This article reviews the history of public religious education in the United States with an eye to its learning outcomes, contexts, and approaches. That history suggests that public religious education is still needed today but that informal learning contexts may be more appropriate than public schools. Recent trends in learning habits are then…

This article seeks to understand religious education as a process of communal endeavor that prioritizes and considers the learning experience intrinsically connected to its social and cultural contexts. Two authors will be of help to develop this pursuit: Lev Vygotsky, whose work emphasizes learning as constructed through interactions and in…

The aim of this article is to consider the psychological mechanisms that may prevent individuals from achieving religious tolerance and religious pluralism. After defining these concepts and explaining why they are desirable outcomes, four psychological obstacles to the achievement of religious tolerance and religious pluralism will be explored by…

This article tests the assumption that Horace Bushnell was the father of the religious education movement, despite the fact that at least two generations lapsed between the final edition of his groundbreaking book, "Christian Nurture," in 1861 and the formation of the Religious Education Association in 1903. It contends that William Rainey Harper…

Biblical texts and ancient Near Eastern pictorial images and material culture are separated by thousands of years from people living in the 21st century. This not only represents a temporal divide, but also a significant ideological (or worldview) divide. Following a brief introduction to important principles of adult-educational theory, this…

This article provides an outline historical-educational analysis of the King James Bible from its 1611 publication through to its four-hundredth anniversary commemoration in 2011. With particular focus on England, the article traces the educational impact of the King James Bible and charts, in the country of its origin, its progressive decline in…

Comparative Religion is seen as an important curricula because it could serve as a mechanism for enhancing cross-cultural religious communication. The authors seek to examine the role of Comparative Religion as an important science for enhancing dialogue skills. Such a communication skill, however, must be developed from both intra- and…

This article focuses on the need for dialogue in the form of a "third space" for multi-faith realities. In exploring the idea of a "third space," the author draws on the use of the term borrowed from Homi Bahha. Third space, as it is defined in the context of this article, understands the complexities of hybridity, or multiple identities, as…

Paulo Freire's educational philosophy encourages conscientization in individuals as a means to overcoming oppression. This approach includes dialogue that leads to critical thinking and problem-posed learning that fosters self-discovery. This article applies this process to a multi-ethnic congregation as it nurtures ethnic equality. In addition,…

The aim of this article is to present a framework for studying the religious identity development of highly religious Christian and Muslim adolescents. Building on existing theories on identity development, the authors define highly religious Christian and Muslim adolescents as "orthoprax" adolescents and explore the consequences of this for…

Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C. (aka "Father Ted") is one of the leading living figures in the philosophy of Catholic higher education in the United States. He is not only recognized for a long and impressive tenure as president of the University of Notre Dame, but also revered as a priest whose intellectual and critical leadership blends a practical…

In popular understanding, the late Middle Ages has been viewed as a time of relative religious ignorance for both laity and clergy. Recent scholarship is indicating a more knowledgeable and vigorous faith experience in this time period. This article examines the major educational ministry renewal of the church in England following the Fourth…

In the ten years following 9/11 there was unprecedented interest in, and commitment to, religious education in the school curriculum in England. Politicians, academics, and professionals all argued that learning about religion could foster "social cohesion" and even prevent terrorism. Accordingly there were a number of national and international…

In this article, the emerging field of youth ministry research is presented and interpreted through the lens of practical theology. International developments are described and compared as local responses to the ongoing global dynamics of youth culture. After an overview of four different contexts in which youth ministry research can be situated,…

This article begins with an acknowledgment of the complexities of religion's position in the English school system that open it to diverse interpretations. It uses research in a variety of schools to illustrate three different approaches to religion: "doxological", "sacramental", and "instrumental", founded, respectively, on certain faith in God,…