Spirituality in the natural sciences and nursing: an interdisciplinary perspective

Abstract

The Big Bang theory, a widely accepted theory of the origin of the universe, states that the universe was created between ten to twenty billion years ago from a cosmic explosion. Charles Darwin, a 19th century English naturalist, convinced the scientific community through his work that life evolved by natural selection over three and a half million years ago rather than through the influence of a Supreme Being or creator. Although there has been scientific data to support the claims of natural selection, there still remain many unanswered questions suggesting that other mechanisms contributed to the evolution of life. These unresolved findings greatly influenced mysticism and the development of the theological argument, which suggest the existence of a supreme being (God), who is believe to be an omnipotent healer, comforter, provider of salvation, and the center of mysticism spirituality. There has been consistent use of spiritual practices to address health concerns by individuals for thousands of years. There is increasing data that supports the implementation of spirituality in nursing for client care to enhance health outcome and patient wellbeing. Incorporating spiritual care into practice is an integral dimension of holistic care that is the crux of nursing practice in the 21st century. Holistic care of clients requires that nurses use the nursing process to implement spiritual care in practice.