Category: Spirituality

What are human persons? translates into a personal question that asks each individual who they are. The question has attracted heated debates in the past, creating a sense of loyalty between physicalists and dualists (Churchland 12). Physicalism encompasses everything about human persons such as their mental states, which the human body determines and is dependent on physically. The physicalists philosophical thought explains reality using the view that the human person is an assembly of space atoms. On the other hand, dualism denies physicalism, or that the physical facts of human bodies do not determine the composition of human beings (Cumplodo n.d.).

Platos Phaedo is among the earliest endorsers of dualism. The text argues for an immaterial mind or soul that makes up the identity of a human person. The immaterialism also makes up the mental abilities of humans, for instance, logical thinking. The majority of global religions hold that the immaterial mind and soul constitute the human person (Cumplodo n.d.). In this text, I hold the position of a substance dualist by arguing that the constitution of the human person goes past pure material entities. It is important to think of human persons as distinctive beings and not physical objects. Essentially, the human person is a product of immaterial minds or souls. I will conclude that only dualism can solve the view of insuperable physicalism.

Using the picture of the first person that human persons are substances, and the argument for my existence without a body creates neutrality between dualist and physicalism debates (Moreland 111). This will be valuable to prevent bias in this argument. This discussion examines the difference between the discourses on Leibnizs law. Combing dualism and materialism with Leibnizs law creates an argument for human persons. For instance, the distinction between parts and locations allows dualists to argue that bodies and minds have properties that make the mind and the physical body distinctive. Another argument for Leibnizs law on dualism states that the minds and not bodies are known to exist (Moreland 111).

One may be certain that the mind exists but doubt the physical bodys existence. While one may know their existence, they cannot be certain. This means that the mind is aware of its existence while the body does not possess this characteristic. Leibnizs law, therefore, argues for a distinct mind and body. On the other hand, Christians hold a contradictory dualist view of the human person as a unity between the body and the soul (Moreland 111). Christians hold that the soul enters an intermediate disembodied state after death. The Christian view holds that eventually, the soul will reunite with a resurrected body. This view holds that the self is a unified reality that interacts with the body. This self also includes mental states and acts freely and willingly. This Christian view of dualism contrasts with Lebnizs law.

Although many contemporary thinkers reject dualism, it continues to resonate across philosophical thoughts in everyday discourse. The three basic claims of dualism include a distinctive mental and philosophical realm, fundamentality in mental and physical realms, and an ontological distinction in mental and physical realms (Churchland 12). Dualists hold that mental and physical realms make up important parts of the human person. The human person has various mental and physical features that make them real. Dualists contend that that their common-sense view has arguments that support this view.

Evidence suggests that physicalists would also agree with this stance (Churchland 12). Dualists agree with the fundamentality of physical and mental realms arguing that one cannot reduce them to mere basics. Since these aspects are not dependent on the other, the ontological distinction of both mental and physical realms creates a conceivable separation that facilitates their existence. These three claims allow physical substances to relate to one another. According to Churchland (12), souls relate causally with the body creating direct actions on the body. Thus, dualism presents a more holistic view of human persons since the functions affirm a functional interdependence of the whole individual. This interdependence occurs despite the conceivably separable nature of distinctive substances. Therefore, dualism relates to a non-physical substance that is not empirically observable.

Weak physicalists have five basic notions that affirm the physicalist concept (Pojman & Vaughn 78). First, physicalists argue that mental is best understood in its own terms. This view holds that the high-level realities such as mental states of the human person are not explainable based on concepts and theories only. Weak physicalism also holds that human persons are fundamental material beings (Pojman & Vaughn 78). Therefore, this physicalist view remains committed to ontological monism that rejects non-physical substances. This view holds that physical entities make up human persons, that characteristics of human beings are physical properties, and that all cause-effect processes are physical processes (Pojman & Vaughn 78).

Another view holds that the mind produces physical events by rejecting the reality of causally unrelated mental properties. Additionally, this view argues that weak dualism influences low-level realities. Last, the mental depends on the physical asymmetrically, a concept that creates interdependence in the levels of reality, according to the physical primacy. Most notable are criticisms leveled at weak physicalism, including the affirmation that dualism requires common sense in understanding human persons (Pojman & Vaughn 78). Since our common sense notions may be wrong, physicalism faces the burden of proof. Another argument against weak physicalism is that the system cannot explain the mental properties of physicalism. The argument mainly states that phenomenal consciousness makes up human mentality. Thus, accounting for phenomenal experiences is a problem associated with physicalism, given the feelings linked to mental experiences.

