Meaning and Purpose in Postsecular Societies: What does Religion Add?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14422/pen.v80.i309.y2024.009Keywords:
purpose, meaning, religion, identity, purpose developmentAbstract
This text looks at two central aspects or components of personal identity —meaning and purpose, as interrelated, but distinct, constructs— in order to analyse how religions influence them. From an interdisciplinary perspective that builds on the contributions of the psychology of religion, education and philosophy, both concepts —meaning and purpose— are first presented, and their components or constitutive parts are analytically examined in order to shed some light on their relationship and distinctiveness. Secondly, the relationship that religion has with both of them is addressed, according to recent empirical findings. Finally, a possible way to strengthen the contribution that religious institutions, as key educational actors, make to meaning-making and purpose development is proposed, as a way of furthering spiritual development, and so are the benefits of such contribution in a postsecular world in which a decoupling of religion and spirituality can be identified.
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