Evolution

    All too often there is a select group, a privileged group, who learn, explore, and debate in a university cluster.  Knowledge can never be understated, neither can the opportunity for growth.   Humans evolve.  The universe evolves.  Catholicism evolves.  At times knowledge of the revolving Catholic faith becomes restricted to a select group who either fail to discuss outside the cluster of safety or the elite or choose to ignore the congregation because it is easier than to explain.  This paper is a reflection of growth and knowledge that needs to be understood for Catholics to defend and to debate their religion.  It is a minute detail, but important none the less. 

     This paper will demonstrate how Teilhard de Chardin, a Jesuit priest contributed to Catholicism in his understanding of evolution which is Catholic teaching today.  This evolution is widely known as "Darwin's Theory of Evolution".  Who Teilhard de Chardin was, what the theory of evolution is and how it is relevant to Roman Catholicism in an evolutionary world will be explained.

Static World vs Dynamic : Evolution

    If a juggler has three balls it is important that they are each of equivalent weight.  If not, the balance is affected and the balls fall.  Think of three balls as one being the world, one being God, and the other being humanity.  In theology one may understand our evolving state by utilizing this concept.  We live in a developing universe.  There was a time of nature gods, there was a mythology, but not a history and therefore a divine purpose could not be declared.

     By the time Christianity appeared, the Roman world would have been entirely familiar with the thought that the universe might have gradually come to be as it is.[1]

      In the year 1616, the Holy Office declared that the sun is the center of the universe, and consequently does not change place and that the earth is not the center of the universe and is not motionless, but is in motion as a whole and its daily rotation. [2]  We know with absolute physical certainty, that the stellar universe is not centred on the earth, and that terrestrial life is not centred on mankind[3]

From Early Times

     The average Catholic has no true understanding of how their religion originated and how this has changed throughout the centuries.  By understanding this concept there is a better understanding of how humanity has evolved and thus continues to evolve. 

     The primary focus of the Old Testament is about salvation.  In Israel's faith, redemption was primary and creation secondary.  This was not only in order of theological importance, but also in order of appearance to the Israelite tradition.  The first chapter of Genesis was not composed until after the Babylonian exile in the sixth century B.C., long after the historical chronicles. The fall of Jerusalem in 587 B.C. and the loss of the land reflect the feeling of a collapse, a chaos all over the earth and a cry to Yahweh as the One on whom all order depends, the One who first brought order from chaos.  The opening chapter of Genesis composed around this time, expresses confidence that the same Lord who has protected Israel from its beginnings is the Creator.  It retells the story of Creation presented in the much older and more primitive account of the origins of man and woman, as Chapter Two of Genesis.  The creation from nothing, is of later Christian tradition.[4]  In the Bible the story of creation does not stand by itself as though it were a prescientific attempt to explain the origin or evolution of nature.  Creation is the starting point of history.  It sets the stage for the unfolding of the divine purpose, a historical drama.[5]

     The history of the gospel tradition is a history of the translation of a story from Aramaic into Greek, even though the earliest stages of this history are lost to us.  The Greek language determined to a substantial degree the formulation of the message.[6]          

     The biblical writers show little if any interest in a causal explanation of natural process.  The Greeks however were fascinated by it.  They speculated of how water or fire or atoms in motion could explain the world they saw(McMullin, p21). Greek natural science attained its height with Aristotle.  He created whole fields such as physics, theoretical astronomy, logic and biology.  Aristotle foreshadowed evolution, "we should venture on the study of every kind of animal without distaste, for each and all will reveal to us something natural…Nature's works exemplify…the conduciveness of everything to an end, and the resultant end of Nature's generations is a form of the beautiful." (McMullin, p22)

     St Augustine (5^th century) argued the Genesis account of creation in six days could not have been meant as literal history.  How could there be days, in the literal sense, before the sun was created?  Yet, the sun appears on what is called in the text the fourth day.  Further, the term day is a day in one part of the earth, it is night in the another.  The six days of the Genesis account involve the entire earth.  St Augustine concluded that the term must be taken metaphorically and speculated what it may have meant.  St Augustine stated that if there is a conflict between a literal reading of Scripture and a well-established truth about nature, this is sufficient reason to take the scriptural passage metaphorically.  There cannot be a contradiction between nature and Scripture since God speaks to both. St Augustine indicated that no one should worry if Christians are ignorant of those he called physicists regarding the natures of things.  It is enough for Christians to believe that the cause of all created things, whether in the heavens or on the earth, whether visible or invisible, is nothing other than the goodness of the Creator (McMullin, p 27).

