The topic of this article is controversial, although it shouldn’t be. Let us remember that the translation of “Psychology” (psiké-logos) is “to talk about the soul.”
It is not surprising that many sectors of Psychology avoid the topic: great efforts are made daily to give credibility to this science that is often maligned and mistreated due to pure ignorance.
No one can deny the enormous scientific burden behind the thousands of daily experiments and studies (yes, daily) that are published on various topics, with the aim of building serious and reliable knowledge. In fact, every self-respecting psychologist is nourished by all that knowledge that is continuously generated from laboratories and universities around the world.
Having said that: What place does a concept as ethereal as “spirituality” have in this world?
We have a history of highly respected authors who have been concerned about the subject: Viktor Frankl, Boris Cyrulnik…
Let us remember that spirituality, religions and different beliefs about the soul have been one of the main engines of human history And if we look outside our little Western bubble, we will see that most of humanity lives in some type of religious belief.
And not only that: beliefs often become a bulwark against the harshness of life: they provide comfort, encouragement, a sense of community and hope.
Although, in a false exercise of realism, we like to call these beliefs “childish thinking” or “magical thinking”, the truth is that this attitude is not scientific at all.
Because the truly scientific attitude, rules out rejecting something a priori without having studied it in depth And if it is rejected, it does not rule out the fact that later, with the advancement of science, that knowledge can be taken back as valid. In fact, today, in the world of Psychology and Psychiatry, there are many people who study the religious phenomenon from a scientific perspective.
Therefore, moving into the field of psychotherapy, the work of spirituality is something to take into account. I would even go so far as to say that it is necessary. Because over the years, I have been able to observe that there are people who are born with a “religious nature” and others who are not.
The psychological implications of spirituality
There are people who naturally assume that there is no type of transcendent life, God or religion and are able to live without a problem assuming that once the person dies everything is over.
It is a totally respectable way of being and does not imply any type of moral superiority or inferiority compared to people who do have that “spiritual nature” (or religious). You are not a better or worse person just because you have a spiritual belief or not
On the other hand, there are people who naturally have a sense of transcendence, that there is something beyond the material and that death is nothing more than a passage to another reality. And it is common to see how people with this type of mentality are indoctrinated by making them ashamed of their beliefs or their faith, trying to show them the absurdity of their attitude.
It is important that we understand that I am not talking about a specific religion or belief. I talk about a sense of spirituality.
Stigmatizing spirituality has a cost
It is very important that we become aware that, for a person with this sense of transcendence, if made to renounce the spiritual dimension of reality, the world turns gray sad, dark and meaningless.
It is common for many people to overcome very severe psychological crises by returning to their religious or spiritual essence. When they do so, in the therapy process, they tend to always repeat the same phrase: “I have returned home.”
It is impossible for a person without that “religious” nature to understand someone who does have it and vice versa. Actually, it’s not necessary either.
But let’s remember that The function of psychotherapy is to create a framework of security where the person can express their authentic nature (whatever it may be) and can acquire the means to make their life the best possible.
Therefore, from a perspective very far removed from proselytism (an honest psychologist has not the slightest interest in his client having one belief or another), the time is coming to make room for spirituality in the psychotherapeutic process and contemplate both the belief and non-belief naturally.
There is a long road ahead, since, for various reasons, We still have a hard time talking about our spiritual beliefs But being able to write about it with an open attitude is a good first step.
