1st Edition

Death and Spirituality

By Kenneth Doka, John Morgan Copyright 1993

    An elderly Chinese immigrant, hospitalized with terminal disease, requests to burn incense. A 30-year-old Roman Catholic gay male, dying of AIDS, is consumed by deepening moral guilt, troubled by beliefs he thought he abandoned years ago. A mother whose teenage son died of an aneurism is angry at God over his death yet fearful of expressing that anger lest He 'punish her again.' A young widower seemingly has difficulty expressing grief believing it to be a sign of weak faith. All of these examples illustrate the kinds of issues that clinicians and counselors constantly encounter. For although North American society has long been characterized as secular, this does not deny the potency of spiritual concerns and religious values on the individual level. Polls affirm that vast majorities of North Americans both believe in God and consider religion important in their lives. This is clearly evident when one faces the crisis of dying or bereavement. For, one of the strengths of belief is that it provides support and succor at a time when secular explanations are largely silent. For these reasons, educators and clinicians have long recognized the significance that religious and spiritual themes have in counseling with the dying and bereaved. Yet, in cultures as religiously diverse as the U.S. and Canada, caregivers and educators may feel inadequate to the task. Death and Spirituality addresses this need. Specifically it seeks to reach two, perhaps overlapping, audiences. First, it considers the needs death-related counselors and educators, seeking to provide them with both a sense of the norm of religious tradition and the religious and spiritual issues that might arise in illness and bereavement, as well as suitable interventions, approaches, and resources that might be useful in assisting clients in examining and resolving such issues. The book also speaks to the complementary needs of clergy who also may wish to assist parishioners and others as they face the spiritual and psychological crisis of dying and grief.

    Acknowledgments

    PART I: INTRODUCTION
     The Existential Quest for Meaning John D. Morgan

     Assumptions and Principles of Spiritual Care The Spiritual Care Work Group of the International Work Group on Death, Dying and Bereavement

     PART II: PERSPECTIVES ON DEATH
     Death in Jewish Thought  Earl A. Grollman

     A Roman Catholic View of Death Edward Jeremy Miller

     Spirituality, Protestantism, and Death Dennis Klass

     Death: Eastern Perspectives Dennis Ryan

     Spiritual Issues in Death and Dying for Those Who Do Not Have Conventional Religious Belief Paul E. Irion

     Perspectives on Death in the African-American Community David K. Meagher and Craig P. Bell

    PART III: SPIRITUAL CONCERNS IN COUNSELING THE DYING
     A Clinical Paradigm for Exploring Spiritual Concerns Patrice O'Connor

     The Spiritual Needs of the Dying Kenneth J. Doka

     Spiritualities of Suffering and Grief Nathan R. Kollar

     Spiritual Perspectives on Suffering the Pain of Death Jeffrey Kauffman

     Spiritual Care in Hospice Dorothy C. H. Ley

    PART IV: SPIRITUAL ISSUES IN BEREAVEMENT
     The Spiritual Crisis of Bereavement Kenneth J. Doka

     Bereavement and the Sacred Art of Spiritual Care Alice Cullinan

     Rituals, Beliefs, and Grief Howard C. Raether

     Spirituality and Suicide David Echelbarger

     Spiritual Care of the Traumatized: A Necessary Component Alice Cullinan

     No More Rosebuds: A Perspective on Perinatal Death, Funerals, and Pastoral Care Jane Nichols and Kenneth J. Doka

     AIDS and Bereavement: Special Issues in Spiritual Counseling Ben Wolfe

    PART V: DEATH AND THE HUMAN SPIRIT
     Religious Values in Death Education Robert G. Stevenson

     The Dark Night of the Spirit: Grief Following a Loss in Religious Identity Dorothy M. Barra, Erica S. Carlson, Mark Maize, Wendy I. Murphy, Betsy W. O'Neal, Rhonda E. Sarver and Ellen S. Zinner

     Ethical and Spiritual Concerns: Sexuality and Spirituality "A Wholistic Approach for the Living-Dying Client and the Partner" Jeanne M. Harper Joking with Death Robert E. Neale

    PART VI: RESOURCES
     Shuffling toward Jerusalem: An Annotated Bibliography of Books on Religion and Thanatology Roberta Halporn Spirituality and Death Audiovisuals Richard A. Pacholski

     Jimmy Died, Call the Church Janet Bouman

     Conclusion

     Contributors

     Index

    Biography

    Kenneth Doka, John Morgan