Global perspectives on spirituality and education

Abstract

is another challenging contribution. The issue of ageing and the problems of cultural diversity are dealt with in two articles – general issues, but well written. The issue of assisted reproductive technologies has for a long time been an ethical issue; in this book, it is discussed as a matter of pastoral care. The event of 9/11 2001 has also become a challenge to pastoral care in many ways. The article in this book takes a narrative approach via a member of the corps of Fire Chaplains serving the rescuers in the aftermath of the catastrophe. The last article is a discussion of racial healing and the significance of forgiveness. This has also a specific history in the USA, but is of global significance in its discussion of the power of and steps towards internal and external forgiveness and of the relationship between ‘remorse only’ and actual reconciliation. The Bloomsbury Guide to Pastoral Care is not a big book, and covering so many important issues in a small volume could easily result in superficiality. The editors and the authors have managed to avoid that danger by limiting both the selection of topics and the scope of each article, although the depth and quality vary. Experts in pastoral care will recognise some issues and call for more depth, but there are highlights that deserve close attention, and there should be enough empirically based discussion with good references for further reading to vouch for a good learning experience for the expert as well as for the student, or for representatives of other disciplines – not least disciplines concerned with understanding the meaning of a spiritual outlook on life.