Future Ontology: Indeterminate Existence or Non-existence?

Philosophia - The Growing Block Theory of time says that the metaphysical openness of the future should be understood in terms of there not being any future objects or events. But in a series of...     

Existentialism,aliens and referentially unrestricted worlds

Synthese - Existentialism claims that propositions that directly refer to individuals depend on those individuals for their existence. I argue for two points regarding Existentialism. First, I...     

An assessment of manager/subordinate perceptions of performance appraisal effectiveness

This study postulates that performance appraisal will be effective to the extent that managers and subordinates have a shared perception of its purpose and function and the degree to which it meets the needs of both groups. A two part research project was conducted to: 1) identify manager/subordinate perceptions of the purposes served by the formal performance appraisal process; 2) determine the extent to which these purposes are being satisfied in organizational practice; and 3) assess if managers and subordinates have a shared perception of the effectiveness of the appraisal process. The sample for the study included 36 managers and 143 subordinates from a division of a large Midwest service organization. The results were mixed with regard to the appraisal system effectively accomplishing its diverse goals. However, in general, there was support for the notion that both managers and subordinates find the appraisal process to be a worthwhile organizational practice. Approximately 70% of the respondents indicated that they would participate in the appraisal program whether they were required to do so or not.     

Imprints in time: towards a moderately robust past

Presentism says that only present objects exist (timelessly). But the view has trouble grounding past-tensed truths like “dinosaurs existed”. Standard Eternalism grounds those truths by positing the (timeless) existence of past objects—like dinosaurs. But Standard Eternalism conflicts with the intuition that there is genuine change—the intuition that there once were dinosaurs and no longer are any. I offer a novel theory of time—‘The Imprint’—that does a better job preserving both the grounding and genuine change intuitions. The Imprint says that the past and present exist (in the timeless sense), but where the present exhibits mass-energy, the past only consists of curved empty regions of spacetime. We therefore avoid saying that there are dinosaurs, since there is no mass-energy in the past; but the curvature of the past gives us a way to ground the truth that “dinosaurs existed”.     

On Israel's God and God's Israel: Assessing Supersessionism in Paul

Contemporary interpretation of Paul continues to be enthralledby and entrenched within a debate about Paul and Judaism. Withinthat debate, the issue of supersessionism is of critical significance,lurking under every exegetical stone, whether or not it risesto the fore of any given scholar's work. Does the church replaceethnic Israel in Paul's thinking (as so many have imagined throughoutthe history of the Christian church)? Or is ethnic Israel ona separate salvific path by way of her covenant election (asmany are currently advocating)? Or are there other dimensionsto be considered? This essay outlines basic interpretative optionson the issue of supersessionism in Paul, assessing the exegeticalmerits of ‘two ways’ and replacement scenarios,and offering reflections on the debate in its contemporary setting.     

Perdurantism,fecklessness and the veil of ignorance

Philosophical Studies - There has been a growing charge that perdurantism—with its bloated ontology of very person-like objects that coincide persons—implies the repugnant conclusion...