Monika Renz holds doctorates in psychopathology and theology from the universities of Zurich, Fribourg, and Innsbruck. She is head of the psycho-oncology department at Kantonsspital St. Gallen, where she has been a practicing music therapist, psychotherapist and spiritual counsellor since 1998. She is the author of a number of books drawing on her research into dying, spirituality and spiritual care. Find out more at www.monikarenz.ch.

A bold ethnographic inquiry into palliative care patients' experiences of hope and grace that transcends conventional reason, language, and cultural boundaries of the ego-based self. Hope and grace are not specific states or goals but contemplative processes of belonging with recognizable qualities that can inform compassionate palliative practices.

• Introduction. 1. Spirituality is Experience. 2. Between Two Worlds: The Liminal Sphere and Its Laws. 3. Hope for Grace. 4. Experience of Transcendence as Reality and Grace. 5. Experiences of Angels and Darkness. 6. Experiences of God and the Divine. 7. Being or Relationship?. 8. Spiritual Care between Psychotherapy and Pastoral Care. 9. Spiritual Care Interventions. Appendix. References.

Monika Renz holds doctorates in psychopathology and theology from the universities of Zurich, Fribourg, and Innsbruck. She is head of the psycho-oncology department at Kantonsspital St. Gallen, where she has been a practicing music therapist, psychotherapist and spiritual counsellor since 1998. She is the author of a number of books drawing on her research into dying, spirituality and spiritual care. Find out more at www.monikarenz.ch.

A bold ethnographic inquiry into palliative care patients' experiences of hope and grace that transcends conventional reason, language, and cultural boundaries of the ego-based self. Hope and grace are not specific states or goals but contemplative processes of belonging with recognizable qualities that can inform compassionate palliative practices.

• Introduction. 1. Spirituality is Experience. 2. Between Two Worlds: The Liminal Sphere and Its Laws. 3. Hope for Grace. 4. Experience of Transcendence as Reality and Grace. 5. Experiences of Angels and Darkness. 6. Experiences of God and the Divine. 7. Being or Relationship?. 8. Spiritual Care between Psychotherapy and Pastoral Care. 9. Spiritual Care Interventions. Appendix. References.

Monika Renz holds doctorates in psychopathology and theology from the universities of Zurich, Fribourg, and Innsbruck. She is head of the psycho-oncology department at Kantonsspital St. Gallen, where she has been a practicing music therapist, psychotherapist and spiritual counsellor since 1998. She is the author of a number of books drawing on her research into dying, spirituality and spiritual care. Find out more at www.monikarenz.ch.

A bold ethnographic inquiry into palliative care patients' experiences of hope and grace that transcends conventional reason, language, and cultural boundaries of the ego-based self. Hope and grace are not specific states or goals but contemplative processes of belonging with recognizable qualities that can inform compassionate palliative practices.

• Introduction. 1. Spirituality is Experience. 2. Between Two Worlds: The Liminal Sphere and Its Laws. 3. Hope for Grace. 4. Experience of Transcendence as Reality and Grace. 5. Experiences of Angels and Darkness. 6. Experiences of God and the Divine. 7. Being or Relationship?. 8. Spiritual Care between Psychotherapy and Pastoral Care. 9. Spiritual Care Interventions. Appendix. References.