Religion plays a significant role in the fostering and upbringing of children across cultures and societies. When religious teachings are practised in a balanced, compassionate, and child-centred manner, they help create protective and nurturing environments where children can thrive free from abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Empirical research suggests that constructive religious and spiritual guidance during childhood is associated with reduced aggressive behaviour, lower substance use, decreased engagement in high-risk activities, and improved mental health outcomes during the lifetime. Beyond these measurable impacts, religious traditions provide ethical frameworks that nurture compassion, responsibility, and respect for human dignity, thereby contributing to children’s moral,sense of right and wrong and spiritual development.

Religious teachings unequivocally condemn abuse, neglect, and exploitation, placing a moral obligation on families and communities to ensure children’s safety and well-being.

Religious teachings unequivocally condemn abuse, neglect, and exploitation, placing a moral obligation on families and communities to ensure children’s safety and well-being.

This article presents a qualitative comparative review of key teachings from five major world religions – Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Drawing on religious texts, doctrinal interpretations, and scholarly literature, it identifies converging and diverging principles across three interrelated dimensions of child well-being: holistic development, safeguarding, and recovery.

1) Child’s Holistic Development:

Across religious traditions, spiritual development is viewed as integral to a child’s overall development. As spiritual capacities evolve, they........

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