Physicalists decide the compositions of human persons based on three self-imposed constraints (Cumplodo n.d.). First, this decision depends on scientific things that are verifiable using senses. It should also relate to physical facts and be explainable using the evolutionary theory. Therefore, concluding that souls and materials are immaterial complicates the view of the human person (Cumplodo n.d.). It also complicates the composition of the human person. Physicalism holds that the mind constitutes the brain, while the brain constitutes a human person. According to Moreland (16), physical objects change when they gain new parts after losing old ones.

For instance, replacing the parts of an old car with new ones makes a different car. However, human beings remain the same, even if they replace parts such as memories or personality traits entirely. Even if God gives a person new memories or traits, he or she remains the same. It is also possible that a human person can continue living without memories or traits, such as the few seconds following Adams creation. Additionally, human persons can exist, without the presence of physical objects (Moreland 16). All these aid in concluding the view that more than behaviors or memories make up the human person. Therefore, dualists view that the human person unifies the body, memory, and behaviors makes sense of this fact.

A criticism of physicalism is the view of a continuous personal identity, particularly explaining the continuity following death and resurrection (Pojman & Vaughn 92). Given the physicalist view that humans are identical to the body, humans cannot exist away from the body. Therefore, the death of a body means that the human person will no longer exist. If God were to bring up a body years later, this would only be my replica. Physicalism tries to understand the continuation of the human person as time goes by (Pojman & Vaughn 92). The body is a collection of physical parts that ground personal identity. Therefore, the body remains an identity that is hard to establish, asserting continuity in appreciating human persons as self-sustaining organisms. In this view, the gappy nature creates an identical identity that represents different stages of the human person. However, most philosophical thoughts reject the gappy existence in physicalism. Suggesting that God can intervene at a persons death to miraculously extend their biological life past death is a conceivable alternative explanation. These philosophers argue that the power rest with God, to facilitate a biological identity.

Duplication is thus, the key objection to the continuity criteria (Pojman & Vaughn 96). God cannot make copies of mental states because it would create an imbalance in the order of the world. Having many versions of a single individual claiming to be that individual would create an imbalance. This is what makes it hard for physicalist philosophers to discern the true nature of human persons. Making many versions of a single human person with equal claim to being that person makes it hard to discern who the person really is. Physicalists argue for psychological continuity, stating that transferring another mind to a body brings a human persons identity close to their mental states. Thus, the absence of material continuity will prohibit a continued identity. Thus, latter and early stages are identical with the appropriate connection between mental continuity. Dualists have rejected physicalist thought, based on the continuity criteria associated with duplication.

What are human persons? Are we physical beings, spiritual beings, the two combined, or something very different will generate heated debates among philosophers that are not resolvable any time soon. Based on the presented evidence, the dualism view allows us to think through the issue of human persons. Physicalism on the other hand approaches the understanding of the human person using physical bases. They view the human as a complete physical being with no added spiritual substance, arguing that a person has similar identities to physical objects, especially the body. They hold that physical dimensions require an understanding that is based on inner dimensions such as beliefs. Even Christian physicalists rejecting the view of mental reality in physicalism are maintaining a view that is significant to inner lives of humans. This essay notes that the ability of souls to relate causally with the body creates a more holistic view of human persons. This is because these functions affirm a functional interdependence of the whole individual. This interdependence occurs despite the conceivably separable nature of distinctive substances.

Bibliography

Churchland. Paul. On Functionalism and Materialism. Class reading, n.d. Print.

Cumplodo, Emmanuel 2011, What is a Human Person? An exploration & Critique of Contemporary perspectives. PDF file. Web.

Moreland, James. Contemporary Defense of Dualism, Class Reading, n.d. Print.

Pojman, Louis and L. Vaughn. Philosophy: The Quest for Truth (9th Eds.), UK: Oxford University Press, 2014. Print.

Introduction

Human beings constantly assert that there is only one life to live. This thus compels them to make the most out of it as it is considered to be short. The cornerstone to a good life is happiness which according to the dictionary, is the expression of intense joy and contentment usually classified by most as an emotion, a notion which religious experts sharply differ with. They instead classify happiness as the sum of all factors considered as constituting a good life.

Indicators of a good life

In determining the factors that constitute a well lived life, different indicators are used which vary from individual to individual. While some may consider happiness as the leading indicator, others consider spirituality.

In deciding whether a person leads a good life or not, Abraham Maslow, in his 1943 paper, A Theory of Human Motivation (Harriman, 1946), suggested a hierarchical classification of needs. His research was solely based on the assessment of mentally healthy people who were achievers of their generation. These specimens were chosen as they were role models and seemed to be the most content with their ways of life.

