Sibling by Choice - by Ursula Riedel-Pfaefflin & Archie Smith (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Exploring the historical, social, political, economic, and ecological dynamics that shape who we are and how we relate to one another, Smith and Riedel-Pfaefflin uncover the many layers and complexities of race, gender, class, and violence that make change difficult to achieve and sustain, and discuss the significance of an intercultural sibling metaphor for the teaching and training of pastoral care and counseling. They incorporate art, myth, history, social sciences, and scripture to demonstrate how the concepts of intercultural realities, systemic thinking, and narrative agency help us to understand historical processes that still have an influence on today's problems of violence between cultures, races, gender, and religions. Smith and Riedel-Pfaefflin offer their own life experiences, enlightenment from theological giants, teaching tools, group exercises, and case studies to build more culturally competent counseling and teaching and to enhance personal and social transformation.

Review Quotes

"Rarely does a volume embody so clearly the invitation it sets forth to the world. Siblings by Choice: Race, Gender, and Violence is the exception. In its pages the authors ask us to consider a life where we who have been enemies work together as brothers and sisters intent on mending the world. As the authors paint for us the portraits of their own social locations we realize that they themselves represent the differences about which they speak: one an African American male who has known the systemic oppression of life in a white privileged society; the other, a German female who has known privilege because of race, but oppression because she is woman. Being of different genders, races, and nationalities, they write together in the midst of a world broken and scarred by fear and violence."

About the Author

Ursula Riedel-Pfaefflin is professor of practical theology in Dresden, Germany, and is vice-president of the International Council of Pastoral Counselors. Archie Smith Jr. is the James and Clarice Foster Professor of Pastoral Psychology and Counseling at the Pacific School of Religion and Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. He is an ordained American Baptist minister and a Diplomate in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors.