Memory phenomena in the law

Memory issues arise in the law in many different ways. At the most fundamental level, assumptions about memory are inherent in both substantive laws and procedural rules that govern the operation of the legal system. For example, the rules and procedures used to govern the conduct of jury trials reflect a great deal of faith in jurors' ability to understand and retain information over long periods of time, often with much intervening information. Memory issues also arise in the context of individual cases. For example, the ability of an attorney to satisfactorily prosecute or defend a case on behalf of a client often relies largely upon the completeness and accuracy of the memory of the client and other witnesses. This paper discusses examples of memory issues in the law and describes how applied research on these issues can be used to inform basic memory theory, particularly with respect to the relationship between emotion and memory.     

Whose Authority? Perceptions of Science Education in Black and Latino Churches

Recent scholarship argues that beliefs in biblical literalism might keep conservative Protestants out of STEM. Two of the groups that are most underrepresented in STEM, black Americans and Latinos, are also two of the most religious populations in the United States, and specifically overrepresented in theologically conservative Christian traditions. Yet, prior work also suggests that churches help promote positive educational outcomes. To interrogate the potential relationship between STEM educational aspirations and religious faith, we explore how black and Latino Christians perceive the potential impact of science education on religious faith. Analysis of 40 interviews reveals that both black Americans and Latinos have concerns about science teachers being biased. Yet, the groups differ in their assessment of the danger of anti-religious bias. Black Americans put confidence in the Christian community to incubate children from harm to their faith; therefore, they believe the effect of science education on religious faith is either neutral or positive. Latinos, however, raise concerns about the authority of science educators, rather than science curriculum. Overall, the results shift the conversation on conservative religion and science education from solely discussing content to exploring issues of bias and authority.     

Studies on Interfaith Relations: Latest Input for Authority Management Review (AMR) in Malaysia

Malaysia is a multi-religious society with 28.3 million people. The country had succeeded in managing religious diversity for almost fifty-seven years. This includes the promotion of interfaith relationships granted under the right to religious freedom, which is protected by the State. There are, however, emerging interfaith challenges, including conversion from one faith to another and reversion back to the original faith, these types of challenges appearing especially in the early millennium. This article reviews the ten latest research studies on interfaith issues in Malaysia and identifies useful themes for authority in exercising management review. Using the content analysis method, this study found that there are several important managerial aspects to be taken into serious consideration, including setting clear parameters for freedom of religion in Malaysia, clear procedures for managing religious conflict, managing faith with respect, and effectively promoting media advocacy. The findings also give insights on the development of interfaith studies in Malaysia.     

Medical ethics in Norway: Modern medicine — Traditional morality

In Norway, by tradition a Lutheran country, the puritan ethics of a “moral minority” has a strong influence on the development and manifestations of medical ethics. Those who exert this influence are found primarily among politicians, the clergy, and, last but certainly not least, among nurses and doctors. The focus of interest is not so much on problems of bioethical moral theory or the teaching of bioethics to students, but very much on attitudes and policies with regard to substantive issues traditionally regarded in Norway as burning bioethical issues, such as: medical research ethics, abortion, prenatal diagnosis, euthanasia, definitions of death, and reproductive technologies.     

The Persistence of Faith Among Nonheterosexual Christians: Evidence for the Neosecularization Thesis of Religious Transformation

The neosecularization thesis, which combines the "secularization" and "postsecularization" paradigms, argues that religion is in a constant state of transformation (thus persistence). It also argues that the examination of "secularization" needs to be conducted on three levels: macro, meso, and micro. Drawing from a quantitative and qualitative study involving 565 nonheterosexual Christians in the United Kingdom, this article aims to lend credence to the neosecularization thesis, focusing on the micro, or individual, level only. This article highlights the lack of influence and impact of religious authority structures on the respondents' views of sexuality and spirituality. Data also demonstrated that, in the construction of the respondents' identity and Christian faith, as well as the fashioning of Christian living, religious authority structures were considered the least significant factor, compared to the respondents' employment of human reason and biblical understanding, within the framework of lived experiences. On the whole, data suggested that the self, rather than religious authority structures, steers the respondents' journeys of spirituality and sexuality. This is evidence of the impact of the "detraditionalization" process on the late modern religious landscape, where the basis of religious faith and practice is primarily predicted on the self, rather than traditions and structures.     

