Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The Jesuit ideal of striving to care for the whole person (cura personalis) forms a principle that transcends any single social, political, religious or professional context, offering educators something of a measuring stick to carry with us for the many domains in which we operate (Mesa 2017, pp.287-366).1 As a spiritual principle, it means we must be attentive to the complexity of ourselves as much as we are sensitive to the complexities of others.There is no one moment when we might simply relax this guiding concept so as to reduce the fullness of the person who stands before us.As a parent and as a teacher, I am all-too-aware, however, of how I frequently reduce the complexities of the persons who stand before me, even those I deeply love and care for, in order to "make it through the day", with efficiency and productivity as enacted principles that often trump taking the time to explore the fullness of our humanity.But I try when I can to recognize the fullness and wholeness of those I walk beside, and when I do so intentionally, I recognize better the difficulties we all face in trying to respect and care for each other in ways that will never be completely realized.
Source: Teaching Theology & Religion
DOI: 10.1111/teth.12682
Author: Colby Dickinson
Institution: Loyola University Chicago
Language: English
Subfield: History
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $2,760
OpenAlex ID: W4404869613