María Camila Gutiérrez González

#64151035

Intercultural Managent

FINAL PROYECT

Spirituality vs. Religion

Theoretical Framework

Methodological Framework

Concept

Uncertainty Avoidance

Avoidance is not the same as risk avoidance; it deals with a society's tolerance for ambiguity. It
indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either uncomfortable or
comfortable in unstructured situations. Unstructured situations are novel, unknown, surprising,
and different from usual. Uncertainty avoiding cultures try to minimize the possibility of such
situations by strict behavioral codes, laws and rules, disapproval of deviant opinions, and a belief
in absolute Truth; 'there can only be one Truth and we have it'.(

Problem

The culture has been defined in different ways, the authors refers as the “Culture is the
collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or
category of people from others” The term can also be applied to the genders, to
generations, or to social classes. However, changing the level of aggregation studied
changes the nature of the concept of ‘culture’. Societal, national and gender cultures,
which children acquire from their earliest youth onwards, are much deeper rooted in the
human mind than occupational cultures acquired at school, or than organizational cultures
acquired on the job. The latter are exchangeable when people take a new job. Societal
cultures reside in (often unconscious) values, in the sense of broad tendencies to prefer
certain states of affairs over others (Hofstede, 2001, p. 5)

According to the reading Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context,

the topic that it will use is the Religion in China, USA and India in compare how the
culture can impact as an important concept, and life style in the world, the concept that
the authors mention, is the “Uncertainty Avoidance” in which we will on focus.
(Hofstede, 2011)

Question

¿The culture has impact in spiritual or religion facts?

Objectives

 General Objetive

This project is focused on knowing the richness of culture by deepening religion as a field
of research that at the same time allows us to address the different visions and behaviors
at present, identifying and analyzing each of these cultures.

 Specific Objectives

1. Identify the presence of religions, and their behavior regarding their culture.
2. Analyze the extent to which religion and other practices have affected the
international level of society.

INDIA

Según el Censo sobre religiones llevado a cabo en la India en 2011, el cristianismo es la

tercera religión del país, con casi 27,8 millones de fieles, que constituyen el 2,3% de la
población total; el hinduismo es la primera religión, con más de 966,3 millones de
seguidores, es decir, el 79,8% de los habitantes; el islam ocupa el segundo puesto con
más de 172,2 millones de adherentes, siendo el 14% de la población (News, 2017).
 Taken from: Cia world factbook, (2018)

CHINA

The survey found that Buddhism, Taoism, Catholicism, Christianity and Islam are the
country's five major religions - China considers Catholicism as separate to Christianity,
which covers Protestantism. About 200 million believers "are Buddhists, Taoists or
worshippers of legendary figures such as the Dragon King and God of Fortune", the
China Daily reported.

The survey also found a significant rise in Christianity - accounting for 12% of all
believers, or 40 million, compared with the official figure of 16 million in 2005 (BBC,
2007)

Taken from: BBC NEWS, (2007)

USA

De acuerdo con un estudio de la Asociación Americana de Estadística de Cuerpos

Religiosos del año 2012 mostró que si bien en efecto el 70% de los estadounidenses se
consideran cristianos, la segunda religión más practicada varía según el Estado.
El Islam es la segunda mayor religión en 20 estados principalmente los estados del sur y
del centro, el judaísmo lo es en 15 estados, mayormente los de la costa atlántica,
el budismo es la segunda comunidad religiosa más numerosa en 13 estados; los estados
de la costa pacífica más Hawai y Alaska. De estos Hawai es el que tiene el porcentaje
mayor de budistas siendo cerca del 9%. El hinduismo por su parte es la segunda religión
en Arizona y Delaware y el bahaísmo es el segundo credo religioso en importancia
de Carolina del Sur. (Kosmin, 2009)

Taken from: Religion in United States, (2019)

During the last decades, spirituality and religion have been retaken as important aspects
on patient's care, not only for decision making but as one of the elements that impact
positively or negatively in clinical outcome and quality of life of patients.

