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[German Version] I. Religious Studies “Rites of passage” (Fr. rites de passage) is an expression introduced in 1909 by Arnold van Gennep to mark transitions between two stages of life or conditions of being. It refers primarily to transitions in the life cycle (Sanskrit saṃskāra) such as birth, initiation, marriage, and death (Dying); then also to examinations/ordeals, seasonal transitions (e.g. New Year, new or full moon, harvest), and consecrations (e.g. of a house, or ordination of a priest). Van Gennep elaborated a three-level model that divided rites of passage into …

[German Version] (Oct 30, 1905, Haarlem, The Netherlands – Dec 17, 1989, Naarden, The Netherlands), a prominent Dutch educator of the 20th century. From 1937 to 1972, he was professor of the philosophy of education at the University of Utrecht and the founder of the “Utrecht School.” Historically, Langeveld stands at the intersection of a pedagogics oriented on the humanities and a pedagogics oriented on the theory of action. He developed the notion of upbringing in constant consideration of the h…

[German Version] (Feb 7, 1870, Vienna – May 28, 1937, Aberdeen), of Jewish parentage, converted to Protestantism in 1904; physician, psychotherapist, social educationalist, and professor of clinical psychology; beside C.G. Jung, one of the most important students of S. Freud, who, with his (socio-psychologically and socio-medically oriented) …

1. Definition In spite of intensive investigation of the phenomenon of creativity, no precise definition is yet possible. ¶ Qualities of creativity such as novelty, originality, and uniqueness are helpful indicators but still do not yield an exact definition. The starting point of a theological approach to the problem must be that in modern studies, interest focuses especially on humans as creative beings and on their creative production (Anthropology). Yet creativity can be relevantly treated theologically only in the context of God…

1. Historical Development Research into the ecclesial role of godparents has revealed many different legal, social, liturgical, pastoral, and educational dimensions of the practice. Little, however, has as yet been done regarding many sociological and popular religious aspects (Piety: Social History). Borrowing from non-Christian practice, the church used godparents (Lat. sponsor, patrinus, Ger. Vadder, It. padrino, Sp. compadre) as early as the second century to vouch for adults in baptism and to be responsible companions for them in their catech…

[English Version] I. Religionswissenschaftlich R. (franz., »Übergangsriten«) ist ein von Arnold van Gennep 1909 eingeführter Begriff für die Feier oder Zelebration von Passagen zw. zwei Lebensstufen oder Seinszuständen. In erster Linie sind damit lebenszyklische (Lebenszyklus) Übergänge (sanskrit saṃskāra) wie Geburt, Initiation, Hochzeit oder Tod (Sterben) gemeint. In Frage kommen aber auch Prüfungen, jahreszeitliche Übergänge (z.B. Neujahr, Neu- bzw. Vollmond, Ernte) oder Weihen (z.B. Haus- oder Priesterweihe). Van Gennep arbeitete ein dreistufiges Muster …