The Flourishing Congregations Project: Character Strengths Pathways to Enhance Well-Being beyond the Individual

Researchers in philosophy and psychology have called for an integration of the science of positive psychology with the humanities, to catalyze new avenues of flourishing throughout society. Religion, as a field within the humanities, may be well poised to be integrated with positive psychology, namely character strengths, to promote flourishing. On the other hand, religious institutions have entrenched and sacrosanct perspectives and traditions, which may preclude them from using the science to become houses of human flourishing. To explore this potential integration, the Flourishing Congregations Project was developed. The project included ten distinguished rabbis who were immersed in the science of character strengths and well-being, and were tasked with developing insights and practices to modify their High Holidays services to meaningfully impact their congregants. The chapter presents qualitative findings of this project, including examples of receptivity and barriers to change among rabbis and congregants, and broader implications across congregations and communities.