Spiritualities of Caring in the Helping Professions

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This 3 credit hour seminar course is designed to explore how helping professionals articulate, cultivate, and rely on their spirituality or philosophy of caring as they participate in the work of helping and healing others. We will study how helping professionals rely on a spirituality of caring in order to help them maintain and cultivate their compassion in their work in the face of suffering and the problem of evil. An overall model for a spirituality/philosophy of caring will be presented and then explored as it is exemplified in various spiritual and philosophical traditions. The course is not intended to be an exhaustive survey of all spiritual traditions, but as an introductory opportunity for the student to understand the role of spirituality in helping work and to begin to articulate their own spirituality of caring in preparation for helping professions. The course is designed especially for the preprofessional student as well as anyone who is preparing for work in a helping profession. We will rely on readings from Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism as well as other traditions and philosophies, and also will examine writings by people who have reflected on the practical aspects of living out a spirituality of caring.