by Dan Zomerlei, M.Div., M.S. MFT, zomerle1@msu.edu, Adrian Blow, Ph.D., Sahil Gambir, H.BMSc, and Janet Osuch, M.D., all of Michigan State University
The good news for cancer patients is that cancer mortality is on the decline. However, in spite of this good news, both cancer death and cancer survivorship present challenges to families as they attempt to adjust to the pervasive effects of the disease on the patient and family.
by Loren Marks, associate professor, Louisiana State University
I have been asked to offer a brief, distilled version of the new theory former NCFR President Wes Burr published in his recent volume Sacred Matters (2012), co-authored with Randy Day and myself. Before doing so, I would like to tell you a little about the experience of wrestling with the Sacred Matters book.
by Marcus N. Tanner, Ph.D., president and CEO, HealingChoice, www.healingchoice.org
It was an unusually calm day for an Easter Sunday morning in Texas. I was a pastor and for the first time in my ministry, I left my pregnant wife and daughter at home before heading to church that morning. Although our family saw the approaching clouds, somehow we thought we would be protected. It was on that day that I was forced to resign.
by Allen J. Kim, doctoral candidate, Department of Sociology, University of California, Irvine
Across the United States and worldwide, a growing number of men are actively searching for the answer to the fundamental question: What does it mean to be a father today? Father School is a South Korean-inspired men’s movement that has been at the forefront of mobilizing immigrant and nonimmigrant fathers to become actively involved in their families.
by Rob Palkovitz, Ph.D., professor, Human Development and Family Studies
Through meetings and individual discussions with various teens, it became clear that everyday interactions with family members had significant influence in informing teens’ emerging faith and in influencing the centrality of their spirituality in comparison to other emerging developments.
by Anthony G. James, M.S., Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Missouri, Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Family Studies and Social Work, Miami University (Ohio)
Most, if not all, parents desire their children to grow up with a set of morals, principles, guidelines, standards, values, etc., that will help them thrive in civil society. In recent years, scholars have sought to explore ways that spirituality can help youth with that internalization process.
by Jackie L. Halstead, Ph.D., LMFT, associate professor, Lipscomb University
During my graduate school years, I had to learn how to make sense of my faith and spirituality on my own. When I came back to teach 11 years later, the climate of the profession had changed. It was now acceptable to breach the divide between a person and his or her spirituality.
by Frank D. Fincham, Eminent Scholar and director, Florida State University Family Institute,
Less than a decade has passed since Hill and Pargament noted that social scientists tend to keep “their distance from religion and spirituality." In just a matter of years, this circumstance has changed dramatically, possibly reflecting changes in the broader culture.
by C. J. Aducci, M.A., program manager, Office of Strong Family Development, Chickasaw Nation, Ada, Oklahoma, and Waymon R. Hinson, Ph.D., associate administrator, Family Resource System, Chickasaw Nation, Ada, Oklahoma
American Indians and African Americans share similar and disparate stories of disenfranchisement and loss, one victimized by Manifest Destiny, the other by the demeaning institution of slavery. Both provide rich tapestries of spirituality, religiosity, resilience, and struggle.
