ABSTRACT
Religious and spiritual (R/S) issues are important concerns for many people as they struggle to live lives that are meaningful and ethical. R/S concepts are frequently associated with personal strivings and emotional conflicts as they relate to the more intimate aspects of an individual’s mental life. There are several reasons for this. First, in many Western cultures, especially the US, many people consider themselves to be religious/spiritual. These concepts therefore provide a framework of meaning and an ethical structure for living. Second, whether religiously involved or not, R/S concepts and values permeate society. In the US, religious holidays like Christmas, Easter, Yom Kippur, Hanukkah, and Ramadan, to name a few, impact our calendar year, advertising, work and school schedules, movies, TV shows, and our cultural ethos. These themes impact and influence our meaning-making apparatus in both direct and indirect ways. Whether one is a religious believer or not, most people know something about Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, Jesus, and Allah. One would be hard pressed to live a life that is perfectly secular; R/S concepts seep into much of the fabric of our culture and influence our thinking.