     In the mid 1200s, the natural science taught in universities, including theology students, was that of Aristotle (McMullin, p 27).  Aristotelian cosmology and Christian theology were merged to form the medieval picture of the universe.  Earth was the fixed central sphere surrounded by the spheres of the heavens.  Man was unique and central in location and importance.  This view would soon be challenged by science.[7]

     Galileo (1564-1642) combined mathematical reasoning and experimental observation.  Galileo formulated a new picture of nature, that as nature in motion.  Galileo called mass and velocity, primary qualities.  What some Catholics may not know is that Galileo was a devout Catholic and found no conflict between his scientific and religious beliefs. He upheld the importance of scripture but claimed that it reveals not scientific facts but spiritual knowledge for man's salvation, truths that are above reason and could not be discovered by observation.  Galileo put nature and scripture on the same level as avenues of God (Barbour, pp 23-30).   

     Newton (1642-1727)invented calculus but he was also an ingenious experimenter in mechanics and optics.  Newton's law of motion and gravity, a novel insight, was the idea that the earth's gravitational pull might extend to the moon.  Newton believed and found time for God and the human spirit (Barbour, pp 34-37).     

     The eighteenth century saw itself as the Age of Reason (Barbour, p57)

Charles Darwin and the Church

         Darwin spent twenty-five years studying in detail the breeding of domestic animals, such as dogs where new breeds would be produced that never existed before from greyhound, to St. Bernard to Chihuahua.  Here was evolution with human choice replacing natural survival.  Darwin studied problems as diverse as hybridization of plants, comparative structure of embryos and the geographical distribution of animal and plant forms, both living and extinct.  The range and magnitude of information he brought into correlation with his theory is staggering.  After all this research, he published Origin of Species in 1859 (Barbour,p86.)

     For Roman Catholicism evolution was not in principle as disturbing as it was for Protestant conservatism.  In Catholicism, revealed truth is to be sought not in scripture alone, but in scripture and tradition as interpreted by the living church.  Moreover, the doctrine that scripture is divinely inspired has not excluded considerable flexibility and diversity in biblical interpretations (Barbour, p 100).

     By the close of the century, the fact of evolution was accepted by virtually all scientists, and by the vast majority of theologians.

    In the Middle Ages it was believed that frogs generate spontaneously from mud (Barbour, p 269).  Today we know better.    In 1950, Pope Pius X11, in Humans Generis, a "doctrine of evolution" was directly addressed.  There was no talk of the woman originating from man.[8]

    In 1951, an address of Pope Pius X11 cited with approval the views of several astronomers that the universe had a beginning in time.  In general, it is maintained that the creation of both the universe and the first man and woman were historical events, but that the biblical portrayal of these events is figurative (Barbour p 374).     

Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955)

Ursula King describes Teilhard de Chardin as a traveler, explorer, scientist, priest, and mystic.  She writes that for many he was too complex, too difficult a writer, too daring an innovator.  He was in love with the world and he was in love with God, deeply faithful to the Catholic Church.[9] Teilhard de Chardin was one of the Catholic Theologians who accepted and interpreted the faith with the understanding of evolution.  Teilhard de Chardin divides the energies that propel the world forward in time into two radically different sorts, tangential (preserves what evolution has provided) and radial (draws a given element forwards).  Chardin argued that to explain the evolutionary process, one must introduce a "radial" energy that is basically psychic in nature and whose operation can be discerned only by employing a mode of understanding, a special seeing of pattern.  Teilhard claimed that the radial energies of the universe are the manifestation of a hyperpersonal Omega point toward which the universe is both ascending and converging.  Teilhard identified this Omega Point with the Creator God of the Christian tradition (McMullin, pp36-37).  He believed that everything, in some way, has existed from the very first.  There is no sharp life unless there was already incipient life in all matter.  Similarly there is no line between life and thought.  Mind, like activity, of an elementary kind reaches all the way down the scale of life, though it becomes lost in darkness as we trace it back. Teilhard believed that evolution is incomplete. Creation is continuing and the universe is still in the process of being born (Barbour, p 399).  Teilhard was convinced that our world is a dynamic world, an embryonic cosmos still in growth.  In such a world, origins are less important than directions of development, and the past is less significant than the future.  God is involved in continuous creation (Barbour, 408).      

     Teilhard was trying to find a balance between science, religion and humanity when he said, "Our Christology is still expressed in exactly the same terms as those which, three centuries ago, could satisfy men whose outlook on the cosmos is now physically impossible for us to accept.  Unless we admit that religious life and human life are independent of one another

(which is a psychological impossibility) such a situation must a priori produce a feeling of dismay, a loss of balance…the answer must be in bringing Christology and evolution into line with one another (Chardin, p77).  What Teilhard was trying to do was bring, humanity, God and the world together again.  He was trying to balance the juggling of the balls.       

