This article provides an analysis of the category of spirituality found in the texts of classical pedagogues such as: J.J. Rousseau, J.H. Pestalozzi and J.F. Herbart. Spirituality appears in these texts in the sense of morality and its varieties such as the heart, the inner life, but also the mental horizon. This way of understanding spirituality traditionally has belonged to religious context and is particularly visible in herbartian pedagogy. In the texts of Rousseau and Pestalozzi there is a belief that institutionalized religion called to be representative of morality is not fulfilling its role properly. Therefore, they establish the higher instance of religion - noninstitutional, personal, internal, involving an independent search for meaning in life. What attracts particular attention is the fact that despite the high rank given to the thread of morality/spirituality by presented here authors, this issue remains the “fuzzy” concept and lacks of detailed indications as to the ways of its implementation. This ambiguity, which operates poetic language and the lack of specific references of a practical nature, seems to be one of the causes acting on behalf of the exclusion of spirituality from the educational impact. This analysis is the first stage of the theoretical description of spirituality, which in the field of pedagogy is very fragmented, ambiguous, and thus difficult to undergo pedagogical reflection. It is also a step towards “disenchantment” of the analyzed category, by which I mean the process of rational and critical overview of spirituality; this in turn paves the way for realizing the sense that I find in making the category of spirituality useful for pedagogy: undergoing reflection and being translated into educational practice.

The model of a contemporary female Catholic as designed by religious girls on the threshold of adulthood. A report on focus group interviews

This article describes the model of a contemporary Catholic woman as designed by religious girls on the threshold of adulthood. In the struggle of young people with existential dilemmas, both specific models and abstract role models may prove to be helpful. Both have become the subject of research carried out in 2021 conducted using 10 focus group interviews with 35 female students in the final years of secondary schools. The focus groups were created by recruiting 17–18 years olds girls of the Roman Catholic faith living in western and northern Poland and attended religion lessons. This article contains an excerpt concerning the model of a Catholic woman in the contemporary world designed by interviewees. The projection task showed that the created role models go beyond the stereotypical images of Catholic women, less refers to a specific traditional Christian personal models and is an exemplification of a new female perspective in Catholicism.

New Spirituality as a Sociocultural Megatrend

The term “new spirituality” has been becoming trendy for some time now. It is appearing more and more in the social sciences, as well as in everyday life. It appears increasingly in the social sciences, as well as in everyday life. It becomes one of the most interesting and widely discussed problems in the modern humanities. Many modern people, in the highly developed countries of the world, do not use the noun „religion” or the adjective „religious”, but refer to the terms „spiritual” or „spirituality”, considering them more appropriate to describe their worldview. There is no single form of spirituality, but there are many, ever new ones. In the article, the author presents definitions of the new spirituality, discusses its various characteristics and finally quotes the following definition of the new spirituality: “New spirituality is one of the megatrends of the beginning of the 21st century. It is an experience of the sacred, sometimes nameless, understood as something personal, intimate, and relating to the inner power of the human being. New spirituality emphasizes the role of experience and spiritual exercises, sees the human body as a container filled with inner, spiritual sense and as a manifestation of the creative power of the Spirit, respects nature, promotes healthy eating, attaches great importance to human bonding based on fidelity and love, refers to moral values it considers applicable, is sensitive to art, and emphasizes gender equality. It is holistic, democratic, easily accessible, and non–hierarchical. It stands in opposition to institutionalized religion, which means that it is beyond the Church”.