I have long been interested in developmental psychologist James Fowler’s Stages of Faith. The Stages offer readers a socio-scientific sort of glimpse into developmental aspects of faith that may – or may not – personally resonate. More often than not, people introduced to the list can in fact place themselves in one stage or another. Sometimes personal experiences reveal a broad span across a few stages too.
Fowler’s Stages, if nothing else, can serve as one tool with which those who are dedicated to critical self-examination and self-awareness can semi-accurately gauge their faith journey.
James Fowler advances the idea of six universal stages: 1. Intuitive-Projective Faith; 2. Mythic-Literal Faith; 3. Synthetic-Conventional Faith; 4. Individuative-Reflective Faith; 5. Conjunctive Faith; 6. Universalizers (exceedingly rare!).
A full explanation of the characteristics inherent to each stage can be viewed at this page: Stages of Faith.
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