Spiritual Revolution Together With The ‘Subjective Turn’

A summary of;
Heelas, P., Woodhead, L., Seel, B., Szerszynski, B., & Tusting, K. (2005). The Spiritual Revolution: Why organized religious belief is giving way to spirituality. Blackwell Publishing: Oxford.

The authors of this majority fence that patch organized religious belief seems to live on inwards decline, spirituality seems to live on on the rise; too that this tin live on attributed to what they telephone outcry upwards the ‘subjective turn’: “It is a plow away from life lived inwards damage of external or ‘objective’ roles, duties too obligations, too a plow towards a life lived past times reference to one’s ain subjective experiences (relational every bit much every bit individualistic)”(2). The authors work somewhat confusing terminology: it is a “turn away from ‘life-as’ (life lived every bit a dutiful wife, father, husband, potent leader, self-made human being etc.) to ‘subjective-life’ (life lived inwards deep connectedness amongst the unique experiences of my self-in-relation)” (3). The latter includes all those things that laissez passer on within us (“states of consciousness, states of mind, memories, emotions, passions, sensations, bodily experiences, dreams, feelings, inner consciences, too sentiments” (3)). So the departure inwards modern civilisation is that increasingly, this inner experience, our subjectivities, “become a, if non the, unique root of significance, pregnant too authority” (3-4).

In the words of ane interviewee, “Religion asks you lot to larn from the experience of others. Spirituality urges you lot to seek your own” (13?). This is really much inwards line of piece of work amongst what Szerszynski wrote near amongst regards to the modern imperative to choose, for self-realization. People search for answers within, rather than turning to exterior sources; they are taking to a greater extent than responsibleness for diverse aspects of their lives (125): “‘Needing to become what ane is is the characteristic of modern living’ (p. 32). And inwards the words of Gordon Allport (1962), what matters is ‘the right of every private to travel out his ain philosophy of life to detect his personal niche inwards creation, every bit best he can. His liberty to practise then volition live on greater if he sees clearly the forces of civilisation too conformity that invite him to live on content amongst a but second-hand too thence for him, amongst an young religion’ (pp. vii-viii; our emphases)” (125). (I notice a link betwixt this too Corus's The Journey - near beingness a procedure of becoming... to a greater extent than on Corus at to a greater extent than or less other point.)

The authors explicate further: “Most generally, the subjective plow involves the plow to what Dick Houtman too Peter Mascini (2002) telephone outcry upwards ‘moral individualism’ – namely ‘the granting of a moral primacy to private liberty’ (p. 459). The mortal serves every bit the locus of moral authority, amongst value beingness attached to staying truthful to oneself rather than succumbing to exterior agency” (95). The value of this is that spirituality enables “many participants to explore to a greater extent than deeply what they already know to live on the illustration – that they accept to a greater extent than to offer, both amongst regard to themselves too to others – than is allowed seem inwards everyday, relational too other, spheres of life (105).

The authors position the evolution of ‘the ethic of subjectivity’: “which is evident inwards the value attached to self-expression too fulfillment; to doing ‘what feels right’, ‘following your heart’, ‘being truthful to yourself’, cultivating ‘emotional intelligence’ too respecting other people’s feelings” (80). In line of piece of work amongst this, to a greater extent than or less other interviewee said that “what was helpful inwards the spiritual life was to follow ‘whatever seems heart-centred to you” (13?). In damage of my PhD, if I desire the foundation of my inquiry to live on a spiritual process, it is of import that I follow my pump to a degree; too to this end, it volition live on of import to engage inwards inquiry through design, i.e. creating every bit I am inspired.

To brand their case, the authors did a corking bargain of interviews too surveying of people inwards the Lake District. Their findings “unequivocally demonstrates growth” of a belief inwards the spiritual from 1970 to forthwith (45). Here are to a greater extent than or less telling statistics:

In reply to the query ‘Do you lot believe inwards whatsoever of the following?’ the greatest position out of respondents (82.4 per cent) grip that ‘some course of written report of spirit or life strength pervades all that lives’, amongst 73 per cent expressing belief inwards ‘subtle unloose energy (or unloose energy channels) inwards the body’. Presented amongst a arrive at of options too asked to select the contestation which best describes their ‘core beliefs near spirituality’ forty per cent of respondents equate spirituality amongst ‘love’ or beingness ‘a caring too decent person’, 34 per cent amongst ‘being inwards deport on amongst subtle energies’, ‘healing oneself too others’ or ‘living life to the full’. Spirituality, it appears, belongs to life-itself (‘subtle unloose energy inwards the body’ which serves to continue us alive) too subjective-life (‘love’, ‘caring’). It seems that spirit/energy/spirituality is understood to dwell within the lives of participants, an interpretation that is supported past times the finding that really few associate spirituality amongst a transcendental, over-and-above-the-self, external root of significance (25).

This is also interesting:
1 “Holistic milieu, subjective-life spirituality – which pays most attending to the tillage of unique subjectivities – tends to live on faring best.
2 Religions of experiential humanity too experiential departure – which address unique subjectivities whilst placing them within a life-as frame of reference – tends to live on faring relatively well.
3 Religions of departure – which pay to a greater extent than or less attending to unique subjectivities whilst emphasizing life-as ‘oughts’ – tend to live on faring relatively badly.
4 Religions of humanity – which pay to the lowest degree attending to unique subjectivities – tend to live on faring worst” (75).

Here’s the conclusion:

Some hundred years ago, Durkheim drew a distinction betwixt ‘a organized religious belief handed downwardly past times tradition’ too ‘a free, private, optional religion, fashioned according to one’s ain needs too understanding’ (cited inwards Pickering, 1975, p. 96). Writing at much the same time, William James, Simmel, Troeltsch too others drew similar distinctions. They likewise idea that spiritualities of life were a growing force, then they would non live on surprised past times the (148) extent to which the spiritual revolution has developed since their time, or near our predictions. Arguing that the sacred gravitates towards ultimate value to affirm, enhance, validate too limited that value, they all reflected on the significance that was coming to live on placed on subjective-life. As Simmel (1997) position it then vividly, ‘This emotional reality – which nosotros tin solely telephone outcry upwards life – makes itself increasingly felt inwards its formless strength… claiming inalienable rights every bit the truthful pregnant or value of our existence’ (p. 24). And every bit it progresses, the plow to subjective life draws the sacred within (149).