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Religious Studies & Theology vocabulary · Mysticism and Spirituality

Spirituality

Meaning in religious studies & theology, with examples

/ˌspɪrɪtʃuˈæləti/nounCore term

In religious studies & theology, spirituality means: A person's inner life and search for meaning, connection or the sacred, either within a religious tradition or outside organized religion.

In Turkish: maneviyat, spiritüalite, ruhanilik

How it is used

Used for the inner side of a tradition (Christian spirituality, Islamic spirituality) and, in sociology, for personal belief outside institutions. The phrase 'spiritual but not religious' describes people who reject organized religion but keep spiritual practices.

Example sentences

  1. Surveys show interest in spirituality growing even as attendance at services falls.

  2. The course on Islamic spirituality reads al-Ghazali alongside later Sufi authors.

Common collocations

  • Christian spirituality
  • Islamic spirituality
  • personal spirituality
  • spiritual but not religious
  • spiritual practice
  • mysticismThe pursuit of direct, personal experience of God or ultimate reality, often through prayer, contemplation and spiritual discipline, found in many religious traditions.
  • meditationA practice of training attention and awareness, for example by focusing on the breath, a word or an image, used in many religions for spiritual growth.
  • SufismThe mystical tradition of Islam, which seeks closeness to God through love, remembrance of God (dhikr), spiritual discipline and the guidance of a master.
  • religionA system of beliefs, practices, values and communities that relates people to what they regard as sacred, divine or ultimately real.

More terms: Mysticism and Spirituality

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