Book Reviews from the Center!
The Foundation is pleased to announce a series of book reviews presented by the Center for the Theology of Childhood.
The Center's book reviews are available here and more will be added periodically. The first book reviewed in this series is The Grace of Playing: Pedagogies for Leaning into God’s New Creation (2016) by Courtney T. Goto.
The Center for the Theology of Childhood of the Godly Play Foundation is interested in the theory, practice, and empirical research concerning children’s religious lives, their spirituality, and the theological implications of what is learned. The Center is embarking on a project to offer original book reviews of volumes related to the spiritual guidance of children. This project is aimed to serve the international Godly Play community and to draw on it for these reviews, but those generally interested in this field will find them helpful as well.
Interest in the spirituality of children is on the rise, particularly among teachers, child psychologists, counselors, and parents. The reasons range from educational concerns for the development of the whole child to desires to build resilience in children and youth against depression, suicide, and risky behavior, such as drug and alcohol abuse. Research showing a positive correlation between spirituality and coping mechanisms for difficult human experiences and other measures of well-being has contributed to a sense of urgency for understanding both the nature of children’s spirituality and how to nurture and promote it. The Center for the Theology of Childhood aims to help those interested in this work by offering critical analyses of the publications currently available in this field.
Links
The Grace of Playing: Pedagogies for Leaning into God’s New Creation (2016) by Courtney T. Goto