     Teilhard accepted science and believed that now was the time to look forward, "What now has to be done following the cosmic currents revealed by history, is to confront the future; and that means, now that we have recognized evolution, to drive it further ahead.  All the spirit of the earth combines to produce an increase of unitary thinking: that is the avenue opening up ahead of us. Teilhard was trying to make sense of an evolutionary world.  "Logically, we should have to admit that if the world is advancing towards the spiritual there must be a conscious peak to the universe." (Chardin, p 90) Teilhard believed it was necessary to have a faith in God ahead and a faith in God above, combining the immanent God of evolution with the idea of a transcendent God.  Teilhard was one of the early pioneers of interfaith dialogue. He supported and took part in interfaith activities from 1946 onward. "Faith in Man" was read at the Union des Croyants formed in 1947. Today we know it as inter religious dialogue.  Teilhard's address was based on the idea that people of different faiths and world views can, in spite of their differences, come together through their shared faith in the value of the human being.  Believers of different faiths can cooperate in building together a common future.[10]

     Teilhard was mocked as great men and women before him have been.  His views were described in Canadian and American newspapers as the "Jesuit who believes man descended from apes."  But he was recognized among his intellectual peers.  He was awarded the prestigious Mendel Medal in recognition of his work by the Catholic University of Villanova (King, Ursula, p 164).

Our Present Knowledge

     There is no doubt that we are living in an amazing time with endless opportunities.  Of course we are also living in a dangerous time.  Regardless of our scientific discoveries that continue to expand along with our technical and medical knowledge, we are still allowing people to starve in major portions of the world while we exploit our world in others.  Hopefully we can continue to evolve intellectually as well as spiritually without destroying each other or our planet with our tampering.  There is an end for all of us including our universe as most of us know.  As Catholics we should take our faith seriously, try to do something good for others and our world, even if it is in a small way.  We need to understand the changes we are introduced to in science because we need to understand our faith in the context of a changing world.  We need to maintain the balance of the three balls, of humanity, God and the world.  We depend on our Catholic leaders to educate us, to enlighten us and to help us with our faith. We depend on our leaders to help us to help others.  We depend on our leaders to guide us, nurture us and to help us understand God in our changing world.  It is the responsibility of every priest to enlighten his congregation.  It is every theologian's responsibility to do the same.  But the onus is also on the congregation to explore and to understand our world in relation to our faith.  Creation is not only about us as humans, it is about all the animals we share life with, it is about our planet that we should nurture and respect and take care of as we should with everything that is within our control.  We will continue to grow, and we will continue to spiral. Teilhard tried to make sense in juggling the balls to reconnect our present selves to God.  We will continue to do the same as we move forward and closer to God.       

     Vatican Council II admitted that the evolutionary ideas of Teilhard de Chardin had "a certain influence, at least indirect and diffuse on some orientations of the council". In the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et spes) it states, "And so mankind substitutes a dynamic and more evolutionary concept of nature for a static one." (GS 5)This is followed in the same document by, "historical studies tend to make us view things under the aspects of changeability and evolution" (GS 54)(Korsmeyer,p 18)

     In June 1988, in a message to a group of scientists and theologians, Pope John Paul 11 urged scientists and theologians to come to understand each other for their mutual benefit.  Pope John Paul said, "Science can purify religion from error and superstition.  Religion can purify science from idolatry and false absolutes.  In October 1996, Pope John Paul 11, in a formal address to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, declared that "fresh knowledge" produced by scientific research now leads to the recognition of the theory of evolution as more than just a hypothesis."  Still he said Roman Catholics must believe that "the spiritual soul is immediately created by God."(Korsmeyer, p20)

     Studies have confirmed that over 99.5% of our DNA is the same as a chimpanzee(Korsmeyer, p 81). What does this tell us?  It tells us that we are arrogant to think that we are so much more important in this world than anything else in it. 

     This paper is about theology and theology is about faith seeking understanding.  Teilhard was a Jesuit priest.  Jesuit spirituality is helping people in finding God in all things. This is not a paper about science. This is a paper about theology.  But we can not talk about theology without talking about science.  We cannot ignore scientific findings.  We cannot continue to insist that a frog is generated spontaneously from mud.  If we do, then the balance of the balls is not possible and will collapse.  The concepts of the Middle ages cannot continue.  Our society and our intelligence are evolving.  Not all have the opportunity for an education.  Not all have the possibilities to learn.  Therefore, it is imperative that our priests educate accordingly.  For they have the opportunity to learn and the obligation to teach the congregation.  Theologians too are obligated to teach.  But one can refuse to learn or laugh at what one doesn't understand or want to understand.  As Catholics we believe in God.  As Catholics we need to understand the balance of the three balls, our world, God and humanity.

