The Spirituality Revolution: The Emergence of Contemporary Spirituality

by David J. Tacey

The spiritual life is no longer a specialist concern, restricted to those who belong to religious traditions. The spirituality revolution is a spontaneous movement in society, a significant new interest in the reality of spirituality and its healing effects on life, health, community and well being.

The Spirituality The Emergence of Contemporary Spirituality recognises that we have outgrown the ideals and values of previous times and reveals an image of the spiritual situation of our era. Recent discoveries in physics, biology, psychology and ecology have begun to restore status to previously discredited spiritual visions of reality and this book illustrates the ways in which we might uncover a universal spiritual wisdom that could transform our splintered world. Topics explored include the current state of the Western experience of spirit, our need for spiritual guidance when we cannot turn to organised religion in their traditional forms, and the creative potentials of spirit in education, personal experience, contemporary philosophy and popular feeling for the environment.

The Spirituality Revolution addresses a major social issue which requires immediate attention if we are to creatively respond to spiralling outbreaks of depression, suicide, addiction and psychological suffering. It is a much-needed contribution to the field, of great interest to analytical psychologists, counsellors, educators and social workers, and to all those interested in spirituality and the future of religion.

David Tacey is Associate Professor in Psychoanalytic Studies and Reader in Arts and Critical Enquiry at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. He is the author of six books on spirituality, psychology and culture, including Jung and the New Age and Remaking Men .

Genres: Spirituality

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Douglas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tacey offers a good analysis of the emergence and popularization of spirituality and the accompanying disinterest in institutionalized religion (meaning primarily, the "Christian" form thereof). He notes that the interest in spirituality is more an interest in the experiential "content" rather than the "form" it takes. This latter is construed as the "religion" element that is largely rejected. In the same book, however, he argues that this rejection of form is largely confined to the modern and Western forms because, as he suggests from his expansive research of youth and their spiritual quests, there is amazing interest in retrieving ancient forms of spirituality. Strangely enough, he doesn't deal with the question whether it is even possible to have spiritual content without form, or whether the distinction of form and content is even applicable to spirituality.

[Gene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good presentation of a world-wide movement especially among the young for a contemporary spirituality that is not necessarily connected to any one established religion. Author draws on many insights from his students in his Spiritualty course at a university in Australia. Challenging and hopeful.

[Rob Markley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rubbish! Enough said

[Sharon Archer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of strings of thoughts but the overwhelming one...where organized religion has turned off some only to be caught up in the secular consumption mentality that always disappoints...there is a deep spiritual revolution that stresses our connections to the earth and people. And this author hopes that religion embraces that.