The later-adult years are commonly viewed as a period in which one struggles to maintain a vestige of the physical, mental, and emotional vitality of one's earlier years. In 'Still Growing', however, Donald Capps shows that older adulthood is actually a period of growth and development, and that a central feature of this growth and development is the remarkable creativity of older adults. This creativity is the consequence of the wisdom gained through years of experience but is also due to a newly developed capacity to adapt to unprecedented challenges integral to the aging process.In Part 1, Capps illustrates the challenges of transitioning to older adulthood from the author's own experiences, while in Part 2 he draws on material from Erik H. Erikson, Sigmund Freud, and Paul W. Pruyser to account for longevity, adaptability, and creativity in older adults. Finally, in part 3 he focusses on the work of both William James and Walt Disney to fashion a model of creative aging.
Erik Erikson, best known for his life-cycle theory and concept of the identity crisis, proposed that we are comprised of a number of selves. In several earlier books, including 'At Home in the World', Donald Capps has suggested that the emotional separation of young children - especially boys - from their mothers results in the development of a melancholy self. In this book, Capps employs Erikson's assignment of an inherent strength to each stage of the life cycle and proposes that the life-enhancing strengths of the childhood years (hope, will, purpose, and competence) are central to the development of a resourceful self, and that this self counters the life-diminishing qualities of the melancholy self.Focusing on Erikson's own writings, Capps identifies the four primordial resources that Erikson associates with childhood - humor, play, dreams, and hope - and shows how these resources assist children in confronting life's difficulties and challenges. Capps further suggests that theresourceful self that develops in childhood is central to Jesus' own vision of what we as adults may become if we follow the lead of little children.
Using biblical narratives, the Beatitudes and Erick H. Erikson's life cycle theory, Donald Capps reveals ways to combat the deadly sins by nurturing saving virtues. With his work rooted deeply in the Bible, Capps attempts to show comparisons that link each traditional deadly sin with a particular stage of personality development, using biblical figures to provide dynamic examples of virtue and sin. Providing broad implications for practicing ministry, Capps book will intrigue all who wish to explore virtue and sin from a pastoral, biblical and psychological perspective.
In Living Stories Donald Capps makes a forceful case for the importance of pastoral counseling in the life of a congregation. Arguing convincingly for a "paradigmatic revolution," Capps offers a radically new model that gives systematic and constructive attention to the way people actually "story" their lives - inspirationally, paradoxically, or miraculously. Through such engagement, pastors can help people discover their own stories, discern the shape and direction of those stories, and move constructively to find new understandings or more hopeful possibilities in their life situations.
The emotional separation of boys from their mothers in early childhood enables them to connect with their fathers and their fathers' world. But this separation also produces a melancholic reaction of sadness and sense of loss. Certain religious sensibilities develop out of this melancholic reaction, including a sense of honor, a sense of hope, and a sense of humor. Realizing that they cannot return to their original maternal environment, men, whether knowingly or not, embark on a lifelong search for a sense of being at home in the world. 'At Home in the World' focuses on works of art as a means to explore the formation and continuing expression of men's melancholy selves and their religious sensibilities. These explorations include such topics as male viewers' mixed feelings toward the maternal figure, physical settings that offer alternatives to the maternal environment, and the maternal resonances of the world of nature. By presenting images of the natural world as the locus of peace and contentment, 'At Home in the World' especially reflects of the religious sensibility of hope.
Whatever religion may have meant to the boy when he was younger, in the teenage years it takes the form of a personal journey or quest. This journey is related to other aspects of his life and is integral to how he experiences himself and others. The title of this volume--Striking Out--has the connotation of the beginning of a journey that will take the boy in new directions, but it also suggests the baseball metaphor of a batter being called out on strikes. The first sense is positive; the second is negative. Together, they express the anticipatory and hopeful nature of the venture, but also the possibility that the undertaking may evoke feelings of fear, frustration, and failure. By focusing on real-life examples of teenage boys (both historical and contemporary), the book presents five typical manifestations of a boy's vulnerabilities as he sets forth on the journey: the stumbler, the struggler, the straggler, the straddler, and the stranger. It explores the ways in which these vulnerabilities may contribute in positive ways to his personal growth and his religious maturity. Throughout this book Gordon W. Allport's classic text The Individual and His Religion draws attention to the claim that a boy's religious sentiment may play a decisive role in the integration of his personality despite its inevitable disparities and uncertainties, and the real-life examples are presented as evidence that this religious sentiment provides direction and clarity of vision as the boy looks toward the future.