     It is fitting that we conclude with our understanding of the world as it was and as it is.

     The entire course of 15 billion years of cosmic evolution can be calculated backwards from the present state of the universe until a point of 1 divided by 10 followed by 42 zeros.  Quantum theory does not allow us to get any closer to time zero.[11]

 15 billion years ago the universe began as a stupendous energy.   14.5 billion years ago the sun was born.  4.45 billion years ago planets were formed.  Earth brings forth an atmosphere, oceans and continents.  395 million years ago we have insects.  245 million years ago 75%to 95% of all species of that time were eliminated. 235 million years ago, dinosaurs appeared; flowers spread. 15 million years ago there is a cosmic impact – a catastrophe. 8 million years ago we have our modern cats (early cats and dogs were 35 million years ago).  6 million years ago there were modern dogs.  3.3 million years ago, current ice ages begin.  2.6 million years ago - first humans.  3,500 years ago the world population has 5 – 10 million.  3,500 B.C – chronic warfare.  3,000 B.C. there is the civilization of the Nile in Egypt and there are advances in technology.  4 B.C.E. Jesus.[12]  

    The Genesis 1 story is primarily meant as a reflection about the relationship between God, the world and humankind.  It gives meaning and purpose to the process of cosmic and biological evolution (Bonting, p28).  As Teilhard realized we will continue to evolve towards God.  Times have changed since St Augustine reported that one should not worry if Christians are ignorant of the nature of things.  If ignorance continues, then we will no longer be able to maintain a balance in the juggling of the balls.     

Bibliography

     Anderson, B.W. Creation, in G.A. Buttrick et al, eds. The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible.  Vol.1. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1962.

     Barbour, Ian G. Issues in Science and Religion.  Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1966.

     Bonting, Sjoerd. Chaos Theology: Revised Creation Theology. Ottawa: Novalis, 2002.

     King, Ursula. Christ In All Things: Exploring Spirituality with Teilhard de Chardin New York: Orbis Books, 1997.

     King, Ursula. Spirit of Fire: The Life and Vision of Teilhard de Chardin.  New York: Orbis Books, 1996.

     Korsmeyer, Jerry. Evolution and Eden. New York: Paulist, 1998.

     Ladd, G.E. The Patterns of the New Testament Truth. Grand Rapids: Everdmans,1968.

     McMullin, Ernan. Ed. Evolution and Creation. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1985, pp. 1-27.

    McMullin, Ernan.  Natural Science and Belief in a Creator, in David Byers, ed, Religion,Science and the Search for Wisdom.  Washington, DC: National Conference of Catholic Bishops, 1977.

     Swimme, Brian and Thomas Berry. The Universe Story. New York: Harper Collins, 1992.

     Teilhard de Chardin. Christianity and Evolution. New York: Harcourt Brace Jamanovich, Inc. 1971.

     Wildiers, N.M. The Theologian And His Universe.  New York: Seabury, 1982.

    

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[1] McMullin Ernan. Ed. Evolution and Creation.  Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1985, pp 7.

[2] Wildiers, N.M. The Theologian And His Universe. New York: Seabury, 1982.  Pg 97. All further reference to the text will be indicated by the Author's name followed by page numbers.

[3] Teilhard de Chardin. Christianity and Evolution. New York: Harcourt race Javanovich, Inc. 1971.  P.38. Further reference to the text will be indicated by the author's name followed by page numbers.

[4] McMullin, Ernan, Natural Science and Belief in a Creator, in David Byers, ed., Religion, Science and the Search for Wisdom.  Washington, DC: National Conference of Catholic Bishops, 1977, pp 17, 19, & 20.  Further reference to the text will be indicated by the Authors name followed by page numbers.

[5] Anderson , B.W. Creation, in G.A. Buttrick et al, eds.  The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible. Volume 1. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1962 p 727.

[6] Ladd, G.E. The Patterns of New Testament Truth.  Grand Rapids: Everdmans, 1968.  P 11.

[7] Barbour, Ian G. Issues in Science and Religion. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1966. P 18.  Further reference to the text will be indicated by the author's surname and page numbers.

[8] Korsmeyer, Jerry.  Evolution and Eden. New York: Paulist, l998. Pg 18.  Further reference to the text will be indicated by the author's name followed by the page numbers.

[9] King, Ursula.  Spirit of Fire: The Life and Vision of Teilhard de Chardin. New York: Orbis Books, 1996.  P vii.  Further reference to the text will be indicated by the author's full name, followed by the page numbers.

[10] King, Ursula. Christ in all Things; Exploring Spirituality with Teilhard de Chardin New York: Orbis Books, 1997. Pp 109-111.

