Spiritual Expression Research Articles

Traces of spirituality in the Lady Gaga phenomenon

This paper will explore the type of spiritual expression of adolescents and young people in and through current popular music culture. In particular, the paper will propose the music and industry constructed by and around the popular singer and songwriter Lady Gaga as a test case. Her incessant use of religious language and religious symbolism has equally attracted praise and criticism. This paper will acknowledge that Lady Gaga is not simply an icon of this hypermodernity, but she is a complex phenomenon which brings together various elements as well as actors. It will explore if and to what extent the main spiritual elements are traceable in this phenomenon.

Religious expressions of spirituality by displaced Karen from Burma: The need for a spiritually sensitive social work response

A series of events following the 7 November 2010 election in Burma triggered a large-scale displacement of majority Karen people from eastern Burma to the Thai side of the border. The authors were involved in a research project in which narratives were collected from these people to gain an understanding of the impact of this displacement on their lives. The essentiality of spirituality within their religious belief was a significant theme that arose from the data. This article relates to this theme and highlights the importance of developing culturally competent, spiritually sensitive responses into social work practice when working with people who have experienced displacement and subsequent trauma in their lives.

Spirituality and Religious Tolerance

Claims of exclusive possession of the truth within Western Christianity have often been associated with intolerance of other religions. Over the past 40 years, an increased number of people around the world have described themselves as “spiritual” rather than as “religious”. As some forms of spirituality do not involve the acceptance of particular doctrines as truths, it might be expected that the spiritual might be more tolerant of various religious perspectives than those committed to a particular religion. An analysis of data from 40 countries around the globe, gathered in the International Social Survey Program (2008), shows that whether those who described themselves as spiritual were more tolerant than those who described themselves as religious, or those who said they were neither spiritual nor religious were more tolerant, varied from one country to another. The data shows that “spirituality” is sometimes associated with belief in God, sometimes not. In a number of countries where spirituality was not widely associated with belief in God, spirituality was associated with greater religious tolerance. However, in several countries where spirituality was associated with belief in God, those who described themselves as neither religious nor spiritual were the most tolerant. The data demonstrates the varied nature of “spirituality” and “religion” and suggests that the level of tolerance is partly dependent on the contexts in which the expressions of religion and spirituality have been developed.

Buddhist perspective on Health and Spirituality

This article gives a brief overview of some of the basic tenets of Buddhism. Its particular emphasis is upon Buddhist expressions of spirituality, as they are likely to be met with in a healthcare setting. Included are guidelines on diet, attitudes to medicine, and beliefs and traditions around death and dying.

Charisma and Counterculture: Allen Ginsberg as a Prophet for a New Generation

The cultural role of Allen Ginsberg does not fit a typical Weberian model of charisma. The avant-garde poet was an outstanding personality and possessed an unusual ability to affect people. He played a vital role in expanding the boundaries of personal freedom in America of the 1950s–1990s, blazing new paths for spiritual, communal and artistic expression. Serving as a father figure for the counterculture—a symbol of an alternative set of cultural norms, lifestyles and literary forms—Ginsberg was a charismatic counter-leader, with no clearly defined followers or movement. As a leader in a more liberated era, he offered energy, ideas, inspiration, and color, but no structure or authority. Instead he was a prophet of freedom, calling on people to express themselves openly, to expand and experiment. This role demanded charisma but of a different kind—one that was more spiritual and less organizational or hierarchical. This article follows Gary Dickson’s essay “Charisma, Medieval and Modern,” in offering a suggestive analysis of and supplement to Weber’s understanding of charisma. The article grapples with the concept of charisma in relation to a generation that resented rigid structures and authorities.

Meditasie: Bybelgefundeerd of ’n vermenging van gelowe? ’n Pastorale ondersoek

Meditation: Bible based or a mix of religion? A Pastoral investigation. The influence of other religions on the Christian community was a perceptible trend that cannot be ignored in the realm of spirituality. Meditation was one such example and consequently requires thoughtful investigation. Some Christians found meditation a valuable spiritual discipline that aids their spiritual growth but, in my opinion, also opened up the door for them to become victims of a subtle spiritual deception. The question posed was: how can Christians distinguish between the many and often-conflicting views on meditation found in easily accessible literature? A need therefore exists to define meditation as a possible Christian spiritual expression by distinguishing its uniqueness from the influences of other non-Christian religions and popular opinion.