The most basic needs were at the bottom of the pyramid which was of a physiological nature, fundamental to the survival of the human body. Others that followed were safety, love, esteem and self-actualization. The epitome of this classification was the desire of a person to be something more he already is. In this level of needs, lies the desire to be spiritual.

Understanding spirituality

Spirituality is defined as immaterial reality, a notion that allows a human being to understand the essence of his existence. The practices of prayer and meditation are the ways in which people connect to the spiritual world and grow their inner self. They are thus more contented with their own lives and the measure of this contentment is beyond that encompassed in mere happiness.

It summary, spirituality is a level higher than normal happiness; in the broadest meaning of the word. People who are spiritual are at peace and co-exist harmoniously with fellow humans, nature, the entire universe and the divine realm. They unequivocally believe in immateriality and their needs transcend those Maslow described in his hierarchy.

Spirituality has largely been associated with a religious experience; however, with the changing patterns and shift to secularism in the western culture (Burkhardt and Nagai-Jacobson, 2002), there has been a push to dissociate the two.

This has led to the emergence of lay spirituality which captures all experiences which make up the human world but attempting to distance itself with the acquisitive views. This concept accepts all practices of meditation which they rank as very useful for human development but do not associate with prayers as there is no belief in God or any other supernatural being.

This notion thus encompasses pluralism, personalized beliefs and openness to newer ideas that may not be tolerated by any particular religious doctrine. Spirituality, therefore, goes beyond religion as even atheists who are skeptic towards the existence of spirits also subscribe to it. The new definition of the term details the connection of a human to some force or energy which leads them to a deep self.

Conclusion

Spirituality, according to the above discussion is understood in many different ways depending on personal translation. The only point of convergence is that all those who have achieved spirituality are at the highest level of the human needs realization.

They have achieved peace between themselves and their surroundings and that concludes that they are happy with the way they lead their lives. Contentment with life, as a consequence of spirituality, points to happiness and hence a good life. In conclusion, spirituality is the best indicator of a well lived life in comparison to the other indicators.

References

Burkhardt, M. A and Nagai-Jacobson, M. G. (2002). Spirituality: living our connectedness. New York. Delmar, Thomson Learning Inc.

Harriman, P. L. (1946). Twentieth century psychology: recent developments in psychology. The philosophical library, Inc.

A journey can be defined as a process of moving towards a certain point. Human life is also characterized as a continuous movement. Therefore, the concept of journey is very close to our lives. The questions related to searching for the sense of life and exploring the nature of existence are regarded as the ones that all human beings were looking the answers for since the beginning of the history. The process of discovering the nature of the being can be considered a journey with the ultimate point that is difficult to be reached.

However, the process of such spiritual journey can help the person to gain the priceless knowledge about human life. Besides spiritual journey, physical journeys also contribute to the persons ability to judge the objective reality in a proper way, as they help to look aside the everyday routine and promote the ability to see ordinary things in a different way. Analyzing the benefits of the processes of spiritual and physical journeys helps to reveal how they help the person to explore the nature of existence.

Any attempt to focus on spiritual experience and explore the sense of being can be considered a spiritual journey. People go on such journeys while devoting their time to reading a certain kind of books, communicating with other people about spiritual themes, participating in spiritual practices or religious activities, etc. Any of these steps has the ultimate objective, which can be determined by finding the truth about the sense of human existence and defining the right way to live the life according to this truth.

Reaching this ultimate objective appears to be a very complicated task, as the wisest men of different times tried to find the answers to the existential questions and did not succeed. However, all of these men gained the invaluable knowledge about the specifics of human nature and the laws of human life. Such spiritual journeys help to explore what it means to live truly and prevent being afraid of death.

One of the rewards of any spiritual experience is the comprehension of the temporality of earthly life and understanding of the importance of focusing on eternal values. The main hero of Tolstoys novella The Death of Ivan Ilyich experienced a spiritual journey at the end of his life. The process of this journey helped him to learn more about the nature of existence and analyze his life based on the gained knowledge.

Physical journeys can be regarded as one of the effective ways to broaden the worldview, and, therefore, understand the nature of existence. The person receives an opportunity to look aside the conditions he/she is used to living in and see the life from a different perspective while going on a journey. From the ancient times, people were attracted to distant countries, and long-term journeys were made for the sake of exploration.

While people were searching for discoveries and conquering the unknown places, they were discovering not only new continents and countries but also new aspects of the existence. Their view of the world and human life was changing with every new journey. Nowadays people travel to improve and broaden the borders of personal worldview through the prism of new impressions. Any journey makes the persons perception of life deeper and more extensional.

Therefore, it contributes to the personal growth and teaches to understand the world. The main hero of The Epic of Gilgamesh experienced such kind of journey, which helped not only to achieve the goal but gain new knowledge and understand the nature of existence better.