Religion and Attitudes Toward Abortion and Abortion Policy in Brazil

This study examines the association between religion and attitudes toward the practice of abortion and abortion policy in Brazil. Drawing upon data from the 2002 Brazilian Social Research Survey (BSRS), we test a number of hypotheses with regard to the role of religion on opposition to the practice of abortion and its legalization. Findings indicate that frequently attending Pentecostals demonstrate the strongest opposition to the practice of abortion and both frequently attending Pentecostals and Catholics demonstrate the strongest opposition to its legalization. Additional religious factors, such as a commitment to biblical literalism, were also found to be significantly associated with opposition to both abortion issues. Ultimately, the findings have implications for the future of public policy on abortion and other contentious social issues in Brazil.     

Faith as a Cultural Variable: Implications for Counselor Training

Counselors are faced with a unique challenge when faith is a prominent clinical variable. Although faith is deemed relevant, counselors may not feel comfortable approaching the subject of faith with clients. Participants in this study were practicing counselors licensed in their respective states; each was also a current doctoral candidate in counselor education and supervision. A scenario involving a complex interaction of faith; family systems; and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues in clinical practice was provided. Participants were found to be more likely to value the importance of addressing faith in sessions than they were to actually use faith as an intervention.     

Religion and Organ Donation: The Views of UK Faith Leaders

This article reports the findings from the one-to-one interviews with the main UK faith and belief leaders which were commissioned by the Organ Donation Taskforce as part of its evidence gathering. Interviews were arranged with the main faith and belief organisations within the UK. Interviews covered a range of issues related to organ donation. Although some faith groups had some reservations regarding organ donation, interviews with these leaders demonstrated that none of these faith groups have reached a consensus against organ donation. The interviewees stated that the majority opinion in their faith or belief group is to permit organ donation, with some actively supporting it. Interviewees were keen to stress that there is a broad spectrum of opinion on organ transplantation within each faith and belief group and that consequently it is difficult to speak on behalf of an entire group. One complication mentioned by interviewees is that as organ transplantation is a relatively new medical procedure, there is no explicit reference to it in many original religious texts. Consequently, positions on the receipt and donation of organs are based on interpretation. It was felt that a much greater level of engagement is needed, as organ donation is currently not a priority for many faith and belief groups.     

Structural correspondence between theories and convergence to truth

While “scientism” is typically regarded as a position about the exclusive epistemic authority of science held by a certain class of “cultured despisers” of “religion”, we show that only on the assumption of this sort of view do purportedly “scientific” claims made by proponents of “intelligent design” appear to lend epistemic or apologetic support to claims affirmed about God and God’s action in “creation” by Christians in confessing their “faith”. On the other hand, the hermeneutical strategy that better describes the practice and method of Christian theologians, from the inception of theological reflection in the Christian tradition, acknowledges the epistemic authority of the best available tests for truth in areas of human inquiry such as science and history. But this strategy does not assume that such tests, whose authority must be regarded as provisional, provides authority for the warrant of affirming claims constituting the confessed “faith”. By attributing theological import to claims advanced by appeal to the best available tests for truth in the practice of science, supporters of ID not only confuse the epistemic authority of these tests with the normative authority of a faith community’s confessional identity, but impute to scientific tests for truth a sort of authority that even goes beyond the “methodological naturalism” against which they counterpose their claims.     

The aesthetic as mirror of faith in Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling

One of the most intractable issues in Kierkegaard scholarship continues to be the question of what one is to make of the relation between infinite resignation and faith in Fear and Trembling. Most commentators follow Kierkegaard's pseudonymous author in claiming that progression to faith is a “linear” process that requires infinite resignation as a first step. The problem with such a reading is that it leads to paradox: It seems to require attributing to the “knight of faith” two inconsistent belief‐attitudes simultaneously—on the one hand, the willingness to resign one's heart's desires (infinite resignation) and, on the other, the conviction that one will somehow receive back what one has resigned. But this is a confused way of thinking about faith. I will show that faith's alleged paradoxicality is only apparent and that the element of resignation that constitutes an aspect of it actually bears some striking similarities to what the aesthete has in mind when he speaks, in Either/Or, of throwing hope overboard in order to make possible a truly artistic way of life. Hence, on my interpretation, the knight of faith does not need to adopt two contradictory attitudes at the same time (or constantly to “annul” one of them), but must rather practice a form of spiritual discipline in many ways analogous to the aesthete's endeavour to become a “poet of possibility.”     

Faith and the practising analyst

Abstract: In this brief essay, I reflect on three questions: What is ‘faith’ in a modern and post‐modern cultural context? Do I, a Jungian analyst, have ‘faith’ or do I not? Does having ‘faith’ or not make a difference in the practice of analysis? I make reference to Jung's understanding of ‘faith’ and his frequent disclaimers about making metaphysical claims. I conclude that a post‐credal ‘faith’ is possible for contemporary Jungian analysts, that I do have such a faith personally, and that in my experience this makes a significant difference in analytic practice at least with some patients. Traditional faith statements must be translated into depth psychological terms, however, in order for them to be applicable in post‐modern, multicultural contexts.     

