Spirituality and Well-Being: Exploring the Connection

Contributed by Stephen Wickman, St. Thomas Episcopal, McLean

More than anything else, spirituality is a quest to find one’s authentic self, to review and interpret life events and develop a sense of personal integrity; and it should not be confused with religion, which remains nevertheless an important path for many.

That was the consensus of a February 4 webinar presented by the Rev. Dr. Al Fuertes of George Mason University’s School of Integrative Studies, which joined Tysons Interfaith to explore the connection between spirituality and well-being. Most heartening was Dr. Fuertes’s report that his students and nearly two-thirds of college students polled nationwide long to discuss things that matter to them on the personal level, things that are meaningful and purposeful and in which they can find beauty and meaning.

People who successfully perform this kind of soul-searching and synthesis develop the best potential to perceive and enjoy a good quality of life.  Such meaning-making involves being mindful about our emotions, thoughts, and surroundings, a kind of mindfulness that many researchers and practitioners also recommend for achieving good health outcomes, like stress reduction.

Although well-being is not just the absence of disease or illness but a complex combination of a physical, mental, emotional, and social factors, once we are able to find our authentic vocation, our true self, or what some call our “sacred face,” we can achieve a sense of purpose that has been linked to a lower risk of mortality. Other studies have found out that prayer or healing ceremonies can have positive outcomes on alleviating symptoms and improving quality of life.  And, arguably, achieving this kind of personal well-being can help bring peace to the broader community.

We hope to explore more of these applied approaches to spirituality in future Oneness of Humanity programs. Please join us.

This blog post is the expressed opinion of its writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Tysons Interfaith or its members.