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When times get tough, the tough and not so tough get God, Allah or Buddha. Academics say it's not a recent trend.
"That recognition of vulnerability can lead to insecurity or it can be an encounter, an appropriate encounter, that we are not in control," said Kristin Hanson, a University of Alaska Anchorage religion professor. "In economic times that message comes home: You are not in control."
That message that "you are not in control" is one often repeated at ChangePoint Church.
"A lot of people in Alaska are here because things didn't go the way they wanted them to go somewhere else, and so they're either running to a new life or running from an old one," said ChangePoint Pastor Dan Jarrell. "So one of the things I've really enjoyed about Alaska is the honesty of the people with regard to their spiritual need in their life."
The need for a higher purpose, for answers to big questions, is often underscored during times of trauma.
"I think people put their hope in money, power, prestige, position, beauty, any number of things," said Jarrell. "When those things fall apart, what have you got? What I'm learning is that people who lose it all often find something far more valuable."
Buddhism is becoming more popular.
Koun Franz is resident priest of the Anchorage Zen Community. Franz said, though his center has not necessarily seen more attendees, more people are showing interest in Zen Buddhism and Buddhism overall.
"What Buddhism tries to do at its center is to give you a different perspective on what that suffering is," Franz said. "Much of what the teachings say is that though there is actual hardship, and there is actual difficulty, our relationship to our difficulty and the story we're telling ourselves about that difficulty is often what really makes it hard."
But you need not necessarily hit rock bottom to seek a higher power.
"The spiritual dimension is worth exploring, whether it's in economic times, whatever the prompt, it's worth exploring," Hanson said.
Links: Anchorage Zen Community
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