/morsl/taxonomy/term/129/all en /morsl/article/meditation-spiritual-wellness/neuroscience-prayer-and-journaling <p>What can we do to find relief when we feel anxious, threatened, or stuck in patterns of low moods or spiraling thoughts? Whether this is caused by unpleasant interactions on social media, the burdens of schoolwork, or worrying about the future, journaling and prayer can both help according to happiness researcher and expert Arthur Brooks. He shared his thoughts on a <a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ifnhTZLpllBAjQwK0SKvs?si=rtwYtU8hTHWq_YdioAAEmA&nd=1&dlsi=4d608c2581584245">recent podcast episode</a> (listen at 32:09 for thoughts on anxiety, journaling, and prayer).</p> Wed, 06 Nov 2024 21:05:27 +0000 Candice Wendt 2865 at /morsl /morsl/article/meditation-spiritual-wellness/akida <p>When I was little, I was an idealist, and my dream was world peace. Then I entered adolescence and became convinced, to my great dismay, that things had already gone so wrong in the world that my dream could never by anything more than simply a dream, and that in fact, our world was destined for ruin. I see things differently now, and my idea of the world has been informed by my experience of it; I’m no longer much of an idealist, nor am I a pessimist.</p> Wed, 06 Nov 2024 16:53:51 +0000 Erica Crawford 2864 at /morsl /morsl/article/holidays-and-holy-days-spiritual-wellness/spooky-stories-and-spirituality <p>Why are we drawn to spooky stories? Is this related to spirituality? I’ve been thinking about these questions this October as I discovered and became hooked on the podcast <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/76571Rfl3m7PLJQZKQIGCT">“Spooked.”</a></p> <p>I’ve found that there are ways these stories intrigue and benefit me, even spiritually.</p> Thu, 31 Oct 2024 15:00:17 +0000 Candice Wendt 2861 at /morsl /morsl/article/spiritual-wellness/recognizing-sacred-our-day <p>Our fast-paced lives can leave little time for reflection. Yet moments of calm reflection help us appreciate the many blessings of life. As the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins once wrote, “The world is charged with the grandeur of God.” But often we are too busy to notice this. Every day - and each moment of every day - the sacred tries to communicate its beauty, truth and wisdom but we can miss it if we are too busy or distracted. It’s like being on a bus driving through a beautiful countryside - with the curtains closed. </p> Thu, 24 Oct 2024 17:56:11 +0000 Dr. John Meehan 2859 at /morsl /morsl/article/ecospirituality-interfaith-dialogue-spiritual-wellness/being-sikh-being-green <p>Ten years ago (in 2006), Sikh communities around the world celebrated the inauguration of the Cycle of Creation. The three-hundred-year long cycle will be a time for Sikhs to reflect upon and celebrate their relationship with the environment and all that Waheguru has provided. The past ten years have borne witness to remarkable steps taken by Sikhs around the globe. Sikhs are leaders in practicing organic and natural farming, building support for recycling programs, and targeting the socio-economic roots that plague the systemic nature of environmental injustice, among other things.</p> Tue, 22 Oct 2024 19:01:54 +0000 Juss Kaur 2857 at /morsl /morsl/article/making-connection <p>Searching for peace. This is not the first time, I am sure, that you have heard this phrase. We are all searching for peace: inner peace, world peace, peace with our past, and especially, peace with the things that we cannot change and must accept. One of the purposes of faith is to seek inner peace, a feeling of serenity and completeness that we all long for. Seeking this peace and trying out spiritual practices does not require being religious. There are diverse ways to be spiritual and to search for peace and hope.</p> Mon, 07 Oct 2024 19:33:16 +0000 Reena Kaur Baweja 2852 at /morsl /morsl/article/spiritual-wellness/learning-love-volunteering <p>In my mid-twenties, volunteer work was anathema to me. I was a graduate student, then a new parent, stretched thin while my spouse completed a PhD at the University of Michigan. I couldn't imagine my life ever having the space to give freely of my time again. Parenting toddlers demanded constant giving, and I felt very possessive of any free time I could claim!</p> Tue, 01 Oct 2024 19:09:02 +0000 candice.wendt@mcgill.ca 2846 at /morsl /morsl/article/ecospirituality-spiritual-wellness/ultimate-saint <p>Last weekend I went to the woods. I left the city for a place where there are more trees than cars, and I came back feeling renewed. Something about being surrounded by nature fills me up so that I have more to give to others. As I walked alone through a whispering forest, I was reminded of all the millions of people who cam before me, who lived off the land and knew how to survive with nature, and I felt at peace.