of female Novena-goers, those with higher formal education (postgraduate or professional degrees), and currently married or never married. This was in comparison with male Novena-goers, those with lower formal education (high school equivalent or college degree), and widowed or divorced. For the disciplinary domain of psychology and theology, results foreground petitionary Novena praying as bolstering psychological resources by purposefully redirecting individual consciousness toward a reality wherein communion with the divine is realizable.

Clergy wives occupy a unique informal role in the clergy and congregational system, though limited attention has been given to their experiences. This article aims to bring insight into the understudied experiences of clergy wives and fill gaps in knowledge about clergy wives’ roles and perspectives. Drawing on archival data of 549 clergy wives from the United States and Canada, collected October 2021 to January 2022, this article extends current knowledge about clergy wives’ sense of calling, the roles they have, the challenges they face, and the resources that support their well-being and resilience. Findings reveal a range of perspectives on calling, including a sense of calling to support their husband and be the primary person managing the children and home, while others expressed an individual sense of calling, and others a joint calling. Regarding their ministry role, many shared about filling ministry needs, while others saw their role as an involved member using their unique gifts. The primary challenges faced by clergy wives included unrealistic expectations and criticism, financial pressure, loneliness/isolation, and desire for recognition and support. Supports that clergy wives accessed for their well-being and resilience included spiritual resources, boundaries, and other resources.

In recent years, the integration of religious references in the psychotherapy process has gained significant attention. Based on the principles of logotherapy developed by Viktor Frankl, this article analyzes the role of the patient’s religious references as a supportive factor in the therapeutic change process. A detailed case study of Ms Sabrina, a middle-aged patient struggling with deep personal loss and emotional difficulties, illustrates how her personal faith, including practices such as prayer, contributed to emotional stabilization, self-transcendence, and the development of adaptive coping strategies. The therapeutic process, conducted from an integrative perspective, highlights the importance of respecting and incorporating the patient’s spiritual experiences into treatment. The conclusions point to the positive potential of integrating religious references into psychotherapy and emphasize the need for further research on religious therapies, advocating for the inclusion of spirituality as a significant component of effective psychotherapy.

This article presents two studies on the well-being and help-seeking attitudes of those in ministry. Study 1 examined Baptist ministers and Study 2 explored Baptist ministry spouses and paired couples data to test whether well-being can be predicted from interpersonal variables. Key findings include significant relationships between well-being variables and one’s number of close friends; significant positive relationships between resilience, satisfaction in ministry, and occupational distress and psychological well-being in ministry spouses; and a partner effect between a pastor’s levels of occupational distress and his spouse’s spiritual well-being without the reverse being true. These studies add to the clergy well-being literature with a denominational group not frequently studied in the past. The article provides suggestions for future research and implications for denominational leaders as well as counselors working with clergy populations.

Religion is generally associated with meaning in life and overall well-being and has been shown to result in better physical and mental health outcomes. However, the benefits that religion/spirituality offers may be more nuanced for sexual minorities. As evidenced by the minority stress theory, sexual minorities likely experience external and internal struggles, including discrimination within a majority of religious spaces. These struggles can cause long-term health consequences; however, a strong sense of belonging may mitigate the impact of these struggles. In an online sample of 555 sexual minorities, our study had participants complete measures of minority stress, spiritual struggles, intrinsic religiosity, well-being, and a sense of belonging. While intrinsic religiosity positively predicted spiritual struggles and discrimination experiences, participants’ sense of belonging fully moderated these relationships. We summarize these findings and suggest practical applications for helping sexual minorities develop a strong sense of belonging.

Lament is an ancient form of prayer that has been neglected in American Christianity. Biblical lament—seen throughout scripture and particularly in the psalms—typically follows a pattern: the sufferer addresses God, brings an honest complaint to God, makes a request of God, reminds themself of God’s past work on their behalf, and ends in expressions of confidence in God in a posture of active, willing surrender. After participating in a four-week daily lament program, 32 participants who reported a recent difficult life circumstance were interviewed about their experiences with lament. Using thematic analysis, we found that four mechanisms—permission for emotional honesty with God (reported by 69% of participants), biblical passages that mirror participants’ experiences (66%), emotional processing (88%), and grounding through the return to praise (31%)—helped increase their intimacy with God (66%), providing a new perspective, hope, or peace (25%).

This article sought to explore the integration of Argentine relational psychoanalysis and Christianity, the life of Christ, in order to understand why spiritual formation alone does not create a full Christian life. Firstly, this question will be answered using my own experiences, as a way to understand the factors that led to an epistemological break in my worldview. Subsequently, a further example is provided through a clinical case outlining a patient’s intercultural struggles as she navigated belongingness within the Evangelical Christian church. Adopting methodology based on Marcos Bernard’s relational group psychology, the patient was able to move away from the role of exclusion assigned to her by her family system. As a result, her sense of identity within the Evangelical Christian church was transformed away from rigidity and dependency towards greater mental health and spiritual freedom.

Kogan presents a culturally integrative approach for clinical work individuals in cultivating a healthy community of faith. In my response, I note the contextual dynamics of power in Latin American contexts, describe similarities between Bernard’s relational psychoanalytic framework and Bowenian systems theory, and, in response to the clinical case, propose clinical observations and questions from a clergy care and congregational health perspective.