Religion and Spirituality in Psychotherapy An Individual Psychology Perspective
The study and integration of religion is an important aspect of psychology. Religion and spirituality are relevant to our understanding of individuals as they constitute an important aspect of most people's lives. The majority of people in North America profess a belief in a higher power. In fact, 95 percent of adults in the United States say they believe in God. Most adults also claim a religious affiliation (94 percent) and report that religion is very or fairly important in their lives (85 percent). Seventy percent of adults in the U.S. report membership in a church, synagogue, or mosque, and 40 percent say they attend religious services on a regular basis (Gallup and Lindsay, 1999). Another important factor that mental health professionals should pay attention to is the apparent benefits of religious involvement. A significant development in the field of psychology of religion is the increase in research linking spirituality and religiosity to mental health. Many studies have found positive correlations between religious involvement and improved mental health outcomes. The North American landscape is host to all the major world religions and to many smaller religious groups. Throughout the United States and Canada there are approximately 250 million Christians. Of these, there are about 74 million Roman Catholics, 95 million Protestants, and 6 million Orthodox Christians. There are about 40 million people who belong to other Christian groups. In addition, North America is home to almost 6 million Jews, over 1 million Hindus, 2 million Buddhists, and 2 to 4 million Muslims (Barrett & Johnson, 1998; Pew, 2008). The religious diversity within these religious groups is also significant. For example, the Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches (Bedell, 1997) listed over 160 different denominations throughout North America, most of which were Christian. The present diversity observed in North America is in part a result of the effects of higher education, media, world consciousness, and most important, immigration (Richards & Bergin, 2006b). People from a variety of ethnic and religious backgrounds, including Buddhists, Muslims, and Hindus, are immigrating to United States and Canada, a trend that is very likely to continue. These various religions and the numerous denominations represent tremendous diversity in terms of customs, cultural and religious beliefs, myths, rituals, worship, and healing traditions. Developing knowledge about these religions and their practices is the first step in developing more trust and credibility with people of various faiths.
In the 1960s, Mosak and Dreikurs (1977/1967) began exploring issues of faith and the meaning of life. The result was a series of publications addressing the five life tasks, with the last article addressing the spiritual. In their article, Mosak and Dreikurs argued that Adler alluded to the spiritual task on several occasions, although he never specifically mentioned it. They argued that issues of God, faith, and meaning are important to psychology and should be considered a life task that each of us has to contend with.
We are all faced with the question of whether or not there is a God. For those who deny the existence of God, questions about the meaning of life still remain. On the other hand, people of faith have to ask themselves what the nature of their God is. Is there only one God? What is our relationship with God like? Is there life after death? What is considered sinful? How do we communicate with God? Do we love God, or fear him? These and other questions are the ones included in the fifth life task. In addition to being called the spiritual task, it has also been referred to as the existential, the search for meaning, and the metaphysical task. Mosak and Dreikurs (1977/1967) discussed five aspects of the spiritual task and addressed the various challenges each of us is faced with.
The first aspect of the spiritual task involves the person's relationship to God. If we believe there is a God, what is the nature of that God? How and when do we call upon him? Do we pray? If so, do we pray regularly? Is God someone we visit only in church? For atheists, do they substitute for a belief in God? If so, what do they substitute with? And finally, how do we relate to other people who may or may not agree with our beliefs? Are we tolerant of them? Do we pity them? Do we attempt to convert them? All of these questions are part of what we have to contend with, consciously or unconsciously. Given the prevalence of religion in our culture, the issue of God is one we frequently encounter, and so we are confronted with the questions of God and our relationship to him.
The second aspect involves what the individual does about religion. Do we embrace religion and participate in religious practices with a sense of having a relationship with God, or do we identify with religion without a significant connection to God? Does religion imply that we have to go to church regularly? To what extent do we have to be involved in church activities and religious rituals? Does our religion involve missionary work? How do we define the goals of our religion? Is God there to protect us, or is it our job to serve him?
The third aspect of the spiritual task concerns our perceptions of our place in the universe. Each of us develops a theory of human nature, an image of man, that guides us toward a relationship with ourselves and others. Are we determined, or do we possess free will? Are we created in God's image? Are we basically good, basically bad, or burdened by original sin?
The fourth aspect involves questions of immortality and the existence of an afterlife. Questions about the nature of our souls, hell, damnation, and salvation become relevant here. If salvation is possible, what is required for its achievement? How do we avoid damnation? What behaviors will lead someone to be damned to hell? If there is no afterlife, how do we make our mark on this world? What happens when we die? Should we fear death?
