Fowlers Stages of faith Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 13750 words

Fowlers Stages of credence - Essay ExampleFINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 43 CHAPTER V 54 demonstration AND RECOMMENDATION 54 5.1. SUMMARY 55 5.2. CONCLUSION 56 5.3. RECOMMENDATIONS 57 5.4. FUTURE POSSIBILITY OF THE RESEARCH AND SOME DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED 58 Bibliography 59 ABSTRACT 63 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.0. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Since the ancient period, humanity has constantly tried to understand peoples relation and position with the world, with the universe, with transcendental reality. The whole kit and caboodle of Plato and Aristotle offer how human beings may be able to apprehend their position in the cosmos (see Phaedrus, The Republic, The Metaphysics ). However, during the Middle Ages, when peoples nature is defined more than in terms of their relation with God, faith seeking understanding has become an attestation of a mortals innate ability to understand the person in relation with God. Nonetheless, the questions and the ampleing for answers do not end there. In th is sense, the desire to understand the content of life, its purpose and its relation with God and Others have long been part of the questions underpinning human existence. This yearning has become more concrete in the midst of the angst rising from current human experiences, of the present human condition. In this regard, the indispensableness of understanding faith dimension in the lives of people in the contemporary period becomes more urgent as people try to find meaning and purpose for their lives. However, what is faith? Generally, faith is belief in the reality of a transcendental being. However, over the past few decades, a different approach to faith has been given. James Fowlers theory of faith development is considered as one of the most significant models of faith/spirituality development that has emerged (Stantrock, 1999 Parker, 2006). It seeks to chart the stages of faith indoors the chronological life span of a person (Fowler, 1981). As such, the model tries to expl ain the process by which individuals perspectives on ultimate meanings and values change during the campaign of their life (Fowler, 1981). In this regard, Fowlers stages of faith, the only recognized measure of faith development stages (Moseley, Jarvis, Fowler & Di Nicola, 1993), has attracted further studies, debates and added evaluation (Streib 2005 Parker, 2006). In lieu with this, the study will take care into James Fowlers stages of faith vis-a-vis Christian faith. 1.1. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK As the study seeks to understand the relation between Fowlers Stages of Faith and the Christian faith, the miniature of the connection between the two will allow for the development of more depth and deeper understanding of faith. This becomes essential as Fowlers discourse on faith is considered as one of the most important developments in understanding the phenomenon of faith. Furthermore, it attempts to present the position that as Fowlers faith and Stages of faith is used in addressing concerns in education, in counseling and other fields, it can be used to further explain the notion of faith within the Christian context. In this regard, if clarification of the connection between two conceptions of faith, then a wider and deeper appreciation of faith is possibly attained. It will enable people to discuss faith in look abstraction but in the view of concrete and measurable developments that is charted across a persons life span. 1.2. Statement of the Study The purpose of this enquiry investigation was to use Fowler