“Listening Dangerously”: Dialogue Training as Contemplative Pedagogy

Contemplative pedagogies in higher-education classrooms employ methods adapted from meditative practices in great religious traditions in order to enhance student learning and to fulfill the historic purpose of a liberal arts education: to discover the nature of human life. Our Western education systems were originally derived from religious settings in which questions about what it means to be human were paramount. Over the centuries, through the influences of the European Enlighten- ment, modern science, and postmodernism, questions about personal identity and the meaning of life increasingly have been removed from our classrooms and deemed inappropriate for the university. Now, in a rebalancing of priorities in higher educa- tion, the pendulum is swinging the other direction, largely driven by the insistence of our students, who indicate the centrality of religion and spirituality in their expecta- tions of college curricular and cocurricular offerings. The Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) at the University of California Los Angeles conducted a seven-year study that surveyed more than one hundred thousand college students, matriculat- ing freshmen attending 236 diverse colleges and universities across the country, and reported this: The study reveals that today's college students have very high levels of spiri- tual interest and involvement. Many are actively engaged in a spiritual quest and in exploring the meaning and purpose of life. They are also very engaged and involved in religion, reporting considerable commitment to their religious beliefs and practices. As they begin college, freshmen have high expectations for the role their institutions will play in their emotional and spiritual develop- ment. They place great value on their college enhancing their self-understand- ing, helping them develop personal values, and encouraging their expression of spirituality. 1

Ist Spiritualität lehrbar? Überlegungen aus der Perspektive theologischer Ausbildung

Abstract Can Spirituality be Taught? Reflection from of the Perspective of Theological Training. To answer this question, it is helpful to distinguish between spirituality and faith and learn from the discussion from half a century ago whether pastoral care can be taught. Spirituality is portrayed as a necessary element for the learning processes in theory and practice during pastoral training. Spirituality proves to be a requirement for a pastoral personality, for theology in practice and for constructive interaction with various expressions of spirituality in the local congregation.

Health-related religious rituals of the Greek Orthodox Church: their uptake and meanings

To examine the uptake of religious rituals of the Greek Orthodox Church by relatives of patients in critical condition in Greece and to explore their symbolic representations and spiritual meanings. Patients and their relatives want to be treated with respect and be supported for their beliefs, practices, customs and rituals. However nurses may not be ready to meet the spiritual needs of relatives of patients, while the health-related religious beliefs, practices and rituals of the Greek Orthodox Christian denomination have not been explored. This study was part of a large study encompassing 19 interviews with 25 informants, relatives of patients in intensive care units of three large hospitals in Athens, Greece, between 2000 and 2005. In this paper data were derived from personal accounts of religious rituals given by six participants. Relatives used a series of religious rituals, namely blessed oil and holy water, use of relics of saints, holy icons, offering names for pleas and pilgrimage. Through the rituals, relatives experience a sense of connectedness with the divine and use the sacred powers to promote healing of their patients. Nurse managers should recognize, respect and facilitate the expression of spirituality through the practice of religious rituals by patients and their relatives.

Connectedness and connectedness: the dark side of spirituality – implications for education

Over the past few decades in the western world, as the concept and language of spirituality has moved out of theological and religion study disciplines to include studies in secular spheres, much of the literature identifies spirituality as a positive thing. Experiences often linked to it are positive experiences such as awe and wonder, joy and delight, tolerance and kindness, truth and honesty and so on. While this is important, I believe it is equally important to recognise that there is a dark side to spirituality. As a rule, this has not often been identified, examined or discussed. Certainly, in some circles, there is an understanding that the ‘dark night of the soul’ has relevance for religious understandings of spirituality which reveals a particular perspective that may accompany the search to unravel some of life’s mysteries and to find some meaning and purpose in the individual’s spiritual journey. However, this is often confined to religious and theological frameworks. This paper moves beyond these disciplines to examine the dark side in human spirituality. The dark side here refers to those aspects of the individual’s relationality or connectedness which do not nurture his/her well-being and which may impede his/her progress towards human flourishing. In my previous research, I have proposed that spirituality is an innate human trait that pertains to the relational dimension of Being. The expressions of spirituality, then, are expressions of connectedness that the individual has with everything other than self. In this paper, I will attempt to explore the dark side of spirituality as it may be experienced and expressed in contemporary secular life and examine the implications for educational programmes that aim to nurture the spirituality of the child and adolescent through a multisensory approach. As this is a new direction in my research, I will be reporting on work in progress.