</p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 18:13:33 +0000 Carolyn Ross 2797 at /morsl /morsl/article/interfaith-dialogue-spiritual-wellness/awakening-fusion <p>In Jewish traditions, religion and artistic creativity are complimentary forms of spiritual enrichment. They both serve a similar purpose, which is to attach the self to G_d as manifested in human experience. Creation is a manifestation of G_dliness. “In the beginning G_d created” (Genesis 1:1). When human beings create, we experience awe and shame. We are in awe of G_d when we realize the amount of thought and energy it takes to create something from something else. Imagine creating something from nothing—it’s beyond human comprehension.</p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 18:10:53 +0000 Ariella 2796 at /morsl /morsl/article/interfaith-dialogue-spiritual-wellness/increase-peace <p>The day I was invited to write this article, I entered a washroom in the MacDonald-Harrington building. On the door of my stall was scrawled, “increase the peace.” I could not agree more, but the anonymous author left no more suggestions than does our culture on how to go about increasing peace. Thank goodness Jesus is not so vague! “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it unto you. Do not let your hearts by troubled or afraid” (Luke 14:27). Now there is a message that I can understand! How comforting! Jesus gives us peace. He is perfect peace.</p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 18:09:01 +0000 Emily Bessette 2795 at /morsl /morsl/article/interfaith-dialogue-spiritual-wellness/experience-god <p>Transcendence. Experiencing the divine. Tasting that sweet essence of God. For the Sikh, God has no form. God has no shape, age, race, or gender. God was never born and will never cease to be. God is. That’s it. The Sikh definition of God, found in the beginning of the Sikh scripture (the Aad Guru Granth Sahib) and the main Sikh prayer (the Mool Mantra) is not so much a definition as an anti-definition. God is told to be timeless. The face of God? Guru Nanak says the face of God is immortality. The enemy of God? God has no enemy, and God holds no enmity. So what is this God then?</p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 17:57:10 +0000 Santbir Singh Santbir 2794 at /morsl /morsl/article/interfaith-dialogue-spiritual-wellness/religion <p>It looks at me</p> <p>It hears me</p> <p>It feels me</p> <p>It judges me</p> <p>It helps me</p> <p>It enlightens me</p> <p>It traps me</p> <p> </p> <p>It bothers me</p> <p>It soothes me</p> <p>It produces for me</p> <p>It nurtures me</p> <p>It reasons for me</p> <p>It kills me</p> <p>It talks for me</p> <p> </p> <p>It wrecks me</p> <p>It develops me</p> <p>It wounds me</p> <p>It loves me</p> <p>It ____________ me</p> <p>It kills me</p> <p>It is me...</p> <p> </p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 17:54:44 +0000 Hardip Singh Manku 2793 at /morsl /morsl/article/ecospirituality-meditation-spiritual-wellness/labyrinth-walks <p>In <i>Waiting for God</i>, Simone Weil writes: “The beauty of the world is the mouth of a labyrinth,” referring to the mystical path that has been walked for centuries in contemplation. These ritual and symbolic pathways are found around the world in different cultures, but are perhaps best known in the Western world from their use during medieval times. In the last 30 years, there has been renewed interest in labyrinths as a contemplative practice accessible to all. A labyrinth is not a maze, but rather a single path, and there is no “right or wrong” way to walk a labyrinth.</p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 17:52:23 +0000 Carlene Gardner 2792 at /morsl /morsl/article/meditation-queerness-and-faith-spiritual-wellness/imagination-spiritual-experience <p>In the film <em>All of Us Strangers</em>, main character Adam uses creative and personalized ways to initiate his own healing journey. Adam’s parents passed unexpectedly when he was eleven years old. Since then, he has struggled with intense feelings of being alone. Adam imagines and writes about what could happen if he could visit his parents in his childhood home as they were the year of their death, 1987. What would it be like if parents and son could reunite 36 years later, now that Adam is a professional writer in his late 40’s?</p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 17:45:43 +0000 Candice Wendt 2791 at /morsl /morsl/article/interfaith-dialogue-queerness-and-faith-spiritual-wellness/passion-action-love-form <p>the Imam, the Priest, the Monk;</p> <p>all of them at once endorsing</p> <p>love between two men</p> <p>not only as acceptable</p> <p>but as sacred.</p> <p> </p> <p>the power of the moment</p> <p>as metaphor for love</p> <p>for what’s possible with love</p> <p>overshadowed only</p> <p>by its immanent beauty.</p> <p> </p> <p>right then in front of my eyes</p> <p>a union transcending boundaries</p> <p>subverting history</p> <p>and empowering faith</p> <p>all at once</p> <p> </p> <p>passion in action; love in form.</p> <p> </p> Fri, 30 Aug 2024 17:41:44 +0000 Ryan Brown 2790 at /morsl