“Spiritual Starvation” in a Holy Space—a Form of “Jerusalem Syndrome”

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to study the narratives of two religious tourists who have chosen self-starvation on the streets of Jerusalem as their idiom of distress. Both were hospitalized involuntarily due to self-endangering behavior. It appears that in specific groups, restrictions of food intake are regarded as particularly holy, pure, and blessed.

Ramadan fasting as a goal-pursuit: Why people fast, and how motives affect their experience.

“…The logic of lay beliefs about fasting, self-deprivation, and sacrifice may take different forms. It could be seen as exercise that develops and challenges willpower or cultivates virtues of patience and self-restraint, an opportunity to signal one’s competence or commitment to the self and others, a path in search of significance, purpose, or the sacred, or a quest in pursuit of a greater proximity to the ultimate cause or God, as well as a meditative process that purifies the soul by overcoming visceral urges, and so forth (Chawla, 1992; Dugas et al, 2016; Durkheim, 2008; Glucklich, 2001; Kalian et al, 2008; Kruglanski et al, 2019; Loewenstein, 2000; Olivola & Shafir, 2013; Pargament, 1999; Prelec & Bodner, 2003; T. Ryan, 2005; Szumowska et al, 2020).…”

Formal and Applied Counseling in Israel

“…One cannot walk on the same paths that the biblical forefathers, Jesus, and Muhammad walked on and not reflect about it. Many tourists also have such spiritual experiences upon visiting Israel; some might feel a spiritual connection so intensely that they are labeled as having Jerusalem syndrome-that is, psychological phenomena (which might appear in people of all religions and different backgrounds) involving the presence of either religiously themed ideas, delusions, or other psychotic-like experiences that are triggered by a visit to the city of Jerusalem (Kalian, Catinari, Heresco-Levi, & Witztum, 2008). A different, yet somehow related, spiritual/ psychological state of mind is the very common belief among Israeli Jews that criticism of Israel is made on an antireligious basis (i.e., anti-Semitism; see Cohen, Jussim, Harber, & Bhasin, 2009), rather than reflecting a focused and just evaluation of the Israeli way of management.…”