Spiritual Diversity in Social Work Practice : The Heart of Helping

by Edward Canda; Leola Furman

• ISBN13: 9780684844114
• ISBN10: 0684844117
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1999-08-03
• Publisher: Free Press

Summary

In Spiritual Diversity in Social Work Practice, Edward R. Canda and Leola Dyrud Furman introduce their breakthrough work on the importance of spirituality in social work teaching and practice. In this long-awaited textbook these leaders in socia

Author Biography

Edward R. Canda, Ph.D. is Professor of Social Welfare at the University of Kansas and founder of the Society for Spirituality and Social Work.

Table of Contents

Contents

Acknowledgments

A Note to the Reader

Introduction

The Heart of Helping

Principles That Guide the Writing of This Book

A Comparative Educational Approach

Preview of Chapters

Exercises

Central Values And Concepts For Spiritually Sensitive Social Work

Compassion, The Call To Service, And Ethical Principles For Social Work

Introduction

The Virtue of Compassion in Professional Social Work

Symbols of Compassion in Religious Traditions

A Common Heart of Compassion

Ethical Principles for Spiritually Sensitive Social Work

Summary

Exercises

The Meaning And Significance Of Spirituality

Introduction

The Challenges of Defining Spirituality

An Open Conceptualization of Spirituality

Responding to the Spirituality Debate

Summary

Exercises

Exploring Spiritual Diversity For Social Work Practice

Human Diversity, Spirituality, And Social Work Practice

Introduction

History of Spiritual Diversity in the United States

History of Connections Between Spirituality and Social Work

Ethnic Diversity and Spirituality

Women and Spirituality

Homosexuality, Sexual Orientation Diversity, and Spirituality

Summary

Exercises

Religious Perspectives On Social Service And Their Insights For Social Work Practice

Introduction

Buddhism and Social Service

Christianity and Social Service

Hinduism and Social Service

Islam and Social Service

Judaism and Social Service

Shamanism and Social Service

Summary

Exercises

Nonsectarian Spiritual Perspectives, Comparisons, And Implications For An Inclusive Approach

Introduction

Existentialism and Social Service

Transpersonal Theory and Social Service

Comparison of Spiritual Perspectives on Service

Engaging in Dialogue and Cooperation Across Spiritual Perspectives

Summary

Exercises

Spiritually Sensitive Social Work In Action

Creating A Spiritually Sensitive Context For Practice

Introduction

The Helping Relationship and ProcessA Holistic Approach to Social Work Practice

Summary

Exercises

Understanding And Assessing Spiritual Development

Introduction

Spiritual Development and Everyday Life

Spiritual Emergence and Emergencies

Spiritual Emergence Throughout the Life Cycle

Assessment over the Life Span

Topics for Assessment of Transpersonal Experiences

Summary

Exercises

Understanding And Assessing Therapeutic Process, Spiritual Activities, And Ethical Issues

Introduction

Social Work Practice as a Transformational Process

Ethical Guidelines for Using Spiritually Based Activities

Assessing Spiritual Propensity

Assessing Psychosocial Impacts of Participation in Spiritual Groups

Summary

Exercises

Spiritually Sensitive Practice Skills And Techniques

Introduction

Multicultural Teamwork for Spiritually Sensitive Practice

Spiritual Growth-Oriented Helping Techniques

Spirituality and Managed Care

Spirituality and Community-Involved Practice

Summary

Exercises

Discussion Guide For Assessing Spiritual Propensity

Methodological Summary For National Survey Of Nasw Members On Spirituality In Practice

References

Further Information on Spiritual Diversity in Social Work

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Chapter One: Compassion, the Call to Service, and Ethical Principles for Social Work Strive constantly to serve the welfare of the world; by devotion to selfless work on attains the supreme goal of life.-- The Bhagavad Gita 3:19, Hinduism(trans. Easwaran, 1985). IntroductionRecently, much of the world mourned the deaths of two influential women: Diana, princess of Wales, and Mother Teresa of Calcutta. These two women were vastly different. Princess Diana came from a family of privilege and entered the royal corridors of wealth and prestige. She led a life mixed with personal confusion, triumphs, and finally tragic early demise. Mother Teresa came from an impoverished Albanian family, became a Catholic nun, and chose to live with the poorest in her adopted country of India. She died as an elder, among the poorest of the poor, as she wished. But what these two women shared, and what brought them together on occasion, was a commitment to service. Each used her different life circumstances as a medium to help those in need and to help the world see the beauty, strength, and dignity of those who too often are discounted: the homeless; people dying from AIDS, starvation, and neglect; victims of domestic abuse, disease, and land mines; the rejected of society.Despite controversies and ambiguities surrounding these two women's beliefs and actions, millions of people around the world were moved deeply at their loss. These women's commitment to service and their compassion made them worthy of praise and idealization in the eyes of many. Something in each of us resonates with understanding and appreciation when we encounter genuine human compassion.As we grow in a sense of connection and responsibility with other people, other beings, and the ground of being, we search for ways to help and heal ourselves and the world. All religious traditions and all people struggle with experiences of suffering, mortality, and death. And all seek means of remedy and transcendence.Compassionliterally means "passion with others." It is commiseration in empathy with others. It is solidarity of response to suffering.Spiritually sensitive social work is an expression of compassion. Dass and Gorman (1985) said that when we let this natural compassion express in our work, there is a benefit to ourselves and to others: "The reward, the real grace, of conscious service, then, is the opportunity not only to help relieve suffering but to grow in wisdom, experience greater unity, and have a good time while we're doing it" (p. 16).Princess Diana and Mother Teresa were helpers from the heart rather than professional social workers. Their lives remind us, as professionally trained social workers, to reflect back on the fundamental humanity and compassion that were within us before the imposition of our formal rules, roles, theories, eligibility requirements, diagnostic schemes, and professional boundaries. By returning to this, we can revitalize our service as professionals.In this chapter, we explore spirituality more as a matter of heart -- the deepest motivations of people that lead us to a path of service and the symbols of compassion that inform service in religious traditions. Finally, we use these insights about compassion to elaborate upon ethical principles for spiritually sensitive social work practice.The Virtue of Compassion in Professional Social WorkThe Profession's Historical Commitment to CompassionSocial work is a normative profession, guided by explicit values, morals, and a code of ethics (Reid & Popple, 1992). Insofar as moral and value systems constitute one of the main components of spirituality, we can say that social work is fundamentally a spiritual profession -- one that sets its reason for existence and its highest priorities on service (Siporin, 1982, 1986). Core professional morals, values, and ethics are stated in nonsectarian