"Discipleship for Every Stage of Life" (Chris A. Kiesling)

TITLE: Discipleship for Every Stage of Life: Understanding Christian Formation in Light of Human Development
AUTHOR: Chris A. Kiesling
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2024, (216 pages).

What have life stages got to do with discipleship? How do human sciences affect spirituality? Is it legitimate to connect Christian formation with human development? These questions should pique the interest of Christians who want to see discipleship expand and be applied beyond the regular youth and adulthood age groups. By bringing together curiosity about human sciences and the theology of Christian Spirituality, author and professor Chris Kiesling has given us a compelling work that engages the development of Christian discipleship for every stage of life. Using his thirty years of learning about human sciences, he maintains that discipleship strategies should adapt to the person's human development stage. It is hoped that not only will that help cultivate the path toward human flourishing, but it also opens up gospel-sharing moments at all stages of life. From birth to the end of life, readers learn about the stage of human development and the needed discipleship strategy. The purpose of this book is to allow the "wholistic, redemptive vision of salvation" to shine through each of the described human stages. The seven stages are listed as follows:

1. Womb and Infancy
2. Early Childhood
3. Middle Childhood
4. Adolescence
5. Young Adulthood
6. Middle Adulthood
7. Late Adulthood

There is the temperament and early dispositions for infants. In early childhood, formative strategies include parental styles, storytelling, embodied experiences, discipline, and play. When it comes to Middle Childhood, there is an increased awareness of gender differences, personality traits, self-awareness, etc. From Middle Childhood onward, apart from identity formation, one of the main challenges is how parents deal with their children over technology matters. The author then asserts the primacy of a child's relationship with God over and above any moral principles. That is because all morality is anchored on the foundation of God. Adolescence is the intersection between childhood and adulthood. Here, identity development is key. Both social and personal domains of development are discussed. He notes that while parental influencers remain key, there is a downward slide of family as an institution today. Peer pressure and online groups are becoming bigger influencers. Recognizing changing influencers like these will be crucial in "anchoring convictions" that will help facilitate discipleship. At the young adulthood stage, Kiesling notes how the person begins to build their life narratives, gleaning from the past to map the future. We see the many possible scripts a person could be mapping. Here, there are more insights from the ancient church fathers on how theological concepts are integrated with "cultural liturgies,"  demonstrating how discipleship can take place. The Middle Adulthood phase solidifies one's self-identity. Kiesling shows us the differences between young and middle adulthood which is sometimes understood as a "mid-life crisis." He calls this the "longest and least understood" stage of anyone's life. Going through the changes biologically, cognitively, culturally, and socially, the author then highlights the relevance of spiritual practices such as Sabbath, Solitude, Discernment, Hospitality, the Common Prayer, etc. The last stage is "Late Adulthood" where Kiesling deals with matters relating to retirement and the end of life. This stage can be further divided into "young-old" (65-84); the "middle-old (85-99); and the centenarians. Recognizing the different cultural perceptions of aging, Kiesling qualifies his work to focus more on the Western perspective. 

My Thoughts

This is one of the most insightful books that combines the sciences of human development and Christian spirituality. Noting the lack of resources that connect the science of human development with spirituality, Kiesling hopes to fill this gap by doing three things. The first is to introduce us to the field of human development and family studies. The second is to show us which area of Christian spirituality can be relevant to each life stage. The third is to map a path forward for Christian discipleship according to each stage of life. I want to share my thoughts about these three things.

First, Kiesling excels in describing the uniqueness of each life stage. His wealth of knowledge in this area is quite formidable. Whether it is neurobiology or psychology, cultural traits, or social sciences, there are many things we can learn about the nature and stage of human development. For those of us who are parenting young kids, we can learn about the stages of childhood. Many ideas open our minds toward a deeper understanding of children in general. We will have to adapt the specifics accordingly. For those of us reading about the life stage we are in, some of the things he mentioned will hit close to home. For instance, in the chapter about retirement, Kiesling's thoughts will resonate with many of us in that phase of life. His description of Robert Atchley's theory of the five stages of life should make those of us sit up and pay more attention. It is good that Kiesling avoids putting exact years in each of these stages simply because there are too many variables in the first place. The value however is to anticipate how we progress so that we can prepare for what will come. I feel that this chapter is most well-written, probably because it matches the author's life stage.

Second, Christian Spirituality is introduced gradually through each life stage. At the early childhood stages, there are more resources from the social sciences and human development studies. The discipleship strategies are mainly through care, human connections, communications, and other relational practices. Christian resources and strategies are heavier at the young and middle adulthood phases because they assume a greater level of independent learning. Readers will find the resources educational and enlightening. 

Finally, let me comment on the integration of life stage and spirituality. It is the conviction of the author that each life stage requires unique strategies for discipleship. As readers, we need to adjust our perspectives accordingly. In other words, our own present life stage will influence how we read the stages described in this book. Such integration needs to be carefully and prayerfully done. For a start, the best way to benefit from this book is to start from where we are. Read the chapters that relate to our own life stage first. For example, if we are parents in our early 30s, read the chapter on young adulthood first before moving through the childhood and adolescent phases that affect our children. If we have aging parents, read the chapter on middle adulthood before progressing through late adulthood. By doing so, we learn the integration of the life stage and spirituality first before learning how to apply the other stages. If we are educators, begin where we are before moving on to the groups we are teaching. 

I want to applaud Kiesling for a valuable piece of work that deepens our understanding of the human development stages and the relevance of spirituality. Whether you are a parent, pastor, professor,  teacher, student, caregiver, or layperson, there are many things we can learn from this book.

Chris A. Kiesling (PhD, Texas Tech University) is professor of human development and Christian discipleship at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. Ordained as an elder in the United Methodist Church, he has served as a pastor and a campus minister. Kiesling is the coauthor of Spiritual Formation in Emerging Adulthood: A Practical Theology for College and Young Adult Ministry.

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5.

conrade

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This book has been provided courtesy of Baker Academic via NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.