[11] Bonting, Sjoerd. Chaos Theology: Revised Creation Theology.  Ottawa: Novalis, 2002. P 26. Further reference to the text will be indicated by author's name followed by page number.

[12] Swimme, Brian and Thomas Berry.  The Universe Story.  New York: Harper Collins, 1992.  (Time Line for the universe pp 269-278)

Creativity - psych notes

Creativity has five levels:

1.  Spontaneous expressions (eg.  child’s scribbling).

2.  producing artistic and scientific works.

3.  inventing a new and useful object method and technique.

4.  modifying a concept.

5.  originating a revolutionary new principle or movement.

Optimal IQ for creative development is only about 19 points above average for a particular field.

Intelligence tests -  convergent thinking – seeks a single right answer (usually the conventional one)   

Creative tests -        divergent thinking comes up with a wide array of fresh possibilities.  Divergent thinking is not the only factor in creativity.   Also important are sensitivity to problems and the ability to redefine or re-interpret them so as to obtain unique solutions.

Freud maintained that creativity is a result of sublimated sexual tension.

 Creative people tend to be courageous,  independent, honest, tenacious, curious and willing to take risks and above all they have a passion for what they do.

Affect tolerance -  ability to tolerate negative feelings is required for creative work.  Also intrinsic motivation, anger, fear, sadness, shame, depression, anxiety, self depreciation and sensitivity to rejection are a necessary part of the process. 

Allow people to grieve

              Whenever there is a loss of life, there is enormous suffering for those who remain behind.  I have had quite a few sessions, seminars and practicum with those dying and those grieving.  I have heard the voices of those dying and suffering that will remain with me and not for print.  What I have learned is that people need to grieve.  Allow that please.  

     Many people project their own feelings on others.   I feel this way, therefore, you should feel this as well.  I emptied my mother’s closet a month after her death and therefore you should have emptied your daughter’s closet after one year.  There is so much judgment, which should be replaced with love and support.    

     People need to be allowed to grieve in their own way.  No demands should be placed on their shoulders than they already have.  People grieve differently and need not to be judged.

    Grief may also open doors to re-examine friendships regarding the support or lack of it from family and friends. 

     If you are grieving, allow yourself the time to do so, if it is what you need.  If you want to return to work and be busy sooner than others think you should, go by what you feel.  Being busy can help.  If you are feeling any type of guilt, remember that it is common.  If I did this, than maybe……….

     If you are supporting someone who is grieving do so by listening.  This is not the time to talk about your own aches and pains.   This is a time when it is not about you, but how you can support someone you care for.  Sometimes grief can tear people apart, but it can also be a time when people become closer and united in sorrow.

Great Party, If I say so myself!!!!!

                              

     Last night, I did it.  I had my own party.  A few were sick and could not make it and I understood that perfectly.  That is how I ended the previous year.  This flu is still around.  I invited family and very close friends and a few people who I really like.  In planning a party in the winter, I need to curtail the amount of people, I would normally invite.   Priority – family and best friend.  My best friend has been so since I was eighteen and he 17.  That has been a problem at times in my life because a few men I dated could not understand that bond.  The priority if and when given the ultimatum has always been my best friend.   We are both older now and time is our friend.  He has quite a large family and runs an excellent business.  I am so proud of him.

     How do you know if you have a successful party?  You know it, when people leave smiling and laughing and when people leave feeling relaxed. 

      I have never picked my friends by what they do, or how educated they are.  I could not care less.  What is important to me is their heart.  That includes relatives.    

     One guest was asked what she did for a living, by another.  Nothing she said, I take care of my family.  That is not nothing, I interjected.   I also reminded her of her earlier, impressive,  career and she reminded me of the business she had.  But, her priority has been her family and she can afford to stay home and take care of her family.  Choices are for ourselves to decide.

     I once told an elderly homemaker, that she was a dying breed.  This woman could cook up an amazing meal within a short time.  Her home was always sparkling.  I told her that she was a dying breed.  There is almost an expectation that women need to do it all.  Be a wife, daughter, mother, homemaker and career woman?  I could never be that super woman.  It has to be 50/50 all the way and I would prefer less of 50, for myself.  If, that cannot be accomplished, than hire someone to do that.  That is where I stand firm.  I am no super, girl at all.  Being a home maker or house wife or stay at home, whatever you want to call it is not a luxury.   I remember a male friend of mine who stayed home with his boys, while his wife worked at a lucrative career.  He realized in no short time that it was hard work, and after a few years are this hard labour, returned to the work force. 

