Spirituality: Sense and gist. On meaning, God and being

 

 

C. Lombaard

Department of Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology, University of South Africa, P.O. Box 392, Pretoria

 

 

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ABSTRACT

The definition of spirituality is a notoriously difficult undertaking. Rather than continuingly pointing this out, two advances are suggested in this article: That the impossibility of a precise definition of spirituality is accepted, as is the case with many other important aspects of life, and that the inherently paradoxical nature of spirituality is more fully explored as a way of coming to a deeper understanding of this phenomenon. The latter is illustrated by briefly juxtaposing the concepts of God and non-God and of self-implication and estrangement. The most important books for furthering such analyses are listed.

Keywords: Spirituality, Definition, God and non-God, Self-implication and estrangement

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Trefwoorde: Spiritualiteit, Definiëring, God en nie-God, Selfimplisering en vervreemding

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