Chapter 3

My Spiritual Self: The Process of Self-Discovery

Overview

This chapter presents the concepts of religiosity and spirituality at a general level and
in the context of the Filipino culture. The first section talks about the concepts of
religiosity and spirituality and their similaritiesand differences. The second deals with
religiosity and spirituality in the Filipino context. The third and last section helps
individuals assess themselves in terms of the level of their religiosity and spirituality.

Objectives

At the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

1. Compare and contrast the concepts of religion and spirituality.
2. Illustrate religiosity and spirituality in the Filipino context.
3. Assess oneself in terms of one’s religiosity and spirituality.

Religion and Spirituality

People are often confused on how to describe themselves or others in terms of religiosity
and spirituality. Is a religious person a spiritual person? Is a spiritual person a religious person?
Can a person be both religious and spiritual? With these questions, it is important for one to be
familiar with the concepts of religion and spirituality, which are both similar and different.

Things to Ponder

In the field of psychology, religion was first defined as both personal and
institutional (James, 1902). Even so, psychologists do not put so much effort in
studying religion and spirituality. It is only in the 20th century that the study of
religion and spirituality is slowly getting its pace.

Defining religion is a daunting task. Although many people see religion as related to faith
in God, scholars go beyond such conceptualization. Knowing some definitions can help deepen
one’s understanding of religion.
The term religion refers to the set of religious beliefs, whereas the term religiosity is a
description of how religious an individual is.Religion comes from the Latin word religio, which
denotes a connection between man and a supreme being. The early conceptualization of the term
is divided it into two orientations, namely, intrinsic religious orientation and extrinsic religious
orientation (Allport, 1966). In intrinsic religious orientation, people perceive religion as the
source of truth. On the other hand, extrinsic religious orientation sees religion as a means to
connect with other religious individuals for purposes of social support. The quest orientation,
another religious orientation, refers to an individual’s experience of one’s search for the meaning
of one’s faith (Batson, 1976).
Wulff(1997) attempted to consolidate the various definitions
of religion and suggested that, in its simplest sense, religion refers
to acknowledging the power of a higher being through rituals and
other religious practices. Thus, religion is formed through a
community with members having the same beliefs and practices
towards recognizing a higher being (Beit‐Hallahmi & Argyle,
1975).

Things to Ponder

Religion is seen as a source of the transformation of both cooperation and conflict

in our society. The book of Norenzayan(Norenzayan, 2013) can provide one with
more interesting details about it.

Spirituality is seen as the contemporary counterpart of religion. It sees faith to a higher

being not confined in the sacred places and group rituals, but rather experienced at a more
personal and private level (Pargament, The Psychology of Religion and Spirituality? Yes and
No, 2009). Yet, one has to be careful about seeing religion and spirituality as different. Humans
through history recognize the power of a higher being, and this recognition is present in both
religion and spirituality. However, the recognition of the higher being may be experienced at a
different level in spirituality.
Spirituality is derived from the Latin word spiritulis or life. Itis viewed as an experience
beyond self-consciousness (LaPierre, 1994). Also, it refers to the connection between a person
and the nature (Spilka, 1993). Spirituality, in general, is the personal experience with the higher
being (Zinnbauer, et al., 1997).

Things to Ponder
It has been seen that Buddhism is the closest reflection of spirituality. However,
spirituality is experienced not only in Buddhism but also in other religions. In the
book of Mitchell (1991), the spiritual experiences of individuals in Buddhism and
Christianity are thoroughly discussed and its connections to both personal and social
transformation.
 Over the years, the religion and spirituality are conceptualized
as two separate constructs. However, they are not completely different.
A religious person can be spiritual, and vice versa. Also, a person can
either be religious or spiritual. Whatever the case is, both religion and
spirituality reflect the recognition of a higher being.

Things to Ponder
In the Indian movie PK starringAamir Khan, the main character goes to different
religious groups and observes their religious and/or spiritual practices. This fun movie
shows that religion may exist without spirituality and that spirituality may exist
without religion.

Despite the arguments and misconceptions about religion and spirituality, both a religious
person and a spiritual person engage in practices that serve to recognize the higher being. Hill
and colleagues (2000) view religionas a big basin of spirituality; that is, both religion and
spirituality are the search for the sacred. In religion, the search is done with others sharing the
same practices. In terms of spirituality, the search is more personal and private. If a spiritual
person recognizes the power of a higher being with others sharing the same beliefs and practices,
then itis now being done in the religious context.

The Profile of a Religious and Spiritual Filipino

Filipinos are generally religious (Abad,

2001). This can be seen in their daily activities and
interactions. From childhood to adulthood, the
Filipino family environment and in its general social
environment, one can observe religion-related
feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. In fact, being
maka-Diyosis salient in the Filipino value system,
which is expressed both in one’s self and with others
(Clemente, et al., 2008).

Opinion among many Filipinos is that youth nowadays are not religious, but empirical
studies suggest otherwise. The National Filipino Catholic Youth Study 2014 found that even
though the youth do not usually participate in church activities, such as attending Mass and
praying the rosary with others, they still pray, learn more about their faith and God, and practice
their faith in a more personal level (Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines – Episcopal
Commission on Youth & Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines, 2014). This
suggests that Filipino youth are still religious but somehow not in public practices.
 Things to Ponder
Although younger generation Filipinos see themselves and are seen by the older
generation as not religious and/or spiritual, empirical studies found otherwise. Findings
of the National Filipino Catholic Youth Study 2014 suggest that the level of religiosity
and spirituality is high but are expressed in a more private and personal way.

