Review of The Spiritual Life of Children
[The following review looks at the successes of The Spiritual Life of Children at presenting its subject.]
In the beginning of The Spiritual Life of Children, Robert Coles shares with us the difficulty he had in talking to Hopi children about matters of Hopi spirituality and theology. He attempted to interview the children during school hours, but was continually frustrated by their reluctance to discuss the subject at hand. Coles was about to give up and pack his bags when he happened to meet a Hopi mother who took the time to "educate" this renowned Harvard professor of child psychiatry and Pulitzer Prize winning author on the reasons behind the almost-mute reactions of the children to his questions. She informed Coles that the Hopi children "won't ever want to talk with you about the private events of their lives in this building. They learn how to read and write here; they learn their arithmetic here, but that is that. You are asking them about thoughts they put aside when they enter this building" (p. 24).
It is a tribute to Coles that in his genuine effort to locate the child's "geography of God's presence," he was willing to journey to a variety of physical and spiritual environments—from mosques and churches to the world of children's religious images and dreams. For instance, in the home of Sajid, a thirteen-year-old boy from Pakistan living in London, we learn about Moslem surrender and obedience. Sajid tells the author that he feels "closest" to God when he wakes up and feels that "Allah has been near me, very near. I almost want to go back to sleep so I can be nearer Him again, but I must not be greedy!" (p. 243). We meet Leah in a hospital room in Boston, courageously drawing strength from the prayers and rituals of her Jewish faith even as she submits to the disease that is about to take her life. Throughout the book, we travel into the children's world of crayon drawings to learn what Coles calls the "spiritual wakefulness" of children. For instance, responding to a verbal question, "What is your favorite Bible story?", a nine-year-old from Sweden, Josephine, insists on drawing her reply. Josephine's picture ("Jesus Helping the Leper") connects this Bible story with her own inner life more compellingly than any word-filled narrative; she has responded in a powerful, nonverbal language that Coles calls a "silent testimony."
Over the past twenty-five years, Coles has almost single-handedly created a new methodology in an attempt to understand the inner thoughts of children. For this book, the author (along with his two sons) spent months, and in some cases years, talking to the same children about their religious beliefs and concepts of God. Coles is refreshingly clear on how his "talking" approach to research works. He writes: "The point is that I let the children know as clearly as possible, and as often as necessary, what it is I am trying to learn, and how they can help me" (p. 27). This effort to establish over time a relationship based on mutual respect has resulted in a book filled with gripping children's narratives, heart-felt stories, and memorable drawings and insights that contribute to our still nascent understanding of the spiritual psychology of children. Undeniably, The Spiritual Life of Children is so invaluable to the field of child development precisely because the author doesn't offer us pediatric prescriptions, a new "faith development" theory, or refurbished religious education strategies. Instead, Coles simply invites the reader to listen to the voices and drawings of the children he interviewed. He passionately believes that inside these stories and creeds we might find answers to questions about our children's capacity for spirituality and religious faith.
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