The Concept of Spiritual Parenting in the Life and Work of Karol Wojtyła

Abstract

Karol Wojtyla’s main message of spiritual parenting was influenced by the great experiences of his life, his poetic and intellectual work. The origins of the idea of spiritual parenting are evident in his poetry and drama. However, it is in his intellectual work that the idea of spiritual parenting has been fully developed. The most important works were: Love and Responsibility and Person and Deed. Karol Wojtyla’s book Love and Responsibility combines the idea of spiritual parenting with the “selfless gift of self,” which is the essence of this idea. In the book Person and Deed, Wojtyla presents this idea in the integration of a person, through the experience of spiritual parenting manifested in solidarity with groups and communities. In Wojtyla’s narrative, spiritual parenting is seen as a moral challenge. The idea of spiritual parenting depicted in the life and work of K. Wojtyla is a help in dialogue with the world. It can be a practical and real opening of the door to Christ, the liberation of the poorest and most spiritually lost brothers and sisters.