      Where do you stand in these positions?  How do you select your friends?  How do you select which relatives you socialize with?  Do you choose their station in life, their salaries, and their kindness?  Big choices?  Are you alone?  Why?  What can you do, to start meeting people?  What can you do to choose more positive people in your life?  Who would you invite if you were giving a party?  Why?  What do you do for a living?  How educated are you?  More important are you where you want to be in life?  What can you do, to get there?  Make new friends, take a closer look at who you are living with.  Are you happy?  Are you abused?  What can you do to make your life a better one?  Do you need help getting there?

     Yesterday, I had a friend call me before the party.  “Do you want me to come earlier, to help?”  No, it is all done, I informed him, adding that I was reading a book.  He laughed.  It was an endearing laugh.  I added that he could still come early if he wanted.  I had a perfect day yesterday.  I spent my alone time, in my own company, which I really cherish.  I spent time alone with my pets, and I spent that quality time with family and friends knowing that I am loved and I love.  We all need love.  Do you love someone?  Are you loved?  Love is not abusive.  Some people only have known abuse and do not realize there is something more.  I assure you, there is.  Are you feeling so desperate that you want to die, or kill or hurt?   Please do not.  Find someone to help you.  It is possible. 

     I have been told by my mentor that I am solution focused.  I never thought much of it, but I suppose I am.  If someone is not happy, than perhaps they need to realize why they are not?  Perhaps they need to have some help understanding how they got to feel that way and how they can, by understanding and perhaps changing their own behaviour to achieve their own goals and not someone else’s.  Life is so short and it can be so wonderful.

   Prior to my party, my mom informed me that my life has been an adventure.  I suppose it has been, and what an adventure.  Perhaps I want to help people, because I want to have them sense a bit of that wonderfulness.  I am thankful for each moment that I breathe, that I live, that I love.  What are you thankful for?  How can you get to where you want to be, rather than accept where you are?  What do you think?    

Spiritual Direction For Children

          Spiritual Direction For Children

  It can be debated that spiritual direction for children is as important as spiritual direction for adults. The Catholic Church offers children much of what is offered to adults through their right of passage such as confession, communion and confirmation.  However, what we have not offered our children is spiritual direction. Some children grow into adults with an unhealthy fear of God that normally is detected in spiritual direction or through their discussions with the Clergy, therapists or others. With spiritual direction devised for children we can help them from cultivating negative associations with God therefore culturing a health perspective of God.

    This paper will provide the concept for an implementation plan of spiritual direction for children.  It will recommend a starting age for children and describe the spiritual direction required.  This paper will also provide guidelines to implement the program and offer understanding of a child as she develops in this stage of childhood and religion.

     Children are creative, imaginative and curious which requires stimulation.  The objective of spiritual direction for children is not to distort their private image and their personal relationship with God but to eliminate or alleviate a frightening God whom may be stemming from the child's personal relationship with the parent or caregiver.  Once this is accomplished the spiritual director and child may continue to develop in this relationship with God.  Barry and Connolly describe spiritual direction as directly assisting individuals in developing and cultivating their personal relationship with God.  Barry and Connolly indicate that this understanding of spiritual direction, has been gradually refined by their experience (1986).  This too will occur with the spiritual direction of children.  Due to the complexity of children, a program of spiritual direction will need to be revised, challenged and tested.  Because we are dealing with children it is best to have directions with children video taped.  This may also be utilized as a tool for amendments and teaching purposes.

     Children need to be loved and respected, as do adults.  An important aspect of dealing with children is with kindness. Questions should always be answered and if a question is not known than the child should be told that and efforts should be made to provide that answer.  Questions and answers should be listened to respectfully without patronization.  Personal biases of children or personal experiences with children should not hinder what is best for the child.  Individual biases of children will need to be dealt with by the spiritual director through education and specialized training.  If each parent or caregiver of a child were efficient in dealing with children we would not have as many maladaptive adults.  Having children or raising children does not necessarily qualify in the preference for the selection and training of spiritual directors. 

 Spiritual Program

     

     Children learn naturally by playing, observing, and by association.  Four and five year olds begin to understand how other people's state of mind can differ from their own.  They realize that people, can be led astray, by incomplete knowledge, false beliefs, or misinterpretations. This discovery helps them to master many simple but essential transactions that are a casual part of social life (Mayes & Cohen, 2002).  By the time the child is six, formal education is imposed on the child.  By the age of six, children become more creative in regards to thinking and get excited about new games and new ideas (Langlois, 1999). Before age six, children often have difficulty distinguishing between reality and fantasy (Schor, 1999).  Therefore, age six or seven is a good starting point for spiritual direction to begin.

