Religion and Spirituality - Essay Example

Teacher’s ID Religion and Spirituality Spirituality and religiousness are considered as two sides of the same coins however they present completely different types of discourses. Spirituality is often seen as a by-product of religion since those who practice a certain religion thoroughly are also expected to be spiritual as well. Religiousness can be described as having a personal belief or faith in God and the values levied down by a certain sect or a school of thought, performing activities i.e. rituals that demonstrate alliance to a certain religion (e.g. church memberships or alliances etc), adhering to a belief-based system of life and following God’s will (Zinnbauer et al. 557). On the other hand, a research conducted by Zinnbauer et al. indicated that spirituality is an outcome of a scared experience. Some of the definitions of spirituality include being connected with God or any other form of almighty power, belief in transcendence, integrating certain beliefs into a system of life, demonstrating God’s love to others, focusing on gaining inner stability and personal growth. Other definitions of spirituality are “an ultimate concern, an integrating or unifying factor within the personality, authenticity, a source of yearning, a meaningful identity and purpose, a union with God (Hill et al. 57). It can be seen that the definitions of religion mainly surround existence of God. Hence, it accepts the fact that there is a supreme power who has defined certain rules and principles which are meant to be followed if one wishes to have indemnity. These religious morals and values define an institutional system of life in various forms. Taking example of Christianity, there are various sects that have their own set of doctrines which are reflected in their lifestyle as well as in their manner of praying. Hence, religion defines a rather concrete set of beliefs, accepting existence of God and its supremacy giving it an outlook of obligations that one has to follow in order to be associated with a certain religion. On the other hand, spirituality is a matter of choice. It concerns personal experiences and feelings that surround the existence of a superior power. It is important to note that other than accepting presence of God, some may find spirituality in a non-sacred phenomenon as well. The later concept relates to karma or an output of one’s deeds and nature’s responses to them. A critical analysis of these two definitions may indicate that where religion can be a heart less observance of certain principles, spirituality is more about gaining inner peace and inspiration through nature, other humans and different phenomenon of life. Also, where religion can lead to association with different derivative social functions, spirituality can make one opting for isolation in order to find self-actualization and inner stability. 2. Spiritual assessment allows one to be aware of their stimulants that inspire them spiritually. There are various tools that can be used to asses one’s spiritual alliances. One of the most common tools that are used mainly in palliative, elderly and end-of-life care is FICA spiritual assessment tool. FICA stands for faith (or beliefs), importance and influence, community and address (Borneman 2). The tool has been designed to assist physicians and various healthcare professionals to consider spiritual needs of their patients in order to give a holistic treatment and also of themselves while providing services in their respective fields. This tool assesses how one perceives himself to be religious or spiritual (“FICA Spiritual Assessment Tool” n.p). Also, it defines the things that give meaning to the phenomenon of life and life after death. Second important component of this assessment is how one incorporates such religious or spiritual values into their life and how it influences their behaviour during illness and role of these beliefs in regaining health. Third part of assessment concerns the environment or community surrounding a patient. Furthermore, it defines how religion and spirituality provides support to a patient through community. Last component of this assessment includes healthcare professionals taking opinion of a patient as to how they can incorporate patient’s religious beliefs into their practice. FICA tool has specific importance in elderly and end-of-life care since it is usually followed by either long illness or a critical health condition which may cause mental stress and discomfort to the patient. Therefore, FICA tool allows healthcare professionals to reduce the impact of negative events through spiritual enforcement. Secondly, facing death can give rise to various spiritual questions regarding forgiveness, after life etc. Some of the major challenges involving FICA can be its time consuming nature since an assessment cannot be completed in a single visit. It also may not be useful in the cases where death is imminent. In order to overcome these challenges, participation of other family members can help in speedy assessment and it may also shed light on areas regarding which patient is unable to provide information. 3. A smaller definition may define Christianity as a religion that is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. There are various sects within this religion having different conceptions i.e. Roman Catholicism, eastern orthodoxy and Protestantism. However, they all consider Jesus Christ to be the son of God humankind. Jesus Christ is also accepted by other religions such as Islam and Judaism. The religion follows doctrines describes in Bible. Within biblical teachings, Old Testament is of fundamental value. The religion follows an institutional system where Church has the supreme power and members of clergy are considered as an intermediary between humankind and God. Although Old Testament does not address end-of-life issues specifically however it does gives directions from which conclusions can be drawn. Christianity considers humankind to be a reflection of God and therefore does not recognize death to be taken place in isolation. This is where the concept of family and medical support intervenes. All the individuals from family, community and medical care bring their own life experiences and beliefs that may have a positive influence on a person going through end-of-life experience (“End of Life” n.p). Such alliances may also have spiritual and psychological influence on family members and staff providing care to such patient. Works Cited Borneman, Tami. Assessment of Spirituality in Older Adults: FICA Spirituality History Tool. ConsultGeriRN. Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing, 2011. Web. 28 Sep. 2013. . “End of Life Issues: A Christian Perspective”. Society Religion and Technology Project. N.p, n.d. Web. 28 September, 2013. . “FICA Spiritual Assessment Tool.” The George Washington Institute for Spirituality & Health. The George Washington University, n.d. Web. 28 Sep. 2013. Hill, Peter C., Kenneth I. Pargament, Ralph W. Hood, Jr., Michael E. Mccullough, James P. Swyers, David B. Larson and Brian J. Zinnbauer. Conceptualizing Religion and Spirituality: Points of Commonality, Points of Departure. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour 30.1 (2000): 51-77. Zinnbauer, Brian J., Kenneth I. Pargament, Brenda Cole, Mark S. Rye, Eric M. Butter, Timothy G. Belavich, Kathleen M. Hipp, Allie B. Scott and Jill L. Kadar. Religion and Spirituality: Unfuzzying the Fuzzy. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 36.4: 549-564. Read More