A modern definition of spirituality is that it exists whenever we struggle with the issue of how our lives fit into the greater scheme of things. This is true even if our questions never give way to specific answers or give rise to specific practices such as prayer or meditation. We encounter spiritual issues every time we wonder where the universe comes from, why we are here, or what happens when we die. We also become spiritual when we are moved by values such as beauty, love, or creativity that seem to reveal a meaning or power beyond our visible world. An idea or practice is “spiritual” when it informs our personal desire to establish a felt-relationship with the deepest meanings or powers governing life.

For some, spirituality is about participating in organized religion: going to church, synagogue, or other organized setting. For others, it’s more personal. Some people get in touch with their spiritual side through private prayer, yoga, meditation, quiet reflection, or even long walks. Spiritual experiences include a connectedness: with a larger reality, yielding a more complete self; with others in our human community; with nature and the cosmos; or with a divine realm. Spirituality is often experienced as a source of inspiration or orientation in life. It can encompass a belief in immaterial realities or experiences of a transcendent nature of the world.