Both spiritual and physical journeys present great value not because of the goals they help to reach but because of the benefits the processes involved in their realization give. That are the cases when the way to the final point is precious itself, even if the point is not reached. The process of a spiritual journey aimed at searching for the truth can be considered extremely fruitful even if the ultimate objective is not reached.

Such process helps the person to understand what it means to be a human and which kind of life can be regarded as the righteous one. The process of a physical journey can also be regarded as the favorable one as it puts the person under the conditions that help to see the new sides of life and learn about those aspects of life that cannot be explored while leading a routine life at one place.

Both spiritual and physical journeys help to explore the nature of existence. The process of a spiritual journey benefits the person with new knowledge and a better understanding of the world.

The process of a physical journey helps to broaden the persons worldview and discover new sides of human life. Any person eager to find out what is the righteous way of living the life, what are main goals of human existence, and how to overcome the affection for earthly values and the fear of death, should try to go on a journey that will bring much new knowledge and wisdom.

The inner need to be alone with oneself has always guided people who wanted to achieve enlightenment. Suffice it to recall the famous examples of Gautama Buddha, who lived alone and attained nirvana, or Jesus Christ, who fasted for forty days. In many cultures, such seclusion is called a retreat and is seen as a way to explore oneself deeper. The time of a retreat is used for meditation, prayer, or meditation. This essay will focus on how the practice of a one-time retreat can affect spiritual life.

In the pursuit of fleeting pleasures in the stream of daily worries, people do not always have time to understand the meaning of existence. The practice of retreat makes it possible to realize and accept this meaning to find inner freedom. Fading away from the world and being alone is the ministry to God (Nouwen, 1995). During exercises, people try to go beyond habits, stereotypes, to overcome themselves, their emotional prohibitions, and restrictions, to break the existing blocks that prevent them from living a full life. In this sense, a retreat is a conscious attempt to organize ones thoughts and protect oneself from reality.

Today, the meaning of spiritual solitude has slightly changed its form. Whereas retreat used to be a significant part of the lives of many monks and prophets, today, it is more of recreational activity. To achieve a state of complete spiritual solitude, people often go to distant countries or visit specialized institutions. Depending on the religious culture, retreat practices vary greatly: retreats can be both individual and collective. Sometimes the retreat is accompanied by complete silence, but other times it, on the contrary, implies active live communication. Such solitude is reduced to almost continuous meditation, which is only occasionally interrupted by sleep and food.

My spiritual experience of retreat was connected, first of all, with rethinking myself. In a moment of loneliness, being a beginner in this field, I quickly caught myself thinking that I could not control the flow of my thoughts.

However, immediately after the spiritual practice, there was an improvement in the perception of the present moment, attention, and consciousness, including the bodys feelings. This effect can be associated with short-term changes in dopamine and serotonin levels (Newberg, Wintering, Yamen, Zhong, Bowen, Averick, & Monti, 2018). Ordinary, rapidly changing everyday life has suddenly become more balanced and concentrated.

In a moment of silence and ritual, my mind was doing amazing things. It emphasized all the movements around me, the physical sensations, the contact with the air that touched my skin. At that moment, I had a bright feeling that the room was beginning to move, and I was with it. The masters asked me to be especially attentive to the process of my breathing, to concentrate on it. So, the state of trance enveloped me, and I started hearing inner voices.

Just a week after the retreat began, I realized how beautiful the world was. It is a confusing feeling, but I felt like I had a vision at the atomic level. At that moment, I loved not only myself but everyone else around me. According to Nouwen (1995), this feeling seems to be the union with God. This feeling did not leave me for a long time, and these days I felt like the happiest person on the planet.

Emphasizing all of the above, there are many religious ways to find yourself. In many cultures, there is a tendency towards isolation and spiritual loneliness to distract oneself from the bustle of the outside world. Spiritual practices of retreat today are somewhat different from what they used to be, but serve the same purpose. A retreat is a more potent form of meditation that can affect your world view and change values. This practice is closely linked to going beyond the comfort zone and discoveries. It is important not to lose this spiritual state after the course, but to learn to live with it.

References

Newberg, A. B., Wintering, N., Yaden, D. B., Zhong, L., Bowen, B., Averick, N., & Monti, D. A. (2018). Effect of a one-week spiritual retreat on dopamine and serotonin transporter binding: a preliminary study. Religion, Brain & Behavior, 8(3), 265-278.

Nouwen, H. (1995). Moving from solitude to community to ministry. Leadership, 16(2), 81-87.