     From ages six to ten children unconditionally accept the existence of God, but may find it difficult to imagine God's presence in their own life (Langlois, 1999). Carl Jung was one of the first psychologists to recognize the significance of spiritual experiences in childhood, especially as they manifested in dreams (Gollnick, 2005).  Michael Piechowski (2001) asserts that there are a significant number of published accounts of childhood spiritual experiences that frequently go unrecognized (Gollnick, 2005). The spiritual director for children should be familiar with these concepts and recognize spirituality in the child.

     The child should be advised what spiritual direction is, and explore the spirituality of God in the form of play.  Faceless dolls or teddy bears (non-gender specific) may be used to understand how the child perceives God. Cole's "the Face of God" is very useful in determining a child's image of God. By having the child draw an image of God, the perception of the child can be visualized.  If a child thinks God is bad, than the director needs to understand why and use positive, playful instruction to move away from the negative perception into a positive one.  This process should be slow and repetitious.  If there are problems recognized, that too needs to be addressed.

     All children ask questions about God.  They want to know where God is, what happens when we die etc… (Langlois, 1999).  These are questions that will be raised and need to be answered in a way the child understands. 

     Active listening is important.  Listen to, summarize, and repeat back to the child the message you are hearing about God.  Don't just parrot what is heard but go beneath the surface to what the child may be thinking and feeling.  Spoken words may not be the true or complete message.  Example, "it sounds to me as if you are sad, scared, happy [in relation to God]. Maintain eye contact when the child speaks.  The spiritual director may show interest by the nodding of his head.  Create opportunities for the child to solve the problems she may be facing.  Encourage and guide.  Ask her to bounce ideas off you, which might eventually suggest solutions to problems.  Ensure the dialogue is positive and do not impose judgment or place blame. Praise and reward the child from time to time for listening.  Motivation to listen more and follow through may be stimulated when efforts are recognized  (Schor, 1999).  Dr William states, "Stay with your patients long enough, through thick and thin, and you'll learn a hell of a lot more than you ever expected." (Coles, 1990) This is an excellent analogy in the dealing of children with spiritual direction. In Coles' notes he relates, "Years later…I realize that the children I met were eager indeed to speak of their religious and spiritual interests, concerns, worries, beliefs...(Coles, 1990)

    A child needs to be heard.  Active listening with kindness will encourage the child to speak his thoughts about God.             

 

Method

     The setting for spiritual direction should inspire, provoke thought, comfort and offer a haven of safety to the child.      

     The setting can vary from sitting outside in a small makeshift garden, to the inside of a room in the church.  The outside will allow the child to appreciate the serenity of nature, the birds, small animals, and plants and flowers.  The inside room should be creative, serene, with a religious aura.  The spiritual director must remember that what the child sees will be associated with God.  How she is treated will also imprint how she will visualize God in the future.  Dosani speaks of safety issues surrounding children and this should be considered when setting up the room for a child.  There should be no hard edges where a child can hurt himself.  Having two clear paths for the child is also an asset (Dosani, 2007).

     The preferred setting is selected and the spiritual director is now ready to help the child grow in the relationship with God.  Hall lists points to guide children in spirituality.

·         The child needs to be encouraged to learn about God's love and mercy and God's justice and strength. 

·         Children must be given tools for understanding the complexity of God's character, rather than focusing on only one element of God.

·         Foster spiritual formation by helping the child to understand what it means to be created in the image of God.  We are made for relationship with God and relationships with other.

     (Hall, 2003) These points should be incorporated in the start of any program. These are positive tools for refection.  Following a specific guideline will ensure that there is a main theme shared by all spiritual directors.  If a child moves from one church and from one spiritual director, the lack of sameness would confuse the child as he begins to hear contradictions.

CONCLUSION

    Children in their early years will develop concepts of God that will remain with them through out their lives.  It is only reasonable that before misconceptions are cemented that children should be offered the opportunity to develop a healthy appetite for God.

     This is only a make shift template for the provocation of thought to implement such a program.   It is important that the spiritual director is learned in the development stages of the child and aware of how important the director's contact with the child is.  The director not only becomes an advisor to the child, but also a mentor and role model.  With the implementation of spiritual direction for children, the child is given the opportunity to grow with God.  Spiritual direction should continue throughout the child's life, to his teenage years where discerning will be the most challenging and into adulthood.      

     

References

 Barry,W.A., & Connolly, W.J. (1986).  The Practice of Spiritual Direction. New York: 

      Harper Collins Publishers. Ix.

Coles, R., (1990). The Spiritual Life Of Children.    Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. 2, 37. 3. 340.

     Dosani, S., & Cross, P. (2007). Raising Pre-Teens. New York: Penguin Group. 8 37-40.

Gollnick, J. (2005).  Religion and Spirituality in the Life Cycle.  Peter Lang: New York. 74-75.

