Scripture encourages parents to pass on faith to children, and a multitude of studies show that the biggest predictor of the faith of kids is the faith of their parents. However, raising kids in faith is more complicated and nuanced than simple "parent to child" religious transmission. In this paper, animal family models are used to…

Religious education is queer. At first, it may seem as if "queer" and "religious education" barely belong in the same sentence; however, a fresh look at the definition of queer within the current understanding of religious education reveals a deep connection. Playing on the historical question of Harrison Elliott, "Can…

This article introduces the category of spiritual intelligence (SI) as a vital way for religious education to cultivate knowledge and practical wisdom. SI fosters human interconnectedness and promotes a sense of belonging for learners. It helps strengthen learners' identities and creates a just learning environment. The article proposes a version…

Most approaches to vocational exploration present challenges to people who have more than one central cultural identity. In this article, we begin with a framework for understanding hybrid cultural identity focused on the real-life experiences of hybrid people. We then identify three predominant approaches to vocation as well as the challenges…

The purpose of this article is to explore suburban Black Christian girls' experiences of microaggressions in the public high school context. Through an ethnographic study, personal narratives were collected from six suburban Black Christian girls who all attended the same African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church where I served as the youth…

This article explores how pilgrimage shapes the ways in which Korean American youth and young adults develop their sense of intersectional identities by visiting their motherland. The coauthors begin by highlighting the limitation of Korean American churches' emphasis on text-based education, suggesting how pilgrimage as a spiritual practice could…

This article examines identity development in light of Charles Taylor's notion of the "Buffered Self." Educating in faith toward the deconstruction of unjust identity norms requires finding a pathway out of this constrictive underlying structure. In particular, the manner in which religious educators address the promises and perils that…

Religious identity development is highly influenced by contexts. This influence is even more powerful for young people who grew up in strict religious contexts because of the prominence of orthodox beliefs and practices in everyday life. This article presents which contextual factors were influential on the religious identity development of 18…

This paper explores the function of teachers' witnessing of faith in worldview education in the context of diversity in the classroom. Pollefeyt described three teaching roles for hermeneutical-communicative worldview education: moderator, specialist, and witness. These roles aim to support students in their personal worldview identity…

This forum essay offers reflections on the theme of the 2021 annual meeting of the Religious Education Association--"Gender, Sexuality, and Wholeness: Religious Education for Confrontation and Healing." Pondering the melancholy of violence inflicted upon racialized, sexualized, and queer bodies in the United States, the author invites…

Healthy adolescent spiritual development is being hindered both by U.S. culture, which demands conformity to unattainable standards, and by the failure of the Church to become relevant in the lives of young people. This article explores how the alternative religious community found at a Christian summer camp can lead to positive growth in the…

This study will examine the significance of spirituality and how to cultivate it in this modern era, in which introspection on the meaning of life is lacking due to issues including consumerism, violence, terror, hedonism, and the influences of an instrumental education environment, through Augustine's "Confessions." This study suggests…

Students in colleges and universities across the United States are being exposed to overtly white supremacist groups on campus. These groups dub themselves "identitarians" and attempt to influence students to support a white nationalist ideology through claims of reverse racism that threaten the lives of people of color. Theologically,…

In this racially-charged time, religious educators are engaging in research that transgresses traditional (white) norms. Such research can not only dismantle white normativity through the subjects investigated; it can also be practiced in ways that are transgressive. This article uses a particular experience of ethnographic theological research in…

Set against the backdrop of a changing pluralistic South African society, this article traces the shifts concerning religion in public education, followed by an examination of the discernible motivations that undergirded the establishment of women's "madrasahs" (Islamic educational institutions). Collectively representing an alternative…