In James Fowler's, Stages of Faith, he examines six progressions of faith development that are universally applicable to all humans. His early stages are centered on the mental-psychological development of the individual as he or she learns the beliefs of the community and begins to develop his or her own values and beliefs. The later stages are more concerned with how the individual is able to expand their views beyond the community and incorporate aspects of other faiths with his or her own faith. In the autobiography, Blood Brothers, Father Elias Chacour shares his life story as a Palestinian Melkite Christian exiled from his native land and the years-long journey he embarks to find his true calling within the church as a peacemaker. Father Chacour reveals a relatively unknown side of the Arab-Israeli conflict while sharing with us his love for both the Jewish people and his own Palestinians. Father Chacour's faith journey in Blood Brothers will be used to illustrate the six stages of Fowler's faith development.
According to Fowler, stage one Intuitive-Projective faith, is a "fantasy-filled, imitative phase- (342) in which the child is influenced by the examples, moods, actions, and stories of their relatives' faith. In this stage, which generally occurs in children ages three to seven, faith is related to feelings and senses that are associated with certain memories; the child is not taught the beliefs of faith but rather observes the examples of faith set by those in the family environment [Fowler]. An example of this stage can be found in an early chapter of Blood Brothers when Elias hears the news that his father is bringing home a lamb for a dinner feast. Elias immediately makes the association of the lamb with the celebration of Easter. He has observed during his early years that the only time his family eats meat is during special occasions like Easter. Elias associates Easter with the feeling of happiness and a time of celebration.