David Jenkins, Director of M. D. Anderson Chaplaincy found the following article to be informative because it supports the notion that spirituality is essentially the human capacity to experience the trans-empirical. That means that every person, regardless of whether they consider themselves religious or not, is capable of exercising their spiritual capacity.

"The spiritual care I received at the hospital helped me find the strength in myself to deal with the disease," says Ora Haviv, 62, who developed lung cancer following exposure to asbestos. Haviv does not define herself as religious, and says she does not believe in God. Nevertheless, reading the Bible and other texts helped her contend with her illness, she says.

"I was told I had half a year to 11 months to live, and 30 months have gone by since then," she says. "I found myself reading verses from Psalms - like 'I will lift up mine eyes unto the mountains: From whence shall my help come?' - and analyzing them in a non-religious manner. But beyond studying the texts, the spiritual care enabled me to emerge from the great loneliness that stems from the inability to share my plight with friends and family."