Finally, the last aspect of the spiritual task deals with the meaning of life. Does life have inherent meaning, or does it possess whatever meaning we give it? This task overlaps the other life tasks, such as work, love, and friendship. For example, how much meaning do we place on our occupation, on our relationship with friends and family, and on our spouses? For Adler, life had no inherent meaning. He believed we create our own meaning of life. For Adlerians, any meaning bestowed on life that moves the individual in the direction of connecting with and caring for the welfare of others is considered a useful and worthwhile interpretation of the meaning of life.
Adler believed that the meaning of life was serving mankind and developing a sense of community between people (Adler 1958/1931). Given that humans are socially embedded, the ultimate aspect of the final goal involves finding a place and sense of belonging in the community -- of which religion plays a central role. Adler saw religion as helping to bind people closely to each other through worship and other religious practices. Thus, religion serves to further communal life and contribute to the survival of the individual and the larger group.
Christianity emerged as a religious movement in the Greco-Roman area shortly after the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth around 30 CE. Jesus's followers set out to preach his message of loving God and one's neighbor. Over the next several centuries, Christianity grew into what is today the largest religion in the world, with nearly two billion followers.
Christianity is a monotheistic religion, centered on faith in one God. Although Christians believe in the Trinity, that there are three equal persons in God -- the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit -- they believe that the divine nature of God is one. Christians believe that God became incarnate -- fully human -- in Jesus of Nazareth.
The story of Jesus of Nazareth is preserved mainly in the New Testament of the Bible. The gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John tell the story of Jesus's birth, life, death, and resurrection. The gospels are intended as a declaration about the "Kingdom of God" and about Jesus as Son of
God and savior of civilization (Hale, 2003). Christians believe that Jesus was begotten by the Holy Spirit, and conceived by a virgin named Mary.
Jesus is believed to have been born during the reign of Herod the Great, who ruled Judea from 37-4 BCE (Hale, 2003). The Bible, sometimes called "scripture," is the holiest text in Christianity. The word Bible means "book," and Christians believe it is the book of God's words to mankind. The Bible consists of 66 books written by many different authors at different times in history. However, Christians believe that its authors were guided by God, so that everything they wrote was God's will.
Judaism, Christianity, and Individual Psychology have much in common in terms of how they understand human nature. Because Christianity grew out of Judaism, the two religions share a rich tradition documented in the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament), and philosophical principles such as holism, freedom and responsibility, teleology, equality, and democracy are emphasized in both religions (Manaster, 2004). However, Adlerians have written little on the issue of the Jewish faith and Adler's theories. This may be because of the significant agreement between Christianity and Judaism, and that most authors have chosen to focus on Christianity.
Hinduism is an exceptionally diverse religion found primarily in India, where about 80 percent of the population is Hindu. There are hundreds of various divisions of the Hindu religion, depending on language and geography, caste, and community. These vast differences within the tradition make it very difficult to define exactly what Hinduism is. With a four-thousand-year history, Hinduism has no specific creed or teacher that is seen as central to the religion. There is no specific theological system, nor is there a single system of morality. And although there are several holy texts, there is no single holy book similar to the Christian Bible or the Muslim Koran.
Defining Hinduism is no easy task. In fact there is no specific definition that encapsulates the diversity found within the religion. One might say that a Hindu is someone who adheres to or worships the gods Vishnu or Shiva, or the goddess Shakti, or their incarnations, spouses, or offspring. But even this definition is not sufficient to describe a religion as complex as Hinduism. Narayanan (2003) points out that regional traditions and practices are often more important to Hindus than any overarching Hindu concept. Consequently, sometimes it may be appropriate to talk about various Hindu customs and beliefs and at other times to talk of a specific Hindu tradition. Yet despite these variations in practice and worship, there are central tenets that unify Hinduism as a religion. The core belief in Hinduism is the belief in Brahman -- the Supreme Being. Brahman is an infinite universal life force that cannot be described. Suffice to say that Hindus view Brahman as encompassing existence. Hindus also believe in the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth (samsara), and that the highest goal for any individual is to achieve liberation of the soul from the continuous cycle of life and death. The paths to liberation are also a central tenet of Hinduism.
With over one billion followers worldwide, Islam is the world's fastest growing religion. Islam is a monotheistic religion that originated in what is now Saudi Arabia and later expanded along trade routes to Asia and Africa. Today, Indonesia is the country with the most Muslims, with over 196 million (Lippman, 2002). Countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Mali, Afghanistan, Malaysia, Albania, Iran, Iraq, and Syria have a Muslim majority. But Islam is also a growing religion in North America. The number of Muslims in the United States and Canada is somewhat uncertain, but it appears to range between 4 million (Barrett & Johnson, 1998) and 6 million (Power, 1998).