This phenomenological study examines lived experiences and perceptions of Christian parents of young children to investigate their approaches to faith activity and nurture and the extent to which this includes authenticity of welcome for young children in the modern-day church. Online survey data was analysed thematically through the lens of…

The present paper reports findings from interviews with thirty ex-choristers from cathedrals and collegiate chapels in England, aged from eighteen to eighty. These interviews explored choristers' religious commitments before entering choir school and factors for staying with, leaving, or later returning to religious practice. The findings suggest…

Gerald Grace (2002. "Catholic Schools: Mission, Markets and Morality." London: Routledge), borrowing from the sociological constructs of Pierre Bourdieu, speaks of the significance of the spiritual and cultural capital of religious orders in providing a substantial catalyst in the development of Catholic education in England and Wales.…

A growing number of new faith communities in North America are emerging as part of the Wild Church Network. These outdoor church expressions seek to re-acquaint, re-cover, and re-member their faith communities as loving participants of the larger community of Creation. This paper explores theological foundations and spiritual practices grounding…

This article is devoted to studying the musical and educational activities of the Yekaterinoslav Theological Seminary in the context of Russian spiritual education in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Seminary's role in regional culture is considered in detail, with a specific focus on the development of music education and…

The spiritual formation of teachers in Church-based schools is of great importance but doesn't always receive the attention it deserves. In the 1920s and 30s, the British writer in spirituality, Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941), gave three Addresses to teachers and one lecture at Oxford University, discussing the teacher's spiritual life, and the…

This two-year ethnographic study examines the motivations for religious knowledge development, or religious literacy, embedded in a Latter-day Saint congregation. Qualitative analyses of observations and 29 interviews with nine youth yielded three characteristics of religious environments that motivated youth for religious literacy. When youth…

Four writings by the medieval theologian Bonaventure (c. 1221-1274) provide inspiration for the future of Christian education. His writings cast a vision for Christian education and provide insight into four key areas for hope in the future: a reclaiming of the purpose of Christian education; a recovery of the Great Tradition; a rediscovery of the…

The written artifacts of nineteenth-century Virginian Robert Reid Howison (1820--1906) lend themselves to an analysis of Howison as a self-directed, lifelong learner, and non-traditional educator as evidenced through his scholarship stemming from his vocational roles as lawyer and minister as well as his work as a historian. Howison's…

The article concerns school chaplains in Czech church schools. Drawing on interviews and non-participant field observations, I examine, through an applied thematic analysis, how the chaplains participate in the negotiation of the church school ethos with other important actors in everyday interactions. This study argues that Czech school chaplains…

The shortage of teachers who can strongly identify with the religious mission of Catholic schools is at the point of an "existential crisis," according to a system leader in Catholic schools in Western Canada. Drawing upon exploratory interviews completed with ten chief superintendents (who oversee large school districts), this paper…

In "To Young Men," Basil of Caesarea asserted that pagan literature could be read discerningly for the pursuit of virtue. As a professor of English, I recognize Basil as an exemplar pedagogue in my own insistence that Christian students read secular texts. Not a scholar of Greek, I rely on patristic scholarship to understand Basil's…

This article considers the high significance of the Russian Orthodox Church's system of religious education, which is currently being built in the Russian Federation. The great value of this system is due to the fact that Orthodoxy has historically been the most massive and important religion in Russia. Sunday schools are examined as a form of…

This paper reports the results of a study of adult ethical development in Christian congregations. Using an empirical hermeneutic phenomenological methodology, this study examined how five pastors understand and encourage ethical development, creating an in-depth analysis and interpretation of their perceptions of the phenomenon of adult ethical…

This article considers how the head teacher's value system influences the ethos of the Church of England (C of E) Voluntary Controlled (VC) primary school. The findings were generated from a case study of six head teachers of rural primary schools in the East of England. The role of a head teacher in any school is a huge responsibility. Leading a…