Mercy as a principle of integral professionalism: theological foundations of soft skills in social work from a Polish-Slovak perspective

This paper deals with the relationship between mercy and soft skills in social work from a Polish-Slovak perspective. Based on the assumption that current practitioners in helping professions require an integral combination of knowledge, skills, attitudes and spirituality, the authors present mercy as a spiritual-ethical source of interpersonal and emotional skills. The analysis is interdisciplinary and is based on the theological reflection of mercy, personalistic anthropology and the results of the authors’ research project: “The Implementation of Soft Skills in the Curriculum of the Social Work Study Program.” The first part presents the development of the concept of social work anchored in the idea of mercy and Christian personalism, emphasizing the importance of integral education in the spirit of the ethos of service. The perspective of the second part complements this analysis with a spiritual formation and empathic education dimension. The paper proposes a model of “integral professionalism,” in which mercy is the principle connecting the cognitive, emotional, ethical and spiritual competences of the social worker. The conclusion is that mercy may serve as a current formative and methodological category, which integrates the theological reflection with the social and educational practice.