Patterns of Spirituality and Meaning in Life Related to Identity

Undergraduate students (N = 270; 71.1% women) completed self-report measures of identity styles (informational, normative, and diffuse-avoidant), identity commitment, identity distress, the search for meaning in life, the presence of meaning in life, and expressions of spirituality (cognitive orientation to spirituality, experiential/phenomenological dimension, existential well-being, paranormal beliefs, and religiousness). The informational and normative styles were positively associated with identity commitment, the presence of meaning in life, cognitive orientation to spirituality, and religiousness. The informational style was also positively associated with the experiential/phenomenological dimension of spirituality and the search for meaning in life, and the normative identity style was also positively related to existential well-being. The diffuse-avoidant style was negatively associated with identity commitment, the presence of meaning in life, and existential well-being, and was positively associated with identity distress and the search for meaning in life. In a factor analysis, these latter two variables loaded together as a single factor that can be characterized as existential search and distress.

Spirituality within non-Christian faiths: HCA/AP approaches

The previous article focused on the meanings of spirituality and religion. This article will focus on the experiences and expressions of spirituality and religion within a number of non-Christian world religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism. New age spirituality will also be highlighted.

The Life-Changing Impact of Peripartum Cardiomyopathy

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM), a form of acute heart failure, is a life-altering condition affecting thousands of pregnant or postpartum women. Little is known about the overall impact of PPCM on women's lives. To describe the contents of postings made on the My Space® PPCM support group Web site by women diagnosed with PPCM. A mixed methods design. Two hundred and forty-seven postings made by 156 people from 2005 to 2008 were copied from the Web site. Key words and phrases were sorted into categories, quantified, and then arranged into themes using the five interacting variables of the Neuman Systems Model: physiological, psychological, sociocultural, spiritual, and developmental. Six themes identified in the postings were discussion of symptomology, exchange of advice, interactions with healthcare providers, uncertainty about subsequent pregnancies, expressions of spirituality, and recovery from heart failure. Misdiagnosis and subsequent pregnancies were major stressors that have implications for nursing practice and future research. Nurses can help women with PPCM and their families reconstitute their lives to a new normal by providing reliable information and counseling on treatment, prognosis, and family planning.

The Meaning and Use of Spirituality Among African American Women Living With HIV/AIDS

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the meaning and use of spirituality among African American (AA), predominantly Christian women with HIV. A nonrandom sample of 20 AA women from a large infectious disease clinic in Metro-Atlanta participated in the study. The study used focus groups and individual interviews to interview women about their lived spiritual experience. Content analysis and NUDIST software were used to analyze transcripts. The findings revealed the spiritual views and practices of AA women with HIV. The following themes (and subthemes) emerged: Spirituality is a process/journey or connection (connection to God, higher power, or spirit and HIV brought me closer to God), spiritual expression (religion/church attendance, prayer, helping others, having faith), and spiritual benefits (health/healing, spiritual support, inner peace/strength/ability to keep going, and here for a reason or purpose/a second chance). Findings highlight the importance of spirituality in health and well-being among AA women with HIV/AIDS.

Expression of spiritual leadership in Lithuanian businesses

The article determines the level of spirituality expression of Lithuanian mid-level businesses CEO’s. The authors briefly present a scientific premise of spiritual leadership theory that was the basis for the research. Spirituality is represented in three different levels: intra-personal, supra-personal and inter-personal by identifying elements of each level that are interrelated. The article points out links with other similar scientific research, describes research methods and research instrument, provides research scope and stages, and indicates methodologically significant data collection and analysis procedures. Research findings show CEO’s spirituality expression that leads to a conclusion that spirituality among leaders of mid-level Lithuanian businesses is not expressed enough in neither of the above spirituality levels. However, the presence of high score allows us to infer that there are some instances of spiritual leadership among these executive managers.

