Postmodernism and the Sacred: Reclaiming Connection in Our Greater‐than‐human Worlds

Abstract

This article addresses the many faces of postmodernism and offers the critique that postmodernism taken up in a particular extremist way can tend to sacrifice the sacred, the spiritual, and the recognition of our "greater than human" worlds in a quest for the particular. In response to this critique, I speak to a postmodern family therapy practice that is informed by values of connectedness, community, and communion; enacted through love and pragmatics; and committed to recognition of our obligation to ecological practice.

The family therapy journals in 2000: a thematic review

“…The authors propose that they can be especially useful when therapists are confronted with spiritual beliefs that are new to them. Moules (2000) develops a spiritual response to the prevalence of postmodernism in family therapy. Her article is both a rejection and a reinterpretation of postmodernism from the perspective of spirituality.…”

Integrating Spirituality into Family Therapy Training: An Exploration of Faculty Members’ Beliefs

“…However, very little empirical research that explores the role of spirituality in the MFT field has been conducted. The majority of the publications in the MFT literature on spirituality are conceptual articles and books that articulate the importance of integrating spirituality into clinical practice and training (Becvar, 1997;Haug, 1998b;Moules, 2000;Stander, Piercy, Mackinnon, & Helmeke, 1994;Walsh, 1999). One of the premises in these conceptual writings is that since spirituality appears to play an important role in clients' lives, therapists have a responsibility to explore how clients' spiritual beliefs may serve as a resource for change (Becvar, 1997;Haug, 1998b;Moules, 2000;Stander et al, 1994;Rivett & Street, 2001;Walsh, 1999).…”

“…While research and writing on spirituality in the field of marriage and family therapy (MFT) is still in its infancy, in the past decade a growing body of literature on this topic has emerged (Anderson, & Worthen, 1997;Becvar, 1997;Carlson, Kirkpatrick, Hecker, & Killmer, 2002;Giblin, 1996;Haug, 1998a;Moules, 2000;Prest, Russel, & D'Souza, 1999;Walsh, 1999;Walsh & Pryce, 2003). However, very little empirical research that explores the role of spirituality in the MFT field has been conducted.…”

“…One of the premises in these conceptual writings is that since spirituality appears to play an important role in clients' lives, therapists have a responsibility to explore how clients' spiritual beliefs may serve as a resource for change (Becvar, 1997;Haug, 1998b;Moules, 2000;Stander et al, 1994;Rivett & Street, 2001;Walsh, 1999). Another premise in the conceptual literature is the need for MFT training programs to help future MFTs develop the skills and comfort level necessary to successfully integrate spirituality into their clinical work (Haug, 1998b;Moules, 2000;Roberts, 1999;Stander et al, 1994;Walsh & Pryce, 2003).…”

Estudo das famílias de crianças e adolescentes, vítimas de violência, que sofreram intervenção da justiça, em comarca de vara única - Estado de São Paulo - Brasil

“…Refinado em visões de mundo mais amplas do pós-modernismo, das quais sofremos as influências, tendo o pluralismo como seu foco-chave, o Modelo Calgary traz a idéia de crença na multiplicidade, isto é, a de existirem tantos caminhos para entender e se ter a experiência de mundo quando existem pessoas para fazê-lo (MOULES, 1998).…”