Theology and Families

Families and children are becoming increasingly important within theology. Families are smaller. In some countries, 40% of births occur outside marriage, and 40% of children experience parental divorce by their 16th birthday. Relations between men and women, women and work, and parents and children, are all contributing to global changes to family forms and practices. This timely book, by one of the world's leading theologians in this field, makes a positive theological contribution to present intellectual and practical discussions about families and children. It identifies and utilizes theological sources for thinking about real human families; and it reclaims for the Christian church the notion that real "family values" are rooted in the life of the triune God. The core question which the book answers is, how the resources of Christian faith can contribute to the thriving of families, and in particular, to children. The book contributes originally to a host of other important theological and ethical questions, such as whether marriage any longer remains the ideal family form; why couples are increasingly choosing to be childless; whether "God the Father" can inform human parenting, and if so how; whether the rights of children have a place in theology; and what a much-needed theology of parenting looks like