Encyclopedia of Religious and Spiritual Development (Review Article)

Abstract

This is a large volume with around 300 entries and 130 contributors, mostly from the USA. The editors are child developmental psychologists. ‘Spiritual development’ is taken to be ‘aboutbecoming a whole person, someone who stands for something that defines and gives meaning to being human…There is religion without spirituality and spirituality without religion’ (p. xxiii). Religion is viewed as one route to spirituality, but not the only route. This article reviews the Encyclopedia entries, complains about many of the selection decisions (especially to promote belly dancing and crop circles and ignore Sikhism and the Bahai faith). It concludes that the combination of psychology and study of religions has not worked. It contains many worthwhile articles of broad interest on applied psychology, but extreme caution is needed regarding its entries on religion.