Becoming Like a Child

The Curiosity of Maturity beyond the Norm

Berryman invites the reader into a creative process that explores what it means to be spiritually mature, starting with Jesus’ injunction to “become like a child.” What does this mean at the literal level? the figurative level? the mystical level? the ethical level? The structure of the process parallels the book’s organization and the structure of Christian worship, as well as the arc of life itself. The steps on this journey begin when we enter, and the world of childlike maturity opens to us as we respond with inarticulate wonder and gratitude. This book, like The Spiritual Guidance of Children, is less academic and has a broader scope than Children and the Theologians. Berryman includes stories and examples from his long career working with children, which adds warmth and appeal to the book. He has described this volume as his “summary, theological statement.”