Spiritual influence in society

There are multiple definitions of spirituality, which vary according to cultural,

philosophical and religious differences. The consensus on the improvement of the
quality of spiritual care as a dimension of palliative care defines spirituality as “the
aspect of the human condition that refers to the way in which individuals seek and
express meaning and purpose, as well as the way in which they express a state of
connection with the moment, with oneself, with others, with nature and with the
meaningful or sacred. On the other hand, the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy
defines religion as: Set of beliefs or dogmas about divinity, of feelings of veneration and
fear towards it, of moral norms for individual and social behavior and of ritual practices,
mainly prayer and sacrifice to worship him. Therefore, spirituality and religion are not
the same, spirituality is established as a universal human capacity, but not necessarily
related and expressed in religious practice, which is associated to a greater extent to
habit, custom and dogma and includes beliefs, practices and rituals related to the sacred.

The contemporary world is assisted by multiple manifestations that claim to be called

spirituality. In its essence, the human being is spiritual, although this reality has been
diluted in the midst of religious practices. Spirituality comes from within, it is a kind of
internal force that energizes the dimensions of the human being. Religion seeks to
outsource these manifestations, principles and beliefs. To be spiritual is to enliven the
possibilities of being permeated by the world of God; Regardless of the belief in him,
spirituality is always being willing to receive from its essence the light, strength and
goodness with which it can fill the human being. (Palacio, 2015)

The contemporary world has called certain experiences of religiosity, or sometimes

religious, as spirituality, when deep down they are simple expressions of a code of
beliefs that has generated conceptual crises in the field experiential due to plurality.
These nuances allow us to understand some aspects that traditionally and emergently
give guidelines for the understanding of such experiences.

But what is the meaning of spirituality being the idea that is becoming stronger, it
makes sense in the life of the believer and the indifferent: spirituality has to touch life
and reality. The human being who attends the expansion of culture, of the senses, of
interpretations, does not support a static and cold structure where no demonstrations are
evident in the way of being and making life; and spirituality as the center of the believer
allows the emergence of love, the one that is stronger than death, the one that touches
the bottom of human existence. (Tamayo, 2005, p. 66)

Spirituality is also the possibility of education; from her the human being advances in
the way he understands the world, as he assumes culture, as he understands his own life.
There are those who pass life without finding the status quo of its existence, because the
self-knowledge is also an act that demands the union of reason and spirit. As you grow
in the spirit, you can transcend existence at a higher level, personally, emotionally, in
the relational, in the professional.
Religious influence in society

It is important to understand that bad conditions do not happen suddenly. The cultural
decline we see around us is not fortuitous. It was caused. Unless one understands this,
one will not be able to defend oneself or reach society effectively.

A society is capable of surviving thousands of years unless it is attacked from within or

from outside by hostile forces. Where that kind of attack occurs, the primary objectives
are their religious and national assets and heroes, their leadership potential and the self-
respect and integrity of their members.

“Religion is the first sense of community. Your sense of community occurs for the
reason of mutual experience with others.” Probably the most critical point of attack on a
culture is its religious experience. Where one can destroy or minimize religious
institutions then the entire fabric of society can be quickly subverted or ruined.

Religion is the first sense of community. Your sense of community occurs for the
reason of mutual experience with others. Where the religious sense of community can
be destroyed, and with it, true trust and integrity.

CONCLUSION

When cultures have totally deviated from the search for the spiritual and have fallen into
materialism, one must begin by demonstrating that each is a soul, not a material animal.
By realizing their own religious nature, individuals can once again become aware of
God and become more human again.
Bibliografía
BBC. (2007, 02 07). BBC NEWS. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-
pacific/6337627.stm

Hofstede, G. (2011, 01 12). Online readings in psychologycal an culture . Retrieved from

https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/orpc/vol2/iss1/8/

Kosmin, B. A. (2009, 03). American religious indentification survey . Retrieved from

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
srv/metro/documents/aris030609.pdf?noredirect=on

News, A. (2017, 07 04). Religiones en Libertad . Retrieved from

https://www.religionenlibertad.com/mundo/57861/india-hay-millones-cristianos-son-
mayoria-.html

Palacio, C. J. (2015, 07 15). LA ESPIRITUALIDAD COMO MEDIO DE DESARROLLO HUMANO.

Retrieved from http://www.scielo.org.co/pdf/cteo/v42n98/v42n98a09.pdf

Tamayo, J. J. (2005). Nuevo diccionario de teología. Madrid: Editorial Trotta.