Maslow’s Fallacy and a Community Right to Beauty

I have a bit of a problem with Maslow’s famous Hierarchy of Need. It’s not that I disagree with his classification of different types of human need, nor his emphasis on the importance of ensuring that all people, everywhere, have a right for their basic physical needs of nutrition, water and safety to be met. But I do wonder whether presenting these, along with other, ‘higher level’ needs as a hierarchy risks condoning inequalities, fragmenting our view of ourselves as human beings, and demeaning those who are less privileged?

Continue reading Maslow’s Fallacy and a Community Right to Beauty

Der Ursprung

 

Du hast mich gewoben in meiner Mutter Schoss.

Psalm 139;13

 

 

Geboren werden ist ein unglaublich traumatisches Erlebnis. Das bedauernswerte Baby, nach neun Monaten Geborgenheit in einem feuchtwarmen, ruhigen und dunklen Nest, wird nun plötzlich durch eine enge Öffnung gequetscht. Der Kopf wird zusammengedrückt wie ein Tuch in der Mangel, um dann in einer kalten, lauten und furchteinflössenden Umgebung aufzutauchen. Da wundert es wenig, dass die meisten Babies als erstes einmal weinen. Continue reading Der Ursprung

Growing up to be a child: a contemplative companion

In Growing up to be a child I have explored what Jesus might have meant when he invited each of us to become like a little child.  This is a radical and challenging invitation, one that calls us to a whole new process of development, one in which our heart and soul, and perhaps ultimately our body and mind too, will become all that our Creator intended them to be.

If we are going to take this challenge seriously, it surely cannot mean just reading about it, thinking how good and inspiring Jesus’ teaching is.  Jesus himself challenged us not just to hear his words, but also to put them into practice (Luke 6: 46-49).

But any authentic response to Jesus’ words has to stem from an encounter with the living God, the one who loves us as a child.

one candle 3

 

With that in mind, I am developing a contemplative companion to the book.  Continue reading Growing up to be a child: a contemplative companion

Growing up to be a child – A book review in Triple Helix

This is a ‘must’ for all parents!  Whereas many Christian authors emphasise the need to engage in thoughtful reading and interpretation of Scripture, Jesus said that ‘Unless you change and become like little children, you will never entre the kingdom of heaven’.  Whatever did he mean?

Peter Sidebotham, a widely respected paediatrician with expertise in child development, provides rich insight into the stages of early childhood that all parents will have experienced and probably been puzzled or exasperated by.  Continue reading Growing up to be a child – A book review in Triple Helix

The Story

The story

 

This morning I finished ‘The Story’: Luke’s ‘epic journey with Jesus, the Son of God, and his first followers’.  A great new presentation of the gospel of Luke and the Acts of the apostles.  Engaging, inspiring, thought-provoking, puzzling. Some of my thoughts: I hadn’t previously noticed the strong connection in Luke’s gospel between Jesus and his cousin John.  The links and contrast appear right from the opening chapter, then keep cropping up all the way through.  John: repentance, austerity, preparation; Jesus: celebration, healing, a new way of living, God’s kingdom starting.

 

Continue reading The Story

Ein Brief an meine Tochter

Liebe Esther,

Letztes Jahr schrieb ich ein Buch für und mit Deinem Bruder. Die Initialzündung kam, wie Du weisst, durch seinen Entschluss, auf dem Einrad von Coventry nach Bristol zu fahren und dass ich ihn begleiten sollte. Etliche Tage und einige hundert Meilen später habe ich einiges über Joe erfahren und über mich selber. Es machte mich nachdenklich. Ich hatte bereits fünfzehn Jahre mit ihm verbracht, aber es brauchte etwas Ausserordentliches um mich zum Schreiben zu inspirieren.

Continue reading Ein Brief an meine Tochter

Werdet Kinder: Vorwort

A good Swiss friend of mine, André Burgunder, has kindly taken it upon himself to translate Growing up to be a child into German. Here is the foreword, with more to follow in due course. I hope my German-speaking friends will enjoy the book and find it inspiring reading it in their own language.

 

Vorwort

Im August 2011 wurde meine Tochter Esther neunzehn Jahre alt und verliess unser Zuhause, um ein Jahr in der Industrie zu arbeiten, bevor sie ihr Ingenieurstudium an der Universität begann. Das war nur eines von vielen Ereignissen, die in schneller Abfolge auf mich zukamen und einen tiefen Einschnitt in mein Leben bedeuteten.book

Continue reading Werdet Kinder: Vorwort

Learning To Listen: To Young People, Parents, Perpetrators

I don’t matildawant to talk about it… It’s too horrible. But in the end I became so frightened of her I used to start shaking when she came into the room.
So said Matilda’s teacher, Miss Honey, in Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book (Dahl and Blake, 1989, p. 198). In a simple children’s story, Dahl poignantly captures just how difficult young people (and adults) find it to talk about the abuse they experience:
I have found it impossible to talk to anyone about my problems. I couldn’t face the embarrassment, and anyway I lack the courage. Any courage I had was knocked out of me when I was young (p. 195).
The reality of that is captured in the first paper in the latest issue of Child Abuse Review. In a review of research on disclosure of child sexual abuse, Rosaleen McElvaney (2015) highlights both quantitative data on the prevalence of non-disclosure and delays in disclosure, and qualitative data exploring the complexity and individuality of issues around disclosure. McElvaney concludes that ‘significant numbers of children do not disclose experiences of sexual abuse until adulthood and adult survey results suggest that significant proportions of adults have never disclosed such abuse’ (p. 161)

Continue reading Learning To Listen: To Young People, Parents, Perpetrators

Dear Pope Francis

I may not, strictly speaking, count myself laudato-si-enone of your ‘flock’. Nevertheless, I thought I would write a response to your recent Encyclical Letter, Laudato Si’[1]. I do this for three reasons: first, because you have addressed this Encyclical not just to members of the Roman Catholic Church, but to ‘every living person on the planet’; second, because the issues you touch on in your Encyclical are so crucial to the wellbeing, hope and survival of our planet – as you put it, we need to ‘acknowledge the appeal, immensity and urgency of the challenge we face’; and finally, because I see, in the clear links you make between care for creation, social justice, and personal spirituality and lifestyle, a strong resonance with my own journey of discovery.

Continue reading Dear Pope Francis

Child Abuse Review Impact Factor

cover 24_1 I am delighted to report that we have just received news of the 2014 Thomson Reuters journal citation report, and the Impact Factor for Child Abuse Review has risen from 0.787 to 0.841. This represents the fourth successive rise and an increase of 51% from our 2011 Impact Factor. We are ranked 18 out of 40 journals in both the social work and family studies fields.

While the Impact Factor has its limitations, it does affirm that Child Abuse Review is increasingly being recognised as a high quality scientific journal publishing good papers which are being cited elsewhere.

Perhaps of more importance, though not reflected in the Impact Factor, the feedback we get from both researchers and practitioners is that Child Abuse Review is perceived as an accessible journal which is of relevance to front-line workers as well as academics, and the material we publish does impact on evidence-informed practice to protect children.