Spirituality, Health and Wellbeing

Abstract

The emphasis on health and wellbeing in government schools is a new development, drawing on the problems created by the postmodern era. Despite Australia’s wealth, recent studies have shown that health and wellbeing, as well as a sense of belonging, have declined in Australian society and schools. The aim of this chapter is to investigate to what extent SRE/RI can contribute to addressing this problem. Educationalists have become aware of the importance of positive psychology (Seligman 2002), developing on the earlier theories of Maria Montessori ([1915] 1997). They have also developed a better understanding of the concept of the “greater good” and the psychological problems created by the contemporary focus on individual needs rather than community needs. The study of (Chen and Vanderweele 2018) demonstrates the centrality of belief in a higher spiritual being, of prayer, both public and private, as well as meditation, as directly producing positive health outcomes and protecting against negative behaviours. As well, Nielsen (2010) has demonstrated the importance of gratitude as a factor in giving and this is a key component of all religious prayer. These important findings are discussed in this chapter as well as our research findings from 58 interviews with directors, teachers and graduates either individually or in focus groups of the six main faith groups: Christianity (18), Islam (12), Buddhism (9), Hinduism (7), Judaism (7) and Baha’i (5). The chapter concludes with an explanation of the connections between spirituality, wellbeing and religious belief. We argue that SRE/RI can develop these important attributes so that SRE/RI can foster better health and community and social cohesion.