Summary

The Encyclopedia of Religious and Spiritual Development is the first reference work to focus on the developmental process of religion and spirituality across the human life span. Spiritual development is an important part of human development that has links to identity development, moral development, and civic engagement. This innovative Encyclopedia offers insight into the characteristics of people and their contexts that interact to influence religious and spiritual development over time. Editors Elizabeth M. Dowling and W. George Scarlett provide readers with glimpses into the religious and spiritual developmental trajectories of people from all over the world, from many different religious and spiritual backgrounds. Key Features Includes short, accessible entries written by leading specialists and theorists from a wide range of disciplines and professions, both within the United States and internationally, to provide a broad, multidisciplinary scope Offers entries that are unrelated to religion and religious experiences in order to examine spirituality in the broadest sense that encompasses religion as just one path toward spiritual development Explores community-based programs that focus on enhancing spiritual development, as well as the links between spiritual development and positive personal and social development in youth Offers reference lists for each entry that enable readers to gain further information related to the topic

Key Themes

The Encyclopedia of Religious and Spiritual Development makes a significant contribution to the research and scholarship looking at the similarities and differences in religiousness and spirituality. It is a welcome addition to any academic library or religious reference collection.

School Library Journal Review

Written to highlight current research on understanding the similarities and differences among world religions and spiritualities by editors Dowling (director of research, the ImagineNations Group) and Scarlett (deputy chair, the Eliot-Pearson Dept. of Child Development, Tufts Univ.), this work addresses the complexity of factors involved in religious and spiritual development. The editors note in the introduction that beyond serving solely as a reference tool, the encyclopedia is meant to foster their broader goals of enabling readers to function more effectively in a pluralistic society and to support personal spiritual growth. The work includes over 250 entries written by 125 international scholars on religions and traditions, institutions, and important texts and practices that have had an impact throughout history. Though the work is not supposed to serve as an exhaustive catalog of its subject, it does provide a broad overview of more traditional topics as well as newer trends and themes. The entries range from several paragraphs to several pages in length--e.g., Five Pillars of Islam and the Gnostic Gospels to Positive Youth Development movement and the spiritual energy sites near Sedona, Arizona--and include brief bibliographies for further reading. Bottom Line Although its entries are brief, this work is most suitable for readers with at least a basic understanding of the topics discussed. Recommended for larger public and academic libraries.-- Michele McGraw, Hennepin Cty. Lib., Edina, MN (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

This encyclopedia positions itself as part of the scholarship aimed at fostering understanding of religion and spirituality in a pluralistic global society with a focus on the development of religiosity and spirituality. The editors have academic backgrounds in child development and developmental psychology. Scarlett has published extensively on religious and spiritual development. One hundred and thirty other contributors have written some 265 entries on topics as varied as Thomas Aquinas0 ; the Gaia hypoth0 esis ; Mysticism, Jewish0 ; and Teen Challenge0 (Assemblies of God). The signed entries vary in length, but many are substantial, such as Christian spirituality, Meditation,0 and Stage-structural approach to religious devel0 opment. A list for further reading is generally included. The detailed index and the topical guide in the fore matter are essential because, although the titles of many of the entries are straightforward, some are certainly not intuitive--for example, Coping in youth and Healing the children of war.0 Frequent see also0 references in the index are helpful. The index has some drawbacks--huge lists of page numbers under topics such as evil0 or God0 offer no idea about the context. The subject headings assigned by the Library of Congress to this work are "Youth--Religious life," "Faith development," and "Youth psychology." Indeed, the most interesting articles are ones, such as Child's God0 , Differences between religion and spirituality in children and adolescents0 , and Outcomes, adolescent,0 that deal with these themes directly; in more general articles, such as those on specific religious traditions or on basic concepts such as Forgiveness, 0 the developmental aspect or the dimension for youth is worked in after basic information is laid out. On the whole, however, although the information on development of spirituality or religion in children and youth is interesting, many of the other articles seem unnecessary (three pages on Angels,0 for example). The articles that are very directly focused on spiritual development in youth are academic in tone, but many of the other entries are rather popular and superficial. There is certainly material here for someone looking for research on the topic of spiritual or religious development, but as a reference encyclopedia, it seems of limited interest. --Margaret Power Copyright 2006 Booklist

Choice Review

This is the product of an ambitious project: to bring within a single volume many different facets of religion and spirituality. These two terms are intertwined. Every religion has a spiritual dimension, but it is possible to be spiritual without being affiliated to a religion, and not all religious people are necessarily spiritual. Notwithstanding all the controversies associated with the notions and practices of religion and spirituality, they both permeate practically every sphere of human culture, from literature and music to health and scholarship. Concepts associated with them are ubiquitous in the language; religious names and symbols enrich and inspire human culture and societies.This compendium of brief essays on some of the major topics associated with religion and spirituality is informative and erudite, but by no means exhaustive in its selection of topics or complete in their treatment. Practically all the scholars included are of the Judeo-Christian tradition. The list of leading religious and spiritual figures consists only of those associated with the Abrahamic faiths and Buddha. Not all Christian denominations have an entry. On the other hand, there are articles on some major organizations, such as the Sierra Club and UNICEF; places of religious significance; and key concepts and practices, like rituals, yoga, and prayer. This book deserves a place in every library because it is a rich source of insight and information on topics of growing relevance and interest. Perhaps it may be taken as the prototype of a multivolume encyclopedia on this very vast subject. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. All levels. V. V. Raman emeritus, Rochester Institute of Technology

Library Journal Review

Written to highlight current research on understanding the similarities and differences among world religions and spiritualities by editors Dowling (director of research, the ImagineNations Group) and Scarlett (deputy chair, the Eliot-Pearson Dept. of Child Development, Tufts Univ.), this work addresses the complexity of factors involved in religious and spiritual development. The editors note in the introduction that beyond serving solely as a reference tool, the encyclopedia is meant to foster their broader goals of enabling readers to function more effectively in a pluralistic society and to support personal spiritual growth. The work includes over 250 entries written by 125 international scholars on religions and traditions, institutions, and important texts and practices that have had an impact throughout history. Though the work is not supposed to serve as an exhaustive catalog of its subject, it does provide a broad overview of more traditional topics as well as newer trends and themes. The entries range from several paragraphs to several pages in length-e.g., "Five Pillars of Islam and the Gnostic Gospels" to "Positive Youth Development movement and the spiritual energy sites near Sedona, Arizona"-and include brief bibliographies for further reading. Bottom Line Although its entries are brief, this work is most suitable for readers with at least a basic understanding of the topics discussed. Recommended for larger public and academic libraries.-Michele McGraw, Hennepin Cty. Lib., Edina, MN (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.