Pastoral Care: A Thematic Approach' offers a much needed development of the thematic approach in the study of personality as a theoretical basis for pastoral care. This approach, which includes the personality theories of Henry Murray, Robert W. White, Robert J. Lifton, and especially Erik H. Erikson, is notable for its emphasis on personal and institutional change. The book emphasizes the role that pastoral care can play as a change agent in the local parish, pastoral counseling as a model for change, and the role of pastoral care in effecting change through personal and institutional crises. Selected case studies illustrate how the thematic approach applies to pastoral care situations. Primarily a contribution to pastoral psychology, it also touches on problems and issues in pastoral theology.
William James called his classic work, The Varieties of Religious Experience, 'a study in human nature'. For James, it is a fundamental feature of human nature that we have a conscious and a subconscious mind, and that the subconscious mind is deeply implicated in the religious life, especially in conversion and other experiences of spiritual enlightenment. In The Religious Life, Donald Capps addresses religious melancholy, the div ided self and discordant personality, religious conversion, thesaintly character, and the prayerful consciousness. He contrasts the cases of two clergymen - one deeply troubled, the other exemplary of the spiritual person. Aimed at general readers, Capps' work makes William James, a popular author in his own day, accessible to a modern audience.
What role should the Bible play in pastoral counseling? Donald Capps here explores the use of the Bible in counseling and shows how the methods and objectives of counseling can be defined and shaped by three biblical forms: psalms, proverbs, and parables. Applying these forms, Capps demonstrates how the Bible can influence the three major types of pastoral counseling -- grief, premarital, and marriage. He examines the capacity of these forms to comfort, to instruct, and to diagnose problems. He explains how through psalms feelings can be vented, through proverbs moral learning can take place, and through parables new understandings of experience can occur. With actual case study examples and practical suggestions, this refreshingly perceptive book offers positive steps for furthering dialogue between biblical scholarship and pastoral counseling.
This book addresses the fact that Americans tend to live under a considerable amount of stress, tension, and anxiety, and suggests that humor can be helpful in alleviating their distress. It posits that humor is a useful placebo in this regard; cites studies that show that humor moderates life stress; considers the relationship of religion and humor, especially as means to alleviate anxiety; proposes that Jesus had a sense of humor; suggests that his parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard has humorous implications for the relief of occupational stress; explores the relationship of gossip and humor; and suggests that Jesus and his disciples were a joking community. It concludes that Jesus viewed the kingdom of God as a worry-free existence.
Although narcissism may appear dormant in the 1990s, clinical research on narcissism shows that behind a grandiose, exhibitionistic side lies a shame-ridden half of self-loathing, unworthiness, and depression. Capps says that traditional theologies of guilt are unable to address those gripped by shame and makes a case for a different pastoral approach in counseling and ministry.
In searching, sensitive, and stunningly thorough essay, supplemented with case studies and poetry, and drawing lucidly on important psychological theorists, Capps portrays hope as the fundamental nucleus and engine of human experience. He wants to remind pastors that fueling this hope is their distinctive and distinctively Christian calling. James Dittes, Yale University Don Capps has written a lucid and persuasive account of the one task unique to the ministry: to be an agent of hope. His eschatological imagination pops up repeatedly in his case studies and phenomenology of hoping, translating into concrete terms the promise of a God of hope for people in the most hopeless of situations. A book rich in insights and a pleasure to read. Robert A. Johnson, Wellesley College This book is an intelligent reclamation of the theological virtue of hope, which goes to the very heart of the psychology and spirituality of pastoral ministry. Patricia Howery Davis, Perkins School of Theology Southern Methodist University
The basic idea of this book derives from Paul Ricoeur's view that since texts and meaningful human actions are sufficiently similar, methods and theories developed for interpreting texts may also be used for interpreting human actions. Donald Capps applies this view to the broad range of pastoral actions and, in the process, formulates a unique and helpful hermeneutical model of pastoral care. Capps maintains that such a model can be extremely useful for understanding what a particular pastoral action means to those involved in it, and for evaluating its effects on these persons.
