Old hippy woman offers perspective on 21st century events

Carol Forsloff---In 1960, at the entry of the hippy movement that was to encompass most of a decade and then some, young folks, and their elders who supported change, decided to make a difference.  But that difference, although it made great changes in the coming years, also brought turmoil, over-reaction, and a status of where do we go from here that pervades the social structure of the 21st century in many places around the world.

The social divisions that exist in the 21st century in part were reflected in those 60's movements of civil rights and social change, as well as environmental discussions and concerns about economic equality and the rights of all free men.  The 1960's had the women who wore the "bubble" hairdos, the hair piled up and sprayed so that every hair stayed in place.  That style also reflected in many ways how many women viewed themselves and the social order.  The "bubble" hairdo was the woman in place, where she belonged, in the kitchen, in the bedroom and with babies.   But there was a whole different group of women who resisted the rigidity they perceived as keeping them from actualizing their potential socially and economically

The counter culture of women grew their hair long and straight, shed their bras and took to the streets with the fellows to shout for change, against war, against unnecessary restrictions on personal freedoms and for equality in the workplace, the boardroom as well as the bedroom.

The "bubble hairdo" group grappled with the changes.  By the time the 1960's revolution was in full armor, these women had married, had babies and settled down to domestic responsibilities.  There was neither room nor time for marching in the streets or defying established rules.  Women who worked were said to be denying families the care and love families needed, even as the women who worked often looked down on the women who stayed home to raise children as immature and unwilling to examine options.

In the 21st century social changes remain part of the divisions that exist in the political and social atmosphere around the world.  For some freedom is in absolutes.  For others it is relative.  Some believe change must take its time and with little coercion by government or rule.  Others believe that one must totally upset the status quo in order to make major changes.  The extremes have moved into camps that grow further and further apart as more people see they must belong to one camp or the other.

Perhaps it dates back to those mothers, those who raised their children in a rule-dominated household and those who had a laissez-faire way of raising offspring.  In fact it has been found that parenting and relationships formed in families have everything to do with how we form social and political opinions.

Perhaps it is over tea, where older women sip and simmer over social events, that some change might take place, looking at what worked and what didn't and admitting where things might have gone wrong individually and collectively, then taking that finding and using it for the significant social change that takes place from the cradle forward.

Americans becoming more ‘spiritual’ than ‘religious’

[caption id="attachment_15114" align="alignleft" width="300"] Religious symbols, excludes science as not the same[/caption]

Carol Forsloff - Are Americans especially religious? Many people respond they are more spiritual than religious. What might be the difference and why do some people separate religion from spirituality?

The group called the Millenials, which are those young people coming of age after the turn of the 21^st century, are less religious than their parents, according to research results from the Pew forum. On the other hand, many of these same young people have shared values with reference to having a belief in God and valuing prayer in their daily lives. In those ways, they resemble individuals from previous decades, including their parents.

Despite having spiritual values associated with belief in a Supreme Being,  1 in 4 young adults do not have a specific religious affiliation and actually consider themselves “agnostic” or “atheist” in their views.

Results of various surveys indicate most people will express themselves as spiritual as opposed to identifying with a particular religion. Belief has increased portability, as more and more people move from group to group, taking their basic belief in God and prayer with them.  That may be the reason why many groups claim to be one of the fastest growing religions in the world,  including Hinduism, Buddhism as well as non-believers, as people join a group, then may move elsewhere to actually swell the numbers in both places where affiliation had been made.

Many people separate the institution of religion from spirituality. The connectedness to “spirit” is often identified as belief in loving one another or recognizing the special nature of man as a special being that has evolved in some way. Americans underline a difference between being religious and being spiritual. Atheists and agnostics, for example, claim not to be religious but say they are spiritual.

Robert Fuller tells us, “The word spiritual gradually came to be associated with a private realm of thought and experience while the word religious came to be connected with the public realm of membership in religious institutions, participation in formal rituals, and adherence to official denominational doctrines.”

These different views are a fairly modern phenomenon, as folks used to consider being spiritual and being religious much the same with the unifying feature a belief in a Supreme Being. That no longer is the case, however, as people distinguish themselves as being either or both. Nevertheless, despite these differences, most people adhere to either category and fewer consider themselves having no belief system at all.