How people view Jungian spiritual realm theories today

Individuals still find Jungs work on spirituality relevant due to its ability to explain how the human psyche works. Jung acknowledged that it was not enough to focus on ones ego conscious; knowing the unconscious was crucial to understanding oneself, and spirituality formed an important part of this.

In modern times, people also think that this scholars teachings are relevant because he found a way of relating the level of ones spirituality with ones psychological state. Jung asserted that it is possible to get rid of insecurities, anxiety and loss if one had a solid spiritual experience.

Finally, many people believe in existentialist thought today. They focus on being present in the moment rather than spiritualizing everything. Jung was an existentialist because he believed in focusing fully on the divine rather than worrying about the future.

If a person were fully present in the spiritual realm, then one could free oneself from fear and anxiety. Likewise, modern-day existentialists assert that dwelling on ones spirituality can protect one from the reality of never really knowing about ones future. Jungs spiritual realm theories still interest many individuals today since their principles can be applied to daily life.

Truths in Anima, Animus, Shadow and Person

Jungs four archetypes are also quite relevant in the field of psychology presently. The scholar explained that human beings have two opposing personifications: the anima and animus. In women, the animus personifies masculine tendencies and is aggressive or hostile.

Conversely, the anima personifies feminine tendencies in women. Some truths exist in these archetypes as seen through interactions between men and women in relationships. Men and women sometimes project their expectations about the opposite gender on their spouses.

They distort the image of what their partner truly is with their projection of these expectations. One may compare these projections with the anima and animus. Individuals may become disappointed by their partner when they expect their partner to complete them. These expectations may be likened to unrealized potential in the womans anima or the mans animus (Jacques, 1994).

Jung explained that the persona is how one presents oneself to the world. Such appearances often differ when an individual confronts different situations. The archetype has some truths because one may be an entertainer at a social gathering, a caring mother at home, and a tough boss in the office.

It is the sum of all these personas that make up ones personality. Jung also explained that people have shadow archetype, which consists of all shortcomings, longings, and repressed ideas.

It is true that individuals possess this archetype; a persons dark side often comes out when they deal with a very stressful situation or are subjected to long periods of deprivation. Jung was right in stating that the shadow represents the unknown; humans contain many unknown character facets, so the theory was insightful.

How Jung and Freuds archetypes relate

Jungs shadow is similar to Freuds Id. He affirmed that people had basic impulses, which could become chaotic if left uncontrolled. Likewise, Jung believed that human beings had a dark and wild side known as the shadow, and one could never know when that side would come out.

One may also understand relationship failures using both Freud and Jungs teachings. Freud explained that people projected their fears onto others as a way of coping with their faults. The Superego usually mediates in situations where the Id is getting out of hand. Likewise, Jung believed that projections of the anima or animus onto others create complications in relations.

References

Jacques, L. (1994). The four fundamental concepts of psycho-analysis. London: McMillan.

The influence of Manichaeism on Augustine of Hippo as a Spiritual Mentor is Christine McCanns publication investigating the way Manichaeism doctrines affected Augustines spiritual mentoring. McCann argues that Augustines encounter with Manichaeism had long-lasting impacts on his sensitivity to praise and pride. According to McCann (2009), Augustine disdained personal praises as he deemed them inappropriate and inaccurate, even rejecting the concept of being imitated and admired as a model. She posits that the mentor is not the source of knowledge but simply an aid in the process of reading and understanding the Scriptures (McCann, 2009, p.263). The authors thesis is that a spiritual mentoring relationship should depart from enhancing ones power, position, reputation, or influence but aid in the reading and understanding scriptural content.

McCanns publication contains major arguments and refutations, which fortify the spiritual mentoring arrangements, anchored on extreme self-discipline and avoidance of any form of self-aggrandizement. The principal assertion is that discipleship and spiritual development through mentoring can be undermined and obstructed by deviations, such as predispositions towards personal praise. On the converse, the arrangement should seek to entrench a deeper focus on teachings compared to the mentor. Additionally, Augustine illustrates Manichaeans inability to deliver the right teachings as they have been diluted by untruths and inconsistencies, which renders them unreliable. She asserts that Manichaeans own books contradict what he was told by other members of the group, and that this inconsistency shows the unreliability of their claims (McCann, 2009, p.267). However, in determining the productivity of these arrangements, it is imperative that an assessment be conducted on the right candidates. For instance, Augustine could only obtain the truth from Faustus about the Elect (McCann, 2009). This publication implies that obsession with oneself and the promotion of self-importance subverts mentorship programs by redirecting focus to individuals rather than the teachings.

