The perceived relationship and roles of parents and evangelical churches in the spiritual nurture of children

The purpose of this study was to identify perceptions of the relationship between the role of the church and the role of the parents in the spiritual nurture of children and to identify distinctive characteristics of these respective roles in the spiritual nurture of children. Chapter one explains the apparent struggle for parents and churches regarding how the parents' role and the church's role integrate in a biblical model for the spiritual nurture of children.;Chapter two examines the development of spiritual nurture of children throughout various times in history and the relationships between patterns and trends in the spiritual nurture of children.;Chapter three is the description of the research process. The study was descriptive research using ethnographic interviews and questionnaires (developed from the data of the interviews and an expert panel) to examine the relationships between the perceived roles of parents and evangelical churches in the spiritual nurture of children.;Chapter four displays the data resulting from the interviews and questionnaires and analysis.;Chapter five describes the resulting distinctive roles of the church and the home and specific ministry applications for the integration of these two roles as it relates to the spiritual nurture of children.