Dialogue between Fowler and Loder (assignment is for Elsie Reyes).
Read the article "Conversations on Fowler's Stages of Faith and Loder's The Transforming Moment. Answer the following questions:
1. Describe Fowler's "Stages of Faith" as narrated by Loder.

2. What are Loder's concerns and challenges to this theory? How do you agree or disagree with Loder?

3. Describe Loder's paradigm as described by Fowler.

4. What are Fowler's concerns regarding Fowler's paradigm? In what ways do you agree or disagree?

James Fowler's Theory of Faith Development

I attempted to upload a video of a short lecture on the theological streams in Fowler's theory of faith development.  It did not work.  Therefore, here is a short synopsis:

H. Richard Niebuhr is a significant influence on the work of Fowler.  Fowler studied with Niebuhr and from him garnered the concept that faith is a social phenomena.  Niebuhr understood faith to be the consistent structure of the "I" and the "thou" in the presence of a third (shared center of value and power).  Faith is thus a human experience of interpersonal relations which exists between two persons insofar as they have a common cause- a common center of value which transcends them.  He referred to this a a "triad of faith."  All knowing involves a triadic relation of at least two subjects and an object.  This knowing may be described as an affair of valuation.

For Niebuhr there are three levels to this triadic existence of faith.  The first level is the organization of social beings for the sake of pursuing common interests.  Relations remain largely external to the terms related.  (My membership at the local YMCA puts me into a relationalship with other members.)  Secondly, there may be relations formed in the desire for a complete community of life which shares a common memory and a common  hope.   Relations here are more internal in the sense that the related are profoundly changed by being brought into relation.  'What is related is not interest so much as interested individuals." (Certain forms of political and religious alliances fit here).  Niebuhr's third possibility is one of common but divergent interest held together in trust and responsibility.  A union of this type is held together even if some common elements are destroyed.  Faithfulness of fidelity constitutes a bond in this society.  (A marriage covenant or a deeply committed relationship in Christian community)

For Niebuhr faith is a universal phenomenon based on trust and fidelity between two selves in the face of a third reality.  For him, the best center is "radically monotheistic," namely a shared center of value and power that is "ultimate being."

To Niebuhr's thought about faith Fowler added Kohlberg's and Piaget's structural developmentalism.  The resulting gestalt is an understanding of faith that sees it as a verb- to have faith is to trust in-rely upon- a shared center of value and power.  This "faithing" capacity is inherent within humankind and develops throughout the life span.  It is closely tied to cognitive and moral development.  

The end result is a very powerful theory that sees "faith" as progressing developmentally in stages.  We will go over these stages next week.

Books of interest:

H. Richard Niebuhr, The Social Self; Radical Monotheism

Lawrence Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development

Lawrence Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development

For those of you not able to attend the session on Lawrence Kohlberg, go online and research his theory of moral development. Post your understanding of his stages. I have handouts for this section that will be either mailed to you or posted on CAMS.

Birth of the Living God

By now most of you will have read Ana Marie Rizzuto's Birth of the Living God.  Post your thoughts  on how object relations theory informs our ministry as counselors, teachers, parents and pastors.  Which case study impacted you the most?  I can't get away from the deep sadness of Benadine Fisher.  Her life was totally void of anyone who could in a significant way mirror to her a healthy image of God.  Her parents were infantile and needy and unable to provide Bernadine with security that she longed for.  So when asked to draw a picture of God she could only draw "a bright warm clean feeling."  There was no one there...

Bernadine was covered in shame and felt she was so "bad" that she was beyond redemption.  I know of some people like this.  You can preach about God's love and they don't get it.  Some of them, like Bernadine Fisher, have chronic borderline personality disorder and can suck the life out of you....but it is never enough.  Here is where transforming experiences are vital in changing self/world.

Erik Erikson-Week of September 11

Choose one of Erikson's stages and post an overview along with your reflections on how this stage is navigated in today's society. Do you think that the developmental tasks of this stage are easier or more difficult to achieve than previous generations? For instance, during adolesence identity used to be achieved by the early twenties. Now identity formation is being pushed into the late twenties.

Welcome to Human Growth & Transformation

Welcome to Human Growth & Transformation Blog

This site is designed as a "off campus forum" for students in Human Growth and Transformation at the Church of God Theological Seminary.  Check in on the weeks that we are not together in the classroom for discussions, videos, etc.