McCanns work has various weaknesses, which undermine the application of his findings. For instance, Augustines obsession with winning arguments and the possible impacts on spiritual Christian aspirations were not comprehensively addressed. Additionally, the article does not provide definite Manichaean philosophies which disproportionately elevated Augustines sensitivity to praises and pride. However, McCann draws the comparisons with other publications and literature, which offers useful insights on the trajectory of spiritual mentorship. A prominent research question is the effect of the spiritual elitism on discipleship after Augustines challenge and teachings.

Reference

McCann, C. (2009). The influence of Manichaeism on Augustine of Hippo as a spiritual mentor. Cistercian Studies Quarterly, 44(3), 255-277.

Dantes epic poem Inferno is one of the defining works of the Western canon. The vivid imagery of the nine circles of hell has been endlessly referenced, reread, illustrated, and used to instill the fear of God in Christians for over seven hundred years. Dantes conception of the universe is commonly known as a straightforward representation of the Medieval view of the afterlife. However, it has lately been suggested that it is actually a dramatized allegory for Dantes spiritual reawakening. Thus, Inferno can be categorized as a spiritual autobiography depicting the souls transition from a state of damnation to one of grace.

The poem starts with Dante standing in the woods, gone from the path direct (Dante & Cary, 1866, p. 1). Three animals block his path up the mountain. The spirit of the Roman poet Virgil, sent by Dantes love Beatrice, appears to guide Dante. He must go through hell and purgatory to finally enter heaven. If the reader interprets the text through the lens of allegory, it becomes clear that Dante has been motivated by his love for Beatrice to recognize the morally compromised state of his life and alter it: love brought me thence (Dante & Cary, 1866, p. 9). However, he must abolish his personal sins of ambition and malice to do so. Despite their paganism, the classical authors of Ancient Rome, quintessentialized in Virgil, will guide Dante in understanding virtue and what it means to live a good life. As the start of his spiritual autobiography, Canto I captures Dantes decision to pursue goodness despite the difficult spiritual transformation it requires.

Dante and Virgil enter hell and witness the grotesque torment of the eternally damned according to the sins they committed during their lifetime: never-ending icy rain, eternal whipping, burning tombs. He is oerpowerd by pity for the sinners within certain circles, and his cry prevaild by strong affection urgd (Dante & Cary, 1866, p. 25, 26). However, alongside biblical and mythological figures, Dante notices his contemporaries, such as former popes and political rivals. When he meets Filippo Argenti, the man who exiled him, Dante feels only disgust: cursd spirit! tarry thou (Dante & Cary, 1866, p. 40). In response, Virgil kisses his cheek and praises him for being justly disdainful (Dante & Cary, 1866, p. 40). As its member, Dante had been blind to the sinful nature of society and had merely accepted it as an unavoidable reality. During this spiritual transformation, Dante is forced to turn a critical eye towards the world he lives in and recognize the seriousness of their crimes against God. Initially, he feels pity for the punished because he became enamored with sin himself and still relates to their moral incapability to remain pious. However, Dante eventually learns to condemn and despise wrongdoers, thus erasing the sinful urges within himself. Dantes journey through hell describes his recognition of sin and acknowledgment of its gravity and consequences.

In conclusion, people today still battle their immoral urges and strive to live a virtuous life, just like Dante and all preceding generations. This is the reason the epic poem has kept a stronghold over human imagination since the fourteenth century. However, our conceptualization of these desires has vastly changed. We do not seek virtue out of fear of divine punishment but because of the inherent value of notions such as justice, equality, and human rights. Therefore, to fit our modern sensibilities, we need to recontextualize Dantes graphic journey through hell as an allegory for personal transformation rather than an unambiguous description of the universe. The first part of The Divine Comedy is a spiritual autobiography depicting Dantes epiphany and recognition of sins consequences.

References

Dante, A., & Cary, H.F. (1866). Dantes Inferno. Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co.

Introduction

Spiritual care is a practice of aiding people in the recognition and acceptance of spirituality and addressing the questions of ones meaning in life, legacy, purpose, hope, and faith. The role of spiritual care in nursing is both recognized and undermined. There is certain skepticism in the discussion of the effectiveness of spirituality. However, the research in nursing practices for cancer patients suggests that the efficacy of spiritual care is significant. The five research papers exploring spiritual cares effects on patients with cancer suggests a positive effect on patients without marginal difference in age and gender. In this paper, five peer-reviewed journal articles would review to demonstrate the effectiveness of spiritual care and indicate the methodology explored to highlight the significance of spirituality in nursing practices.

Research

Joo and Kim 2020

The research by Joo and Kim (2020) focused on the spiritual care analysis among elderly patients hospitalized with cancer. The participants were 50 people whose ages exceeded 65 years (Joo and Kim, 2020). They were divided into two groups: experimental and control groups. The first group received spiritual care for half an hour three times over three days. The individuals were interviewed before and after the experiment to analyze the changes in spiritual well-being (Joo and Kim, 2020). Before the experiment, each group indicated similar general and disease-related characteristics, anxiety, and spiritual health conditions. After the experiment, the test group indicated a significant increase in spiritual well-being and a decrease in anxiety in contrast to the control group (Joo and Kim, 2020).

