A phenomenological study of the experience of participants attending a course written for the Unitarian Church, entitled spirituality in everyday life

"This is a phenomenological study in which the researcher developed and taught a course entitled Spirituality in Everyday Life. The purpose was to observe what happened when participants were exposed to Transpersonal material. The research involved screening the participants, administering questionnaires, conducting interviews, and tracking the subjective experiences of the leader/researcher. Individual experiences were examined in terms of both similarities and differences. Patterns identified as important learning experiences included synchronicity, movement from intellectual to emotional insight, and reclaiming of transference. Community building was an unexpected outcome. This study illustrates how Transpersonal material can be used in the context of the Unitarian Church by showing the similarity between transpersonal material and Unitarian theology. At the same time it addresses a growing need for the church to provide opportunities for spiritual practice, ritual, and mysticism and serves the purpose of assisting Unitarians in developing their own version of spirituality. Included in the thesis is the complete instructor and participant manuals, enabling the reader to use the material to lead similar groups. The data shows that every participant found the material to be significant to their growth. This illustrated that Transpersonal material can be successfully applied to the Unitarian community, assisting participants to identify, expand, and integrate the many transpersonal experiences arising out of church life. The study reveals that the five levels of transpersonal development---physical, intellectual, emotional, social, and spiritual can serve as either gateways or obstacles for growth and illustrates the importance of teaching material that can be processed through each of the five levels. It is an important addition to understanding the nature of transformational work."