One of the greatest contributions of Capps's book is the way in which he weaves together a vast range of theories, interpretations, and explanations of psychopathology, without ever losing sight of the humanity of the person living with mental illness. Far too many books seek to find one, single explanation of the baffling and complex phenomenon of mental illness. Fragile Connections will expand our understanding and empower pastors and others concerned about mental illness with an eloquent exploration of one of the greatest mysteries of the human predicament." --Lewis Rambo, San Francisco Theological Union and Graduate Theological Union "Donald Capps skillfully guides his readers into the strange world of severe mental illness, a neighborhood disturbingly close to home. He first offers the lay of the land by scrutinizing particular psychiatric classifications. He then carefully treks through gripping narrative accounts of those battling schizophrenia, clinical depression, bipolar disorder, and Alzheimer's disease. Finally, with interpretive precision honed through a lifetime of attending to persons in pain, Capps risks his own stunning insights into the anguish and mystery of these lives. An exquisite and sobering journey." --Robert C. Dykstra, Princeton Theological Seminary "Fragile Connections is a most welcome resource for those of us involved in theological education. Capps's creative use of five memoirs allows persons who suffer from various mental illnesses and the family members who care for them to speak in their own voices about living with these afflictions." --Carol J. Cook, Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary "Doing good with stealth as usual Donald Capps has designed this biblically, historically grounded book for seminary students and ministers, who will find no other like it. The book holds out the key to understanding the experiences of those who are mentally ill and those who love them. Capps argues that the study of individuals' personal memoirs--rather than medically modeled case studies--reveals the deep and profoundly personal nature of each person's unique experience of mental illness. What is more, written as it is in Capps's inimitable style, this book fills a void in seminary curricula as it addresses a problem in methodology." --Antoinette Goodwin, pastoral psychotherapist, Princeton, New Jersey
For most ministers, pastoral counseling is a part of daily ministry, whether it is in an office counseling session or in a chance meeting with a parishioner outside the church. Whatever the setting, ministers are often called on to provide counsel and, by virtue of their calling and training, are expected to do so. This "how-to" guide for seminary students and ministers explores the role of the minister as counselor and provides a method for giving counsel. Renowned pastoral care expert Donald Capps equips readers with basic knowledge and skills and helps them to create a framework to ensure that all conversations where counsel is given will be valuable and not harmful to the person involved. Using a "problem-resolving" approach, Capps leads readers through: -- How to Create a Listening Environment -- How to Construct a Conversation -- How to Think Systemically -- How to Interpret Stories -- How to Manage Boundaries Giving Counsel is the perfect resource for seminary students and ministers of all faiths, whether you are beginning your study or looking for a single resource to serve your ministry.
The case study method is popular and effective in the pastoral care of individuals. This book outlines a method for using the case study approach on a congregational level, offering guidelines for analyzing and refining such aspects of ministry as worship, preaching, and Christian education.
A minister, a priest, and a rabbi walk into a bar. The bartender says, "Hey, what is this, some kind of joke?" Laughter Ever After offers a seriously funny theological reflection on the place of laughter and humor in pastoral counseling. Blending academic research, psychological insights, and pastoral advice, this humor-filled book helps those who want to be "Ministers of Good Humor" learn about the human needs to which humor can sensitize us and understand what humor has to offer those who are trying to cope with life's inevitabilities, such as aging, illness, and death. Readers will be entertained by the dozens of witty jokes throughout the text, but also gain insight by pondering Donald Capps's pastoral perspective of these humorous quips. Written for a wide audience, Laughter Ever After would serve as a great tool for any pastor, minister, or churchgoer. It can even be used as a self-help book for anyone in need of a laugh or who appreciates a good joke. By showing us where humor's place in ministry is, Capps teaches us that laughter can help in almost any situation
Severe mental illness afflicts many men and women throughout their lives, often without warning, and almost always with devastating results. This book takes a look at psychosis, and contends that although the delusions and hallucinations of the psychotic person are misguided and confused, they are understandable when viewed in the context of a person's life. Using real life examples, Capps covers the prevalence of psychotic illness; the long-range effects of deinstitutionalization on mentally ill persons, their families, and their communities; family members' responses to their mentally ill relative; rehabilitation and prevention approaches and methods; the nature of delusions and hallucinations; the delusional belief that one is someone else; and the realization of mental stability.