Hall, T.W. (2003). Spiritual Formation, Counseling and Psychotherapy. Nova Science Pub. 8 120.

Langlois,C., (Ed.), (1999).  Raising Great Kids: Ages 6  to 12. The complete Guide to Your Child's

      Health and Development.  Mississauga: Random House. 73, 99-115  168.

May, L., & Cohen, D. (2002).  The Yale Child Study Center Guide To Understanding Your Child.

     Yale University. 10  132.

Schor, E.L. (Ed.),(1999). American Academy of pediatrics, The Complete and Authoritative Guide.

     Caring For Your School Age Child.  Ages 5 to 12. New York:Bantam.  199-203, 235.

“City of Indonesia plans to "ban the practice of women” “'straddling motorbikes.””

     I am going to have to remember not to renew my newspaper subscription because it is interfering with the writing of my book, also, perhaps because the Toronto Sun has photos of the Sunshine Girl, but not the Sunshine Boy (it used to), or Sunshine Pet.  Also, the crosswords appear to be all from the States.  I love the States, but would they be pleased working Canada’s crosswords?  New York is my favourite city, but I don’t want to do the New York or California’s crosswords.  We spell the same words differently and we need to know our own stuff.  I remember as a child, kids thought the President was the Prime minister and what kind of crossword puzzles did they have then?  I score better with the “coffee” crosswords or the universal crosswords.  I have read this paper forever and stopped when I would get the Toronto Star for free.  Sometimes when I read the free paper 24, I also find the news more accurate than the one’s you have to pay for.  I am always surprised by the discrepancies by the different newspapers and television news.  Who am I to believe?  Is the woman who was raped and killed in India a medical student or studying to become a physiotherapist?  If it is not known, why not just say student?  If it is an error why not correct it at the next newscast?  Perhaps I have been too bombarded with the world news and perhaps I should read the paper at the end of day instead of the beginning of the day.

     Today the paper reveals, “”When you see a woman straddle, she looks like a man.  But if she sits side-saddle, she looks like a woman,” said Suaidi Yahya, mayor of Lhokeumawe in Aceh, the only Indonesian province that follows Sharia law.” (Forgive my quotations which do not perform as I would like on my cheap laptop- Apple where are you…..one day) Apparently this is to become a new bylaw.  What is even more comical is when I hear that there are communities in Toronto who would like to see Sharia law here and are trying to work on getting that approved.  It is my opinion that Sharia law is more a way of controlling women politically, than it has anything to do with religion.  How can these men run a city, let alone a country, when they are so closed minded and I am going to say it, “stupid” (oops, I am being fallacious but could not control myself this morning).

     It is no wonder that our world is so chaotic with little value placed on people in general, let alone the animals within it or the environment.  There are always consequences for all our actions.  Maybe it is time for everyone to smell the coffee.  I have had my dosage for the day.

      I wrote a paper about the Afghanistan woman in my undergrad because a speaker who was scheduled to talk at Osgoode, could not.  She had to find a replacement.  She told me that she had been warned after speaking in the States (this was before the war), that they would actually kill her, if she did so again.  Can you imagine killing a woman in my city, in my country by the Taliban?  My imagination is working overtime.  When is enough, enough?  Do wars begin because they want to protect the women and children within?  Of course not.  I will post that paper eventually, but I have to type it first.  I don’t have a scanner and I don’t have it on my usb.  Oh, well.  How does this all relate to Pastoral Counselling/psychotherapy?

    What damage does it do to women when they are prohibited to enjoy daily life, as anyone else?  What damage does it do when women question their femininity, because of what others tell them?  Short dresses for some women, make up, high heels (not good for your feet) and all the frills and glitter are great for some women some of the time or all the time.  For other women, they feel better with running shoes and track pants.  It is all okay.  A woman is not manlike because she rides a bicycle or any other mode of travel, including a motorbike.  This “Suaidi Yahya”  would not know what a woman is, if she fell on him.  Dress and deportment is a matter of taste.  I may like a man in a suit or I may prefer him in ………………Does this mean he is not a man, if he is in any sort of clothing?  What does this to the men who want to protect their wives, girlfriends, and daughters who want to “straddle their motorbike”?  When is there a point when they are threatened?  How many men have been killed?

    Have you been told you are not feminine because of the way you dress, your occupation or your mannerism?  How has this affected you?  Are you feeling demeaned?  Are you feeling inferior?  Are you feeling controlled?  What can you do about this?   If this is occurring at work, report it.  If this has been part of your culture and you are feeling weighed down, see someone to sort out your feelings and discover who you really are.  What do you think?  Men, are you feeling overwhelmed by cultural norms?  Do you know how you feel and why you feel them?  What do you think?

                 Now back to my book!