What is more interesting is that Filipinos perceive religion and spirituality as similar
concepts. A Filipino considers a religious person to be spiritual,and vice versa. In an interview of
Filipinos from different religions, they view religion and spirituality as overlapping constructs
(Ocampo, Mansukhani, Mangrobang, & Juan, 2013). Finally, the association between religion
and spirituality among Filipino youth is strong (Batara, 2015). Thus, there are instances that
Filipinos most likely believe that they are both religious and spiritual.

The Process of Discovering the Spiritual Self

Assess yourself in terms of religiosity and spirituality. For religiosity, answer the
Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS-15) (Huber & Huber, 2012). For spirituality, answer Daily
Spiritual Experience Scale (DSES) (Underwood & Teresi, 2002). Both measures are available
online.
Both CRS-15 and DSES can be scoredeasily. In DSES, items 1 to 15 are scoredby getting
the sum of their responses, and item 16 is scored separately. In CRS-15, all items are scored in a
5-point Likert scale except for items 3 and 4 wherein theyneed to be recoded into a 5-point
scale.On item 3 the responses “more than once a week” and “once a week” are recoded as 5,
“one or three times a month” as 4, “a few times a year” as 3, “less often” as 2, and “never” as 1.
On item 4 responses “several times a day” and “once a day” are recoded as 5, “more than once a
week” as 4, “once a week” and “one or three times a month” as 3, “a few times a year” and “less
often” as 2, and “never” as 1.
Five dimensions of religion, namely, knowledge, ideology, private practice, public
practice, religious experience, are being measured by CRS-15. Aside from the overall score for
religiosity, there are scores for each dimension. Items 1, 6, and 11 measure intellectual
dimension. Items 2, 7, and 12 pertain to ideology. Items 3, 8, and 13 point to public practice.
Items 4, 9, and 14 reflect private practice. Items 5, 10, and 15 are under religious experience.
Each dimension is scored by getting its mean, and the overall religiosity score is scored by
getting the mean of the responses to the entire 15 items.
The higher the total score is, the more religious or spiritual a person is. After answering
and scoring, interpret your scores.

Things to Ponder
How can you make use of the knowledge of your level of religiosity and
spirituality? Using short bond paper, create a two-page reflective journal. Narrate
your religious and spiritual experiences and tell how they influence your daily
life.
 Being in touch and knowing one’s religious and/or spiritual self can facilitate one’s
understanding of who one is. Among other selves, your religious and/or spiritual self is a
transcendent self—a self that goes beyond your own.
Spirituality and religious involvement have an impact on one’s meaning in life and well-
being (Emmons, 2005; Ivtzan, Chan, Gardner, &Prashar, 2013).Yet, the same authors suggested
that mere participation in the religious activities without such recognition of a higher being and
the transcendental experience may not provide meaning in one’s life.Thus, participating in
religious activities without the appropriate reasons and connection with God or a higher being
may not help one in experiencing well-being and attaining meaning in life.

Things to Ponder
Going beyondone’s consciousness and towards transcendence is both a
way of self-reflection and a way toward pondering about one’s life. In Viktor
Frankl’slogotherapy, finding meaning in one’s life can be a source of happiness
and satisfaction. One’s religious and/or spiritual self can be a source for
discovering one’s meaning in life.

Being in a religious community provides immense social

support, especially in times of distress such as sickness (Pargament,
1997) and recovery from drug abuse (Moreira-Almeida, Neto, L., &
Koenig, 2006). In terms of spirituality, the experience is more
personal and thus can be facilitative of a more in-depth
understanding of oneself. Finally, the value one gives to religion
and spirituality contributes to one’s happiness and well-being in general through one’s
experience of the emotions of awe, gratitude, love, and peace (Van Cappellen, Toth-Gauthier,
Saroglou, & Fredrickson, 2016). Thus, one’s religious and spiritual experiences lead one to feel
at peace and loved as well as be in awe and thankful. These emotions, in turn, help one to be
more in touch with life.
 Exercise

Do the following:
1. Search three scholarly definitions of religion and spirituality.
2. Create a 5 × 5 table on a piece of paper with headings like the ones below.
Definition of Remarks Definition of Remarks Filipino
Religion Spirituality Perception

3. Write the definitions of religion and spirituality in the first and third columns. See the
examples below.
Definition of religion: It is acknowledging the power of a higher being through rituals and
other religious practices.
Definition of spirituality: It is faith to a higher being that is not confined in the sacred places
and group rituals, but experienced at a more personal and private level.
4. Ask family members, friends, or other people about each definition if they agree or disagree
with it. Write their responses in the remarks columns. They can give their own definitions of
religion and spirituality as responses. See the examples below.
Person: Mother
Remarks for the definition of religion: My mother agrees that practicing religion is shared
with people who share the same religious beliefs.
 Remarks for the definition of spirituality:My mother believes that spirituality is a personal
experience. However, she argued that spirituality can still be experienced at a personal level
even when she is attending the Mass.
5. Ask the same people in Awhether they consider themselves as either religious or spiritual, or
both or neither. Write their responses in the fifth column. Below is a sample response.
My mother believes that she is religious because she regularly attends religious activities.
Also, she sees herself as a spiritual person because she prays to God in her own time.