Donald Capps draws upon the poetry of William Stafford and Denise Levertov to show how poetry can benefit the field of pastoral care. He argues that poetry focuses on the immediate experience and attends to life itself, whereas theology and ethics focus more on abstract discourse, seeking to achieve a more panoramic view of life.
I have read Professor Capp's Reframing with great interest. Since my colleagues and I have long thought of our concepts and practices as broad and general?as potentially applicable beyond our clinical sphere of psychotherapy?it is very satisfying to see this solid and skillful extension of our work into the very wide and important field of pastoral care."? John H. Weakland, Brief Therapy Center Mental Research Institute, Palo Alto, California
In his late teens and early twenties Erik H. Erikson, the widely acclaimed psychoanalyst and developmental theorist, aspired to be an artist. In Erik Erikson’s Verbal Portraits: Luther, Gandhi, Einstein, Jesus, Donald Cappscontends that Erikson’s portraits of respective historical figures not only reflect his artistic gifts but also make a highly creative contribution to psychoanalytic discourse. Moreover, his verbal portraits are vivid and compelling representations of his multifaceted conception of identity. His emphasis on the formative role of the mutual recognition of mother and infant in human portraiture, the importance he attaches to the Self and the sense of “I,” and his use of psychoanalysis as a means to experience the living presence of noteworthy historical figures are especially noted. In addition to his portraits of the four men, his brief verbal portrait of Ruth Benedict is presented, and his personal identification with a fifteenth century painting of Mary, the mother of Jesus, is also explored.
Theological ideas and biblical injunctions have frequently been employed to legitimate the physical abuse of children. Some theological ideas are inherently abusive because they create fear in a child's mind, causing a child to feel alone, odd, and of little worth. Donald Capps exposes the abuses that theology and the Bible have inflicted on vast numbers of children. In particular, he is concerned with the "hidden" abuses of children by well-intentioned adults and the role that religion plays in the legitimation of these abuses.
Shows the ways in which humour can be recovered for religion. This book argues that religion is diminished when it fails to understand and embrace its own historical connection. Its chapters deal with topics ranging from humour as an expression of intimacy to humour as the maintenance of the soul.
Social phobia is recognized by contemporary psychology as an anxiety disorder that significantly reduces effectiveness in personal interactions. Its exaggerated fear of negative evaluation in social situations leads people either to avoid social situations or to experience great discomfort in unavoidable ones. In this age of self-promotion, social phobics can find themselves at a distinct disadvantage in a society that values dominance. Social phobics rarely seek treatment for their disorder, but they do tend to seek out supportive social affiliation. They are likely to attend church services rather than more personally demanding social gatherings. Thus, religion can be a resource for creative adaptation to life with social phobia. This book helps pastoral counselors, ministers, and other religious partitioners understand social phobia from both the psychological and pastoral theological points of view. Donald Capps describes the condition and its psychological roots, surveys various therapeutic responses and their effectiveness, and points to the possibilities of religious alleviations. Throughout, he expresses a helpful sensitivity to the lived experience of social phobics and offers insights for healthy and adaptive ways of life. For those who experience social phobia and those who interact with them, this book will be a valuable resource.
Does counseling affect preaching? Does preaching affect counseling? Donald Capps offers a perceptive examination of how counseling and preaching do influence each other and how both can be improved when one realizes the close relationship between them. Not only can preaching profit from pastoral counseling, writes Capps, but pastoral counseling also has much to gain from preaching. He discusses the common features of the sermon and the counseling session, how counselors can proclaim the gospel message through their counseling, and how preachers can counsel through their sermons. Using actual counseling cases and sermons by well-known authorities, Capps demonstrates how the gospel can better be served when preaching and counseling are brought closer in concept, method, and practice. 'Pastoral Counseling and Preaching'--a valuable resource in bringing about a fuller, more integrated understanding of the Christian ministry.
This unique book uses life cycle theory to focus on the person who ministers, providing a pastoral model consisting of three important dimensions. Instead of concentrating solely on the role of the pastor as personal comforter, Donald Capps also emphasizes the dimensions of the pastor's role as moral counselor and ritual coordinator. In addition to summarizing Erik Erikson's life cycle theory, Capps addresses topics rarely discussed in pastoral care literature. His discussion of the Book of Proverbs provides a biblical foundation for the model of pastoral care developed throughout the book.
