Spirituality; spiritual health; change; transformation–all terms that have a certain caché.
Too many times, these words have been thrown about without much understanding. This has often led to confusion, mistakes, and, in some cases, clear harms and abuses.
As a Spiritual Care Practitioner, or Professional Chaplain, I have provided care for people of many different faiths, or of no faith. I have cared for them in the midst of crises. I have also shared with them some of life’s deepest joys. I have seen people experience the isolating darkness of despair. I have also seen people embody the sparkling glimmers of enlivening hope. In all these encounters I have believed that spirituality is the one phenomenon that unites all people–even atheists and agnostics.
To address common misunderstandings of spirituality and spiritual health, then, I have spent the last number of years researching both. This research has resulted in several peer-reviewed publications, as well as a growing reputation as a workshop and retreat facilitator. This work has introduced me to many people of diverse backgrounds, all of whom share my interest in defining and describing spirituality and spiritual health in useful ways, unleashing the transformative potential of both.
To bring my work to a wider audience, I have therefore launched this blog. In it, I will be unpacking the concepts I have developed in my publications, making them more accessible for general readers. To do this, I will tell stories, connecting these stories to the philosophical points I am working to illustrate. I will also spend some time simply describing the concepts. Through the stories and the related concepts, my hope is to draw readers into a deeper engagement with their lived realities, gaining better understandings of spirituality and spiritual health as they do so.
I do this because I believe spirituality and spiritual health are the keys to moving successfully through life. At this time, I am convinced this belief needs to be shared more widely. As I write, we are in the midst of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Worldwide, people are being required to isolate themselves in ways not experienced for generations. Consequently, mental and spiritual health professionals have grave concerns regarding how many will move through this crisis. Many may be spared viral infection due to the measures taken to curb the spread of this disease. Yet the consequences of this disease for the mental and spiritual health of millions have barely begun to be understood. Part of my hope for this blog, then, is that it will contribute to equipping people to move through this crisis, providing reasons for hope, as well as general tools for positive change and transformation.
Please read this blog, then, share it widely, and comment generously and graciously. I look forward to sharing these ideas with you; I also hope you will enjoy reading and responding to them. Let the journey begin!
Reflective Life 