Torabi et al., 2018

According to Torabi et al. (2018), spiritual care among adolescents is effective. The research followed a single-group, quasi-experimental, pre-/poststudy design with 32 adolescent participants. Torabi et al. (2018) argue that spiritual health is significantly different before and after the intervention. However, the follow-up condition of the patients suggests no marginal difference in well-being, indicating the need for continuity of care practices.

Sajadi et al., 2018

The article by Sajadi et al. (2018) analyzed the effect of spiritual counseling on Iranian female cancer patients. The methodology utilized for the research explores the difference between two groups consisting of 42 women with and without an 8-week counseling intervention. The results were collected using Paloutzian and Ellisons Spiritual Well-Being Scale (Joo and Kim, 2020). Consequently, the participants illustrate significant improvements in the spiritual well-being of the experimental group.

Moosavi et al. 2019

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of spiritual care on cancer patients and oncology nurses. The research collected data from the viewpoints of the patients, their families, the nurses, and other healthcare team members. In 20162017, the current qualitative investigation was carried out utilizing traditional content analysis (Moosavi et al., 2019). The 18 participants were subjected to semi-structured in-depth interviews where the data were gathered (Moosavi et al., 2019). One typical outcome of spiritual care was the patient and the nurse finding peace (Moosavi et al., 2019). It enables the nurse to finally feel inner pleasure while helping the patient feel at ease and peace.

Seo et al., 2019

Understanding the nature and significance of the experience of cancer patients receiving spiritual nursing was the aim of this study. From April to June 2019, participants were interviewed in-depth one-on-one (Seo et al., 2019). This research involved eight patients from a single Christian hospital. The Collaizzi phenomenological approach was used to gather and analyze cyclical data (Seo et al., 2019). Four themes emerged from the experiences of cancer patients who received spiritual care: odd spiritual care in the face of longing; feeling of surprising changes; spiritual compassion leading to trust; and transition to spiritual healing (Seo et al., 2019).

Analysis

Each of the five chosen articles suggests that spiritual cares effectiveness in improving well-being and reducing anxiety is eminent. The research by Joo and Kim (2020), Torabi et al. (2018), Sajadi et al. (2018), and Moosavi (2019) utilized a similar approach where an experimental group with the spiritual intervention was compared to the control group. The difference lies in the number of participants, data collection method, location, age, and gender. Seo et al. (2019) focused on the qualitative assessment of the participants condition via interviews to which the researchers observed four critical responses. Nevertheless, they were mostly positive about the improvement of spiritual well-being.

Conclusion

In conclusion, spiritual care among cancer patients is an essential tool for improving the quality of life-related to spiritual health. This suggests the significance and effectiveness of spiritual practices on critical patients. Simultaneously, removing doubt is often considered among people who skeptically view such practices. Perhaps, recommendations could be made for the introduction of awareness increase as the spiritual condition is closely associated with the mental health of the patients and may have a detrimental effect on the effectiveness of the treatments.

Reflection

In this assignment, I learned the significant effectiveness of spiritual care, which addressed my doubts about the procedure. At the same time, I familiarized myself with the methodology often utilized in exploring nursing care techniques. This assignment prompted me to evaluate necessary information from texts and elicit significant details. I now consider spiritual care a significant part of my nursing practice and would like to incorporate it in each applicable instance. I experienced an a-ha moment after finding the similarity of the research results despite the cultural differences in the experiment locations. However, I think a stronger connection between the cultural differences in spiritual care needs to be addressed.

References

Joo, Y. S., & Kim, H. (2020). Effects of spiritual nursing intervention on spiritual well-being and anxiety in elders with cancer.Journal of Korean Gerontological Nursing, 22(2), 95104.

Moosavi, S., Rohani, C., Borhani, F., & Akbari, M. E. (2019). Consequences of spiritual care for cancer patients and oncology nurses: A qualitative study. Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, 6(2), 137144. Web.

Sajadi, M., Niazi, N., Khosravi, S., Yaghobi, A., Rezaei, M., & Koenig, H. G. (2018). Effect of spiritual counseling on spiritual well-being in Iranian women with cancer: A randomized clinical trial.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 30, 7984.

Seo, E. Y., Kwon, S., Kim, Y., & Han, A. L. (2019). Experience of cancer patients receiving spiritual nursing care in one Christian General Hospital. Asian Oncology Nursing, 19(3), 179.