This book sums up 100 of years of research into the study of happiness—from 19th century scientific insights on the subject to the pop psychology perspectives of modern-day America. We all want to be happy, but what does that mean, and how do we get there? These questions may be a popular topic of positive psychology books in recent years, but interest in the subject stretches back over a century. Distinguished authors Nathan Carlin and Donald Capps examine opinions, research studies, and insights about happiness from the 18th century through today. 100 Years of Happiness: Insights and Findings from the Experts is organized into three sections—one that explores insights from philosophers, another part that reviews study results from researchers, and a final section that casts some skepticism on the study of happiness. The authors review what the experts have found, and explore such questions as: Is happiness the goal of life? Is it possible to measure happiness? Is it possible to become happier? What is the difference between unhappiness and depression? If humankind could eliminate unhappiness from the human condition, should we? This fascinating text provides a basis for readers to develop their own conclusions, and to continue humankind's ongoing discourse on the subject.
It is not by coincidence that the key figures in the psychology of religion - William James, Rudolf Otto, Carl Jung, and Erik Erikson - each fought a lifelong battle with melancholia, argues Donald Capps in this engrossing book. These four men experienced similar traumas in early childhood: each perceived a loss of mother's unconditional love. In the deep melancholy that resulted, they turned to religion. Capps contends that the main impetus for men to become religious lies in such melancholia, and that these four authors were typical, although their losses were especially severe because of complicating personal circumstances. Offering a new way of viewing the major classics in the psychology of religion, Capps explores the psychological origins of these authors' own religious visions through a sensitive examination of their writings.
You've Got to Be Kidding!: How Jokes Can Help You Think is a thoughtful and accessible analysis of the ways in which jokes illustrate how we think critically, and how the thinking process goes awry in everyday human situations. Uses jokes to illustrate the various mistakes or fallacies that are typically identified and discussed in courses on critical reasoning Provides an effective way to learn critical thinking skills since jokes often describe real-life situations where it really matters whether a person thinks well or not Demonstrates how philosophy is actually very practical and clearly related to real- life human experiences Explains how developing good reasoning habits can make a real difference in all aspects of one's life
Describes the experience of male religious faith, offering insight into the rise of such organizations for men as Promise Keepers and identifying the psychological and emotional factors that contribute to male religious melancholia. Original.
Five historic ministers—five formative career paths—which path are you on? According to Daniel Levinson’s developmental theory, each person’s professional career path forms at the same time in their life, in their 20s and 30s. Young Clergy: A Biographical and Developmental Study applies Levinson’s study to ministerial practice, mapping the career patterns of five historical ministers during that time period in each life. The author clearly presents deep psychological insights—supported by solid biographical information on each minister’s actions and reactions to challenges—illustrating how the theory holds relevance for young professional clergy even today. Young Clergy: A Biographical and Developmental Study reviews each minister’s “Novice Phase,” where the major tasks of forming a dream, forming mentor relationships, and forming an occupation are presented—and stringently supported by concrete biographical events. The book then shows how this phase leads each from their early adult transition through their entrance into the adult world, and then on to the life-altering events in the “Age 25 Shift” and the “Age 30 Transition.” From there the text reveals the formative “Settling Down Period” through events that unfold between the ages of 33-40. The author discusses how this period determines the subsequent course of each one’s career and, more importantly, shapes each one’s attitudes, values, and convictions of a life as a minister. Using fascinating biographical information from multiple sources, the author builds a well-reasoned case that no matter how long ago these important men lived, their career patterns and lives hold a wealth of insightful information to help you maximize strengths and minimize liabilities in your own career and life today. Young Clergy: A Biographical and Developmental Study closely examines these five historical figure’s biographies, and reviews each applicable theoretical career path: Phillips Brooks—advancement within a stable life structure Jonathan Edwards—decline or failure within a stable structure John Henry Newman—breaking out—trying for a new structure John Wesley—advancement produces change in life structure Orestes Brownson—unstable life structure Young Clergy: A Biographical and Developmental Study is an in-depth historical and psychological exploration of the lives of ministers and their relevance for present day clergy, perfect for professors, seminary deans of students, field education directors and their staffs, hospital chaplains involved in vocation issues, young pastors and their pastoral supervisors, and teachers of church history.
There is not, and never was, a monolithic masculinity; there are, and always have been, multiple masculinities. Today diversity with regard to gender and sexuality is beginning to be recognised and celebrated even while many religious denominations still resist these cultural changes.
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