Spirituality

=Spirituality - What is it? =

====In order to explore the links between spirituality and education we must first try to define what it is meant by the word 'spirituality'. Although it is often simple task to define a key term, this is not the case here. There are many different interpretations of this term. Some linked to religion and some divorced from it. However the general consensus is that “spirituality has always been linked to human interiority”(Harris and Moran 1998). This means that it relates to all things that make us human besides our exterior bodies. It can encompass the emotional and moral sides of someone. The word spirit has sometimes been used interchangeabley with the word soul, and according to (Groome 1998 p 325) "the soul is the source of all that is distinctly human about us-- our ability to experience, to think, to create, to know but especially to relate to and to love". ====

====In previous generations the word 'spirituality' seemed to be inextricably linked to the word 'religion'. However now in addition to this use, “ the word has been selected by others precisely to avoid religious connotations” (Crawford & Rossiter 2006 p9). People who like the idea of being spiritual, but who don't want to tie themselves to any particular religion seem to have adopted this word to describe themselves. Perhaps it is also people who are searching for more in life and have not been introduced to any religions.====

====The word spirituality can have many different meanings for different people. Depending on culture, religion, age, ethnicity and many other factors. The word is able to take on a personal meaning, for everyone who uses it. However a common theme seems to be a 'sense of connection to something greater than oneself'.====

Spirituality, or a search for something greater than ourselves is a common theme across history and across the world. It seems that people have always sought for answers to the big questions, such as the meaning of life. And throughout various religions "every culture finds its own to dinstinct way of expressing and nurturing the soul of its people" (Groome 1998 p 327).

Part of the shift in the way we think about spirituality involves the whole reason behind seeking it. Spirituality seems to have become about “life here and the way we relate to it, rather than life to come and how we guarantee it for ourselves” (Chittister 1998 p1).

When thinking about spirituality, it is important to remember that it is not just about reflection on ourselves, our own feelings, experiences and personal growth. Our spirituality is also linked with the world around us. It includes our connection to other people, and to the environment. The way we care for these can nourish our own spirituality. Chittister (1998) makes the point that “we have been raised to believe that spiritual questions are personal questions, that the spiritual life is a relationship between me and God rather than between me and the remainder of the universe. We maintain decent daily lives and call religious regularity goodness, when the rest of the world is reeling from the new dualism between personal spirituality and public religion, between personal morality and public corruption and corporate profiteering.” We must now start to rethink our actions. It is simply not enough to be a loyal church goer, or maintain ideals about a fair world. "To support social change is not the same as to epitomize its vision" (Chittister 1998 p4).