Torabi, F., Rassouli, M., Nourian, M., Borumandnia, N., Shirinabadi Farahani, A., & Nikseresht, F. (2018). The effect of spiritual care on adolescents coping with cancer.Holistic Nursing Practice, 32(3), 149159.

The paradigm of medical care, similar to any other professional endeavor that requires close interpersonal communication, is replete with ethical dilemmas and challenges. One of such challenges includes a sensitive matter of spirituality and ones beliefs. When speaking of experience in facilitating spirituality, one of my strengths includes open-mindedness, as I can listen to others without imposing judgment or ignorance. Sometimes, however, I find it rather difficult to fully engage with the patients spiritual practices, creating a communication gap based on our different beliefs. According to Grand Canyon University (2020), nurses religious and spiritual preferences shall never be prioritized when interacting with the patient. For this reason, it would be imperative for me to find the ways of facilitating spiritual care will include not only tolerance and acceptance but empathy and meaningful connection with a patient.

I also consider my ability to respect the patients wishes despite having a different point of view an asset in terms of providing holistic care. Indeed, if I were a patient, I would consider myself as a primary decision-maker in the context of treatment and rehabilitation. If the situation was difficult and I were physically incapable of voicing my concerns, I would rather confide the decision-making process to the medical professionals. Family and friends might be too emotionally invested and thus, make choices that would prevent them from losing me. For my part, I prefer timely death to a seemingly never-ending struggle, and I believe clinicians to be more impartial when making a difficult decision.

This course has, by all means, become a revelation for me even though the majority of the information should not have been new to a nurse. Some of the greatest insights taken from this class include but are not limited to:

• The need to put more effort in recognition of the patients spiritual values and beliefs in terms of treatment;
• The scope of diversity hidden behind the peoples definition of life and death, which should be addressed and respected during the treatment;
• The need to shift the focus from solely professional routine towards perceiving a patients life as a phenomenon beyond physical well-being and medical history.

Hence, the valuable lessons taken from this class have not so much changed but reinvented how I perceive care and health. I hope I will be able to put into practice all the takeaways from this course.

Reference

Grand Canyon University. (2020). Practicing dignity: An introduction to Christian values and decision making in health care[E-book].

Introduction

I was one of the students that had the pleasure of attending the spiritual therapy course in the United States. I must say it was a truly revealing experience going through the ins and outs of the course. An individual finds himself opening up to a new horizon with a remarkable feeling of being able to comprehend and express which seemed so distant a while ago.

Main body

Spiritual therapy can be characterized as counseling or an offshoot of psychotherapy which mainly targets moral, spiritual and religious influences on human behavior and health. This brings a resounding sense of inner strength and stability, sometimes making individuals feel at one with all their emotions and desires. It has been seen to be very useful in regards to anxiety attacks and burnouts related to job stress. This serves as an effective alternate to the use of medicine and sessions with psychiatrists.

There is a thin line however between what can be classified as spiritual therapy and adherence to religion. The latter is based on adopting some ideology and then living by it. Spiritual approaches however go beyond that and attempt to get direct contact with the sacred and the divine. This is left out of psychiatric application in mainstream therapy which has moved more towards chemical forms of treatment, which is sad given its many advantages and therapeutic success. This approach is financially viable as well. The present trend psychiatry is taking seems to be fuelled a lot by the investments of drug companies which makes the current blend of psychiatrists similar to regular doctors. This medicine based approach is considered a replacement whereas it can hardly match the extended periods of time spent with a patient for counseling.

The ideas behind spiritual therapy was founded on principles acquired from such diverse sources as Hindu and Buddhist yoga, elements of Sufism and even large parts of Zen Buddhism. Being considered one of the most effective ways of treating chronic disorders, this form of Transcendental psychology has also made huge leaps in curing depression and other psychosomatic disorders. Part of the success of this form of therapy has been going beyond the chemical approach to the brain and considering the individual characteristics such as need for growth and self esteem. The meditation that is involved sometimes makes the patients go through unique self defining experiences, sometimes claiming to have visions or seeing things which has been defined as a crucial transitory phase through which the patient requires support. It can sometimes lead to a reorganization of the priorities of an individual and open deeply buried desire which can be the essence of the cure one requires.

Conclusion

The spiritual therapy course that I went through did however present me with some of the drawbacks of this approach. Not everyone is trained to handle this and it can result in the exploitation of many patients. Charlatans can easily pretend to be spiritual therapists while exploiting their patients financially and in other ways. However, given the merits of this approach as I discovered in the United States, it can truly be an eye opening experience with a sense of harmony following the end of therapy which may be unrivalled in an individuals lifetime.