Date of Award

2007

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (BS)

Department

Education

Abstract

The literature review portion of this paper focuses on one of many possible meanings of spirituality, that which relates to faith in a Higher Being. Following the structure of Fowler's (198 I) research on faith development, it describes an approach to spiritual development that aligns spirituality with stage theories of human development. The review then focuses on the treatment of spiritual development by a particular perspective-Christianity. The second half of this paper describes a study that assessed the degree to which these theories have influenced development, this review focuses on one approach in particular: that which posits a stage theory Christian churches' children's programming. Data was gathered through in-person interviews with ten children's leaders in churches of various denominations across the greater Harrisburg area. While familiarity with theories ranged, influence of ideas related to spiritual development was identified to some degree within each of the ten churches.

Comments

Approved for Honors in the Department of Education, Messiah College, Fall 2007.

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