Greening Faith and Herbology in Pentecostalism in Zimbabwe

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-72
Author(s):  
Nomatter Sande
Keyword(s):  
Herbal Medicine ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Divine Healing ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Pentecostal Churches ◽  
Role Of Religion ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract The role of religion in ecological discourse has gained ground in the quest to improve people’s lives in society. Herbal medicine is known to treat complex diseases. However, there are complexities in protecting the environment since herbal medicine entails having an in-depth understanding of traditional knowledge systems, beliefs, and practices. Pentecostal churches in Zimbabwe such as the Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) have remained impervious to the widespread campaign promoting the use of herbs as an effective healing treatment. Divine healing is central to the AFM, and thus they view traditional herbal medicines as originating from evil spirits, despite scriptures referring to herbs as both food and medicine. Accordingly, developing a theology of ‘greening faith’ in the AFM will foster a constructive attitude toward the use of traditional herbal medicines. This article examines the position of the AFM on traditional herbal medicine and utilises ecotheology as its theoretical framework together with data gathered through in-depth interviews. The article concludes that the AFM should consciously use faith to protect the environment and promote the health and well-being of its believers.

scholarly journals The Influence of Masculinity and the Moderating Role of Religion on the Workplace Well-Being of Factory Workers in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (12) ◽  
pp. 6250
Author(s):  
Quan Gao ◽  
Orlando Woods ◽  
Xiaomei Cai
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Spiritual Support ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Factory Workers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Being There ◽  
Role Of Religion ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Moderating Role

This paper explores how the intersection of masculinity and religion shapes workplace well-being by focusing on Christianity and the social construction of masculinity among factory workers in a city in China. While existing work on public and occupational health has respectively acknowledged masculinity’s influences on health and the religious and spiritual dimensions of well-being, there have been limited efforts to examine how variegated, and especially religious, masculinities influence people’s well-being in the workplace. Drawing on ethnography and in-depth interviews with 52 factory workers and 8 church leaders and factory managers, we found that: (1) Variegated masculinities were integrated into the factory labor regime to produce docile and productive bodies of workers. In particular, the militarized and masculine cultures in China’s factories largely deprived workers of their dignity and undermined their well-being. These toxic masculinities were associated with workers’ depression and suicidal behavior. (2) Christianity not only provided social and spiritual support for vulnerable factory workers, but also enabled them to construct a morally superior Christian manhood that phytologically empowered them and enhanced their resilience to exploitation. This paper highlights not only the gender mechanism of well-being, but also the ways religion mediates the social-psychological construction of masculinity.

scholarly journals There Is No Performance, There Is Just This Moment: The Role of Mindfulness Instruction in Promoting Health and Well-Being Among Students at a Highly-Ranked University in the United States

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 909-918 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deanna Kerrigan ◽  
Victoria Chau ◽  
Melissa King ◽  
Emily Holman ◽  
Alain Joffe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Stress Reduction ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
University Culture ◽  
High Level ◽  
And Coping ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Health And Well Being

Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) has been shown to improve health outcomes across populations. We explored the feasibility, acceptability, and initial effects of a pilot MBSR program at a highly-ranked university in the United States. We conducted 23 in-depth interviews with 13 students. Interviews explored stressors and coping mechanisms, experiences with MBSR, and its reported impact and potential future use. Interviews were analyzed using thematic content and narrative analyses. Results indicated that students are exposed to a very high level of constant stress related to the sheer amount of work and activities that they have and the pervasive surrounding university culture of perfectionism. MBSR offered an opportunity to step back and gain perspective on issues of balance and priorities and provided concrete techniques to counter the effects of stressors. We conclude that MBSR and mindfulness programs may contribute to more supportive university learning environments and greater health and well-being among students.

