Faculty Publication Highlight: Theresa O'Keefe

The heart of ministry with adolescents is assisting adolescents to recognize and grow into the multiple relationships in their lives, including their relationship with God. Navigating Toward Adulthood is a work of Practical Theology that examines the project of adolescence within frameworks of developmental psychology and sociology, intersecting with Catholic theology. It is organized into four parts: the first outlines the “project of adolescence,” and what a young person must undergo to become a spiritually mature and healthy adult; the second offers a definition of adulthood focusing on its social responsibilities; the third characterizes adolescence as the stage in which a person transitions from an instrumental to a relational engagement with the world; and the fourth focuses on how the Church can best respond to the resulting adolescent developmental needs.