Spiritual nurturing of children living in the context of poverty, with specific reference to the role of the christian children's worker.

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The purpose of this research was to identify the role of the Christian children's worker in thespiritual nurturing of children living in the context of poverty. The nurturing of about twelvemillion poverty-stricken children in South Africa is an overwhelming task. This is especiallytrue when these Christian children's workers are an unrecognised force and unsure what suchnurturing entails. Unintentionally children could be harmed by hurtful actions.This research is placed within the field of Practical Theology and has been undertaken from aChristian spiritual perspective. The thesis is designed as a literature study and utilisedBronfenbrenner's ecological systems approach as a lens in the research. It considered theeffects of poverty on children and investigated children's spiritual development in a contextof poverty.An exploration of childhood poverty revealed that poverty is by nature complex,multidimensional and never stands on its own. Children's lives are entangled within the webof poverty affecting all their life contexts. The invisible 'violence of poverty shapes all areasof children's lives, leaving scars on their physical, cognitive, educational, emotional,behavioural, social and spiritual development which is carried throughout life.An investigation of children's spiritual development revealed a renewed interest in children'sspirituality from different perspectives, which resulted in different emphases. Children'sspirituality, like a diamond which has multiple dimensions, includes relational consciousness,awareness-, mystery- and value-sensing, and concerns the wellness of the whole-person.Christian children's spirituality, in addition, emphasises a conscious relationship with God inJesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. Context, contextual learning and care for the wholechild, which is based on a Christian premise, are essential aspects in the process of a child'sspiritual journey. The role of the Christian children's worker is to ensure that spiritual nurtureembraces all aspects of the lives of poverty-stricken children Practical theological reflections revealed that the perceptions of the Christian children'sworker can influence the effectiveness of ministry. Dangers of having a god complex,dualistic views, compartmentalising ministry and a flawed anthropology of children result inineffective ministry. In contrast, even though poverty affects all relationships, God is alreadypresent with the poor, and the face of God can be found in each child. This requires treatingthem with dignity and guiding them in restored relationships.The principal conclusion was that the Christian children's worker can play an important rolein the spiritual nurturing of poverty-stricken children. The role includes providing a context ofregular relationships with a high level of warmth, support and loving care and offering aChrist-centred Christian children's ministry where children become aware of God's presencein their lives. The challenge of conflicting tensions, such as financing resources, meaningfulrelationships with larger groups and ministry to non-Christian children, will remain.Further research is needed on the interplay between spiritual development and childhoodpoverty and how to explore God's presence in larger groups among South Africa's poorchildren.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University