The Grandparent Vocation

Wisdom, Legacies, and Spiritual Growth

Richard P Olson author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Published:2nd Nov '22

Should be back in stock very soon

This hardback is available in another edition too:

The Grandparent Vocation cover

Many grandparents experience a surge of joy with the birth or adoption of a grandchild. For years afterward, time together is eagerly coveted, pictures are treasured and displayed, and multiple gifts along with various kinds of support are gladly provided. Richard Olson, a retired minister, professor of theology, and grandparent many times over, presents the unconditional love of a grandparent as indicative of a vocation, a calling from God. He explores the vocation of grandparent in all of its multiple dimensions of being and doing.

Informed by a biblical perspective, the book explores the author’s personal journey of grandparenting and includes conversations with a diverse set of other grandparents. Olson examines biblical examples of grandparenting and suggests that the grandparent vocation has possibilities that often go unnoticed. These include care, enjoyment, and response to issues throughout a grandchild’s growth. He also addresses concerns for our grandchildren’s future world, and how grandparents can engage in mutual conversation about faith, morals, and values in a changing world. In addition, Olson discusses increasingly common relationship types such as grandparents serving as primary caregivers, adults becoming step-grandparents through marriage, interreligious family systems, and grandparents handling children with special needs. The book includes questions for personal or group reflection.

Grandchildren are precious and wonderful gifts! They keep us active, they teach us patience, they help us take time to play, they enable our continued learning, and they enlarge our love for life and family. No matter whether you are a church leader, a grandparent, or a grandchild, you will find Olson’s book is a highly readable and inspirational resource that bears witness to the indispensable calling of grandparenting. -- Richard H. Gentzler, Director, ENCORE Ministry, Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference of The United Methodist Church and author of An Age of Opportunity and Aging & Ministry in the 21st Century
Over the years I have had the pleasure of reading Richard Olson’s books. This one is my favorite. I felt invited into his seminary classroom for classes like Grand-parenting: answering God’s Call; Delight: learning the literal truth from the language of the child; and Spiritual Guidance for grand-parenting that changes the world. Olson took me on an inward journey that helped me embrace this wonderful stage of life. -- Dr. Ronald McDonald, Pastoral Councelor, Memphis Theological Seminary Professor, and author of The Soulful Life
Richard Olson's reclamation of the grandparent role--in all its rich and varied manifestations--is a welcome antidote to an ageist society that too readily dismisses the gifts and contributions of older people. Olson elevates grandparenthood to its rightful place: as a vital calling and a source of care and healing for children, families, communities, and even the planet. This essential reframing of grandparenting as vocation invites not only grandparents but all people of faith to lovingly nurture intergenerational relationships and deeply consider our legacies. -- Rev. Lynn Casteel Harper, author of On Vanishing: Mortality, Dementia, and What It Means to Disappear

ISBN: 9781538164402

Dimensions: 239mm x 160mm x 22mm

Weight: 463g

194 pages