The role of religion in heart-transplant recipients' long-term health and well-being

1995 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronna Casar Harris ◽  
Mary Amanda Dew ◽  
Ann Lee ◽  
Michael Amaya ◽  
Laurie Buches ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Transplant ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Transplant Recipients ◽  
Heart Transplant Recipients ◽  
Role Of Religion ◽  
Health And Well Being

Religion, Spirituality, Well-Being, and Ill-Being in a Church-Renewal Movement: The Case of Finland

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Pietari Hannikainen
Keyword(s):  
Church Renewal ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Dimensional Approach ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Spiritual Well Being ◽  
Renewal Movement ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract An expanding body of research connects religiosity/spirituality (later R/S) with human well-being and health. While psychological and medical research lacks a common theoretical or theological framework, these dimensions are measured by instruments with a wide variation in quality. As the religious landscapes in Western societies are becoming increasingly plural and complex, the need for developing our understanding and assessment of the role of R/S in human health and well-being is as important as ever. This study, based on quantitative data (N = 529) from members of a church renewal oriented network in the Lutheran majority Church in Finland, measures the role of R/S in the subjective well-being of the participants through a multi-dimensional framework. While exploring Ellison’s Spiritual Well-being Scale (1983), the study expands its scope to a more multi-dimensional approach to religion, spirituality and well-being. The results reveal that religious beliefs and practices do not contribute to the level of subjective well-being in the lives of the participants as much as the way in which these beliefs and practices are lived out and actualized in social contexts. The study identified several sources of both well-being and ill-being in the participants’ lives. The article contributes to the terms of measuring the various ways in which R/S are connected to human well-being.

The Spirituality of People of Color Living with AIDS in Long-Term Care

2005 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 247-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Moran
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Home ◽  
Chronically Ill ◽  
Well Being ◽  
People Of Color ◽  
Term Care ◽  
Patient Health ◽  
Role Of Religion ◽  
Health And Well Being

This article describes research results regarding the role of religion/spirituality among the chronically ill that highlights the benefits of religious beliefs and practices on patient health and well being. The author reports results from a questionnaire administered to People of Color living with AIDS who reside in a nursing home. The results suggest a strong spirituality as evidenced in a desire to communicate with God through frequent prayer and the reading of the patient's Holy Book. It includes high levels of hope, feelings of being loved, and attendance at religious services and classes held in the nursing home.

scholarly journals Neoliberal Governmentality and Low-Wage Migrant Labour in India and Singapore

2021 ◽  
pp. 097325862110029
Author(s):  
Mohan J. Dutta
Keyword(s):  
Working Conditions ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Neoliberal Governmentality ◽  
Migrant Labour ◽  
Labour Exploitation ◽  
Comparative Framework ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Health And Well Being

Drawing on a digital ethnography and in-depth interviews conducted with low-wage migrant workers in hyper-precarious working conditions amidst ongoing neoliberal transformations in India and Singapore, this manuscript offers a comparative framework for examining the limits of pandemic communication. Interrogating the ideology of behaviourism that forms the dominant approach, the narratives point to the organizing role of structures as sites of labour exploitation. The exploitative labour conditions constitute the backdrop amidst which the migrant workers negotiate their health and well-being.

Spiritual perspectives of Black Caribbean and White British older adults: development of a spiritual typology in later life

2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 511-538 ◽  
Author(s):  
EUAN SADLER ◽  
SIMON BIGGS ◽  
KAREN GLASER
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Developmental Process ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Black Caribbean ◽  
Spiritual Perspectives ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Health And Well Being

ABSTRACTSpirituality is positively linked to health and well-being in later life, particularly among older adults of black ethnic groups. However, definitions of spirituality in the literature have largely been theoretically informed, rather than based on the views of older people themselves. We examined the spiritual perspectives of Black Caribbean and White British older adults based on in-depth interviews with 34 individuals aged between 60 and 95 years. Our aim was to develop a spiritual typology to add to an understanding of the process of spirituality in later life. Findings showed that Black Caribbean older individuals mostly defined spirituality in relation to their belief in a transcendent God, whereas White British older individuals tended to draw upon a wider range of spiritual, religious or secular notions. A spirituality typology in later life captured four categories of relationship, between ‘God to self’, ‘self to God’, ‘self to universe’ and ‘self to life’. The typology highlights the central role of ethnicity in shaping spiritual perspectives in later life, and identifies the multidimensional nature of spirituality among older adults, reflecting in part a developmental process, although a process which is socially and culturally constructed.

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