Spirituality - a case for interdisciplinary encounters of theology and social work

Abstract: The focus of this chapter is to explain what we could call the backstage for the results of the following chapters. The participants of this project addressed the topic from different nations in Europe, academic training, and practices, but with overlapping disciplinary fields and shared or complementary worldviews rooted in the western Christian culture. Most of the members have a degree in catholic theology, but also degrees and training in other fields like psychology, social work, anthropology, philosophy, or law. The topic itself has an interdisciplinary focus. Spirituality is explained and studied by different disciplines, ethics has its own theoretical constructs and social work is going on to emancipate from other disciplines to become an established science of its own and not just an applied practice field. Social work is especially predisposed to articulate an interdisciplinary dialogue on the complex reality of human life situations, mostly in conditions of social exclusion, oppression, violence, discrimination, and limited options, because no single science can respond to these complex realities using its own disciplinary approach alone. With this chapter, we want to make more transparent and open the discussion on how backgrounds of theology connect with social work. We believe that it is a fruitful process to integrate theology in the curriculum of social work, especially under the urgent question of spirituality and the needed competencies of the professionals for helpful interventions. With some examples of the accumulated experiences in other projects and our own reflection, this chapter opens the field of successful experiences

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

Classification and Topics

• Keyword: Interdisziplinarität ; Spiritualität ; Sozialarbeit ; Theologie ; Sozialwissenschaften

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (where): Freiburg
• (who): Universität
• (when): 2022
• Creator: Gehrig, Rainer Bernhard

Further information

• DOI: 10.6094/UNIFR/221388
• URN: urn:nbn:de:bsz:25-freidok-2213885
• Rights: Kein Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 15.08.2025, 2:27 AM CEST