The spiritual self-in-relation: Empathy and the construction of spirituality among modern descendants of the Spanish crypto-Jews

The research that is presented here explores the role that empathic attachm ent plays in the development of the religious self. Based on an ethnographi c study of the modern descendants of the Spanish crypto-Jews, the work appl ies self-in-relation theory to the study of spirituality and religious beli ef acquisition among a population of individuals who, in adulthood, have mo dified their religious world view as a result of their erypto-Jewish herita ge. The findings of the research expand the parameters of self-in-relation theory in three important ways: 1) through an examination of he role that e mpathic attachments plays in adult conversion patterns; 2) through the elab oration of a developmental model that considers the significance of empathi c attachment for sons as well as daughters; and 3) through an investigation into the relationship between ethnicity and spiritual development.