Spiritual experiences in counselling

Today in Germany, religion and the churches forfeit their sovereignty of interpretation and ritual concerning death and dying. The funeral director is the first point of contact when death occurs. Therefore he or she is able to influence the relationship between the living and the dead. In the course of this development, the dead body, often referred to as dirty and dangerous, is being sanitized by funeral directors. Funeral directors credit the dead body with a certain quality; they claim that facing the dead may lead to religious or spiritual experiences, and therefore they encourage the public viewing of the dead – a practice which was, and still is not very common in Germany. The new connotation of the dead body is an example for the dislimitation of religion in modern society. The religious framing of death-related practises no longer exclusively belongs to traditional religious institutions and actors, but can take place in commercial business companies as well.

Download Full-text

Reconstructors

Fieldwork in Religion ◽

10.1558/firn.v4i1.29 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 29-45

Author(s):

Stefania Palmisano

Keyword(s):

Spiritual Experiences ◽

History Of ◽

Ritual Practices

This article treats the Reconstructors, a Catholic Community founded in Italy by the Jesuit Vittorio Cappelletto. After a period in India at the school of Anandamurti, the leader of the Ananda Marga movement, Cappelletto’s spiritual experiences induced him to import the teachings received from the Indian guru into Christianity. After presenting the salient stages in the history of the Reconstructors, this article analyses the doctrinal structure and the ritual practices of the movement. Next, it explores the movement’s esoteric bases and the relationships between Cappelletto and his disciples. Finally, the “story behind the story” is engaged, along with reflections upon the contingencies and dilemmas of fieldwork.

Download Full-text

Exploring the Roles of Daily Spiritual Experiences, Self-Efficacy, and Gender in Shopping Addiction: A Moderated Mediation Model

Religions ◽

10.3390/rel12050355 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. 355

Author(s):

Edyta Charzyńska ◽

Magdalena Sitko-Dominik ◽

Ewa Wysocka ◽

Agata Olszanecka-Marmola

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Protective Factor ◽

Treatment Programs ◽

Spiritual Experiences ◽

Moderated Mediation Model ◽

Daily Spiritual Experiences ◽

Negative Effect ◽

And Gender ◽

Shopping Addiction

Although spirituality has been considered a protective factor against shopping addiction, the mechanisms involved in this relationship are still poorly recognized. The present study aims to test the association of daily spiritual experiences, self-efficacy, and gender with shopping addiction. The sample consisted of 430 young adults (275 women and 155 men), with a mean age of 20.44 (SD = 1.70). The Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale, the General Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Bergen Shopping Addiction Scale were used to measure the study variables. The results showed that: (1) Daily spiritual experiences had a direct negative effect on shopping addiction; (2) daily spiritual experiences were positively related to self-efficacy, thought the effect was moderated by gender; (3) self-efficacy negatively correlated with a shopping addiction; and (4) the indirect effect of daily spiritual experiences on shopping addiction through self-efficacy was significant for women but insignificant for men. The findings confirm that spirituality protects young adults against developing a shopping addiction. They also suggest that when introducing spiritual issues into shopping addiction prevention or treatment programs, the gender-specific effects of spirituality on shopping addiction via self-efficacy should be considered to adequately utilize young women’s and men’s spiritual resources.

Download Full-text