Exploding the myth: enhancing the expression of faith and spirituality through the study of dance composition in Christian tertiary education

For dance educators engaged in teaching choreography in Christian tertiary institutes, encouraging students to develop foundational compositional skills whilst exploring personal expression of the Christian faith is undoubtedly a challenging objective. In 2005, a Christian tertiary education provider in South Australia enrolled six female dance students in the unit dance composition 1 as part of a bachelor of arts (dance) degree programme. Research was conducted concurrently with the delivery of the unit, analysing how effectively the content, delivery and assessment within, and of, the subject supported students to develop foundational composition skills and enhance their expression of faith and spirituality in their dance making. During the research project it became clear there was the underlying challenge of exploding the myth that it is impossible to integrate faith with artistic practice and produce work of industry standards. How effectively the training in dance composition facilitated the exploration of faith through and during the choreographic process, without compromising the quality of technical training, became the focus for the research project.

La reflexión sobre las religiones mistéricas en la filosofía de Nietzsche

Los misterios griegos son para Nietzsche una de las expresiones más originales y significativas de la espiritualidad antigua. En el curso de su vida y de sus estudios se dirigirá a menudo a los misterios con la curiosidad del filólogo y del etnólogo, pero también con el ojo especulativo del filósofo. Al análisis histórico en extensión hace de contrapeso un intento continuo de trasformar la semántica del fenómeno de los misterios, a lo largo de un recorrido a menudo difícil y errático que atraviesa toda la obra del autor.

The Mask as Muse: The Influence of African Art on the Life and Career of Loïs Mailou Jones

Throughout her life Loïs Mailou Jones admired African art and culture. But it was through the mask—its spiritual significance, theatrical expression, cultural importance, and emotive possibilities—that she found herself as an artist, designer, and educator. With a career buttressed by the two major movements in African American art of the twentieth century—the New Negro Arts movement and the Black Arts movement—Jones’s unique black perspective was often viewed through the mask, a symbol of classical African art and a signifier of black identity. For her, it acted as muse for a productive career that spanned more than fifty years.

Spiritual Expressions of African Americans and Whites in Cancer Pain

Spiritual practices are one way that individuals cope with cancer pain. Describe and contrast expressions and values about the use of spirituality for pain in African American (AA) and White (WH) oncology patients. Six groups (3 AA; 3 WH; n=42; mean age 58) were conducted. Focus group and qualitative methodology with a cultural interpretive lens was utilized. The Model of Integrated Spirituality provided the conceptual framework for understanding the narratives. AAs and WHs did not differ on demographics, pain status, or integrative therapies. Three spirituality themes emerged: 1) pain and distress as antecedents to the use of spirituality; 2) active and existential attributes of the use of spirituality; and 3) mobilization of internal and external resources as outcomes. There were commonalities between AAs and WHs but greater frequency of certain subthemes and keywords in AAs. Future studies should examine whether differences in overt expressions translate into different types and levels of spiritual usage. Clinicians should recognizing similar as well as different uses and descriptions of spirituality between African Americans and Whites.

Embodiment and social and environmental action in nature-based sport: spiritual spaces

This paper explores the interrelationship of space, the elements and the embodied experiences of water-based physical activity. It draws upon alternative forms of research and representation to draw out the embodied nature of the experiences in exploring the practices of windsurfing amongst communities of windsurfers. It proposes that ethnography and autoethnography can provide for unique insights into the embodied experiences of the life-worlds of ‘being’ in nature. These inter-related methodologies provide particular insights into understanding when the body, grounded through its senses, makes sense of and interacts with its natural surroundings. It argues that autoethnography may provide methodologies for understanding and analysing connections between personal embodied nature-based experiences, culture and nature. This paper brings into play personal experience in windsurfing and autoethnographies of other nature-based sport to uncover connections between body, affects, emotions and the senses as the body engages with natural elements. It engages with expressions of spirituality, as alternative to ‘flow’, and the speculative notion of kinetic empathy to propose the concept of body pedagogics as analytically useful in exploring social and environmental action in local and global spaces.