Spiritual Dimensions of Pastoral Care: Practical Theology in a Multi-Disciplinary Context

Written by significant researchers and practitioners within the field, this unique collection of key texts introduces the reader to practical theology. It critically explores the way in which the spiritual dimension of pastoral care has entered into constructive dialogue with other disciplines and ways of thinking, including: psychiatry, psychology, counselling, intercultural studies, educational methodology, narrative theory and political studies.

Set within this multidisciplinary context, the individual contributions (a selection of articles from a leading journal of pastoral theology, Contact: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Pastoral Studies) cover a wide range of practical and theological issues that alert the reader to the spiritual dimension of pastoral care, such as bereavement, sexuality, ethics, learning disabilities, infertility, the meaning of pain, sickness and suffering and the nature of theology as a practical discipline. The book is an invaluable resource for practitioners, researchers, students and all who have an interest in the ways in which a spiritual dimension can enhance caring practices within a multidisciplinary context.

David Willows, PhD, was Editor of Contact: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Pastoral Studies from 1997-2000. A former mental health chaplain in Oxford, he is currently Examining Chaplain for Educational Studies to the Bishop of London and Research Director of the Paternoster Centre, London. John Swinton is Professor in Practical Theology and Pastoral Care at the School of Divinity, History and Philosophy; King’s College, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, and a minister in the Church of Scotland.