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Can end-of-life care make space for spirituality?

#1
C C Offline
https://aeon.co/essays/how-being-not-doi...y-in-dying

EXCERPT: [...] Why is spirituality not already a routine part of end-of-life care? Partly, it is a problem of definition. It seems to be as difficult as ever to say precisely what spirituality is, and how it might feature in end of life care. In the public imagination, it remains stubbornly associated with religion: spirituality as religion’s private, inward dimension, the part that’s more about sensibility than belief. Elsewhere, spirituality is mangled by politics, conscripted as yet another marker of identity and difference – the now-classic ‘spiritual, not religious’ self-descriptor. Mixed up with these various associations is a habit that spirituality has, in practice, of becoming separated from the rest of life....
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#2
Yazata Offline
End-of-life care might have trouble making space for spirituality when death is conceived as a purely medical problem. (That's why so many people die alone, attached to machines in ICUs.)

But spirituality has always made room for end-of-life care. That's a major function of clergymen in all traditions. Clergy spend much of their effort caring for their oldest parishoners in their hours of need.

I really like the Zen Hospice Project in San Francisco.

https://www.zenhospice.org/

https://www.zenhospice.org/about/
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#3
Secular Sanity Offline
(Oct 22, 2016 03:43 PM)Yazata Wrote: I really like the Zen Hospice Project in San Francisco.

Yeah, me too.  I loved BJ Miller’s talk, but unfortunately, the cost is high, and not covered by Medicare or any other insurance.
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#4
Carol Offline
(Oct 21, 2016 09:29 PM)C C Wrote: https://aeon.co/essays/how-being-not-doi...y-in-dying

EXCERPT: [...] Why is spirituality not already a routine part of end-of-life care? Partly, it is a problem of definition. It seems to be as difficult as ever to say precisely what spirituality is, and how it might feature in end of life care. In the public imagination, it remains stubbornly associated with religion: spirituality as religion’s private, inward dimension, the part that’s more about sensibility than belief. Elsewhere, spirituality is mangled by politics, conscripted as yet another marker of identity and difference – the now-classic ‘spiritual, not religious’ self-descriptor. Mixed up with these various associations is a habit that spirituality has, in practice, of becoming separated from the rest of life....

I think this is a problem with Christianity on a few levels.  Christianity is a mix of beliefs and very important is the Egyptian beliefs, however, Egyptians had a trinity of the soul and Christianity has a trinity of God.  The trinity of soul internalizes the spirit and the trinity of God externalizes the spirit.   That is, for Egyptians, the spirit was part of our being,  only part of us die with the body, and another part is judged and may or may not enter the good afterlife, and the third part always returns to the source.   But with a trinity of God, the son and holy ghost, the spirit is seperate from self and may or may not enter our being.   

Christianity has a Satan and a lot of fear of Satan and a fear of a jealous, revengeful and punishing God.  This does not leave much room for spirituality.  We have religion given to us by the authority of God.  The authority of God is the Pope or the bible, and in the day of kings, the king was also an authority of God.  Outside of this authority is Satan, and heaven only knows who causes the most suffering, an angry and jealous God or Satan?   It is best to play it safe and avoid anything that does not come from the bible.    Dodgy
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#5
RainbowUnicorn Offline
(Oct 21, 2016 09:29 PM)C C Wrote: https://aeon.co/essays/how-being-not-doi...y-in-dying

EXCERPT: [...] Why is spirituality not already a routine part of end-of-life care? Partly, it is a problem of definition. It seems to be as difficult as ever to say precisely what spirituality is, and how it might feature in end of life care. In the public imagination, it remains stubbornly associated with religion: spirituality as religion’s private, inward dimension, the part that’s more about sensibility than belief. Elsewhere, spirituality is mangled by politics, conscripted as yet another marker of identity and difference – the now-classic ‘spiritual, not religious’ self-descriptor. Mixed up with these various associations is a habit that spirituality has, in practice, of becoming separated from the rest of life....

Everything for a price ...

are not Hospices run by spiritual people ?

you must as you say "un-tangle" politics from capitalistic litigious fundermentalism first.
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#6
Syne Offline
(Oct 21, 2016 09:29 PM)C C Wrote: Mixed up with these various associations is a habit that spirituality has, in practice, of becoming separated from the rest of life....

No, it is materialistic reductionism in medicine, and secularism in life in general, that has divorced spirituality from end-of-life care. There's a growing phobia to anything even quasi-religious. And the generic "spiritual" label typically doesn't even offer enough supportive structure to be leaned on end-of-life.
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#7
Carol Offline
No hospice are not run by spiritual people. Even worse, work is done by people who are overloaded with work, and the goal is to avoid burnout by being completely impersonal, treating the body and ignoring the being inside the body. There is a reliance on drugs to relieve physical and mental pain. The actually spiritual care may come through volunteers who lack training and mean well, but maybe prejudiced by their religion. This may be limited to sitting with a book and reading to oneself while waiting for the person to die. I sat with two dying people and it can be draining! I have mixed feelings about witnessing one of them being overdosed with morphine to intentionally bring death on as soon as possible. The man had Alzheimer's disease and was not having the quality of life he wanted, and said he wanted to die repeatedly after his wife died. He got what he wished for when he developed pneumonia and year later.

I was not present when my mother died, but had visited with her and did death and dying counseling with her. We achieved acceptance of death and at this point she wanted to end her life and asked me to help her with this. I thought my sister should be included in this decision, so I called her. She reported us to authorities and brought an end to the idea of me helping our mother cross over. I very much regret this, because the next several months were extremely unpleasant for her, and she was not at peace with her life and death. It is because of this experience that we I think we must change how we manage end of life decisions.

I very much wish I had a large home in the forest for dying people and their family. A person's last days would be well planned with visuals, sound, and lighting to create the environment that is the most peaceful and meaningful to the dying person. All family members and friends would be invited to be present for a final gathering, and there would be as much assistance as wanted for making the final communications. We could give as much time to this as wanted, a few days or a few hours, with everyone's needs for a place to sleep and food being met. This is along the lines with how native Americans manage the crossing. Science has proven such relationships are far more important than we have realized, and if there is a soul that continues to survive this crossing period, it will be this time that either frees a soul or traps it in karma.

We celebrate all the main events in our lives and our passing is perhaps the most important event. Fortunately, I live in Oregon when assisted suicide is possible. I just don't have the financial means to manifest the home with all the high tech I want for visual, lighting and sound effects. But I sure have the will to make people's passings the very best they can be.

(Oct 22, 2016 04:49 PM)Secular Sanity Wrote:
(Oct 22, 2016 03:43 PM)Yazata Wrote: I really like the Zen Hospice Project in San Francisco.

Yeah, me too.  I loved BJ Miller’s talk, but unfortunately, the cost is high, and not covered by Medicare or any other insurance.

Perhaps a united effort could achieve a goal?   What if it began with yurts and solar energy or something like Stonehenge?
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