Legal procedures in Wanglie: a two-step, not a sidestep

Hospital policies...have a very limited role in addressing the substantive issue of authority with regard to nonbeneficial therapies. First, they could not be limited, as Mishkin suggests, to persons in a persistent vegetative state. Nonbeneficial therapies encompass many other scenarios including ineffective cancer chemotherapy or open-heart surgery on profoundly demented persons. Second, I am not convinced that families or patients could be meaningfully informed of the specific relevance of such policies to their care in advance of a dispute. Most importantly, the view that such policies are required as a foundation to withhold nonbeneficial therapy implies that patients otherwise have a new right to command the provision of nonbeneficial therapies....It may well be judicially preferable to ask directly for declarative relief from a duty to provide a treatment, as Mishkin suggests. I am not convinced that such an approach would be "ethically" superior....Third, the novel, declarative approach directly risks a precedent that would affirm the family's right to demand futile therapy....Ultimately, when public policy on this kind of dispute is clearer, a declarative strategy may well be preferable. For now, the Wanglie case has outlined the fundamental issues of this novel legal question and has generated a fruitful discussion of a complex issue in patient care and public policy.     

Ministerial Formation in a Multi–Faith Society

This article reports on the findings of a study carried out with ordinands and faculty in English theological Colleges and Courses (programs). The project aimed to discover (a) how and to what extent students are trained to work in Britain’s multi–faith society, and (b) how are ordinands thinking theologically about issues of religious diversity. This article highlights the examples of good practice that emerged from the study and considers what makes for good learning about multi–faith issues for ordinands training for the ministry.     

Why Do Students Keep Writing Me Sermons? Teaching Biblical Studies Cross‐Culturally in New Zealand

Abstract. Students from different cultural backgrounds respond in a variety of ways to my teaching of biblical studies. Some sermonize or plagiarize quite unselfconsciously in their written assignments, while others consistently hand in work late or are silent members of the class. As I struggled with what these behaviors were saying about my teaching, I came to realize that limited ability in spoken and written English was not the only barrier. Deeper issues were at stake here about the nature of cross‐cultural communication, teaching, and learning. In this note I analyze the issues of faith, authority, and styles of teaching and learning which underlie the “clash of educational cultures” ( Ballard and Clanchy 1997 , viii) occurring in the cross‐cultural classroom. Then I suggest a number of strategies that I have developed to build bridges of understanding between the various educational cultures, to encourage deeper participation and to develop critical thinking.     

Engaging with Faith Councils to Develop Stoma-specific Fatawās: A Novel Approach to the Healthcare Needs of Muslim Colorectal Patients

Intestinal stomas are common. Muslims report significantly lower quality of life following stoma surgery compared to non-Muslims. A fatwā is a ruling on a point of Islamic law according to a recognised religious authority. The use of fatawās to guide health-related decision-making has becoming an increasingly popular practice amongst Muslims, regardless of geographic location. This project aimed to improve the quality of life of Muslim ostomates by addressing faith-specific stoma concerns. Through close collaboration with Muslim ostomates, a series of 10 faith-related questions were generated, which were posed to invited local faith leaders during a stoma educational event. Faith leaders received education concerning the realities of stoma care before generating their fatawās. The event lead to the formulation of a series of stoma-specific fatawās representing Hanafi and Salafi scholarship, providing faith-based guidance for Muslim ostomates and their carers. Enhanced communication between healthcare providers and Islamic faith leaders allows for the delivery of informed fatawās that directly benefit Muslim patients and may represent an efficient method of improving health outcomes in this faith group.     

Faith,Race‐Ethnicity,and Public Policy Preferences: Religious Schemas and Abortion Attitudes Among U.S. Latinos

Research has demonstrated that white conservative Protestants are more opposed to abortion than their Catholic counterparts. At the same time, conservative Protestantism has made significant inroads among U.S. Latinos. This study augments existing research on religion and racial‐ethnic variations in abortion attitudes by comparing levels of support for legalized abortion among Catholic and conservative Protestant Latinos. Data are drawn from a nationally representative sample of U.S. Latinos. Significantly greater opposition to abortion is found among religiously devout conservative Protestant Latinos when compared with their Catholic counterparts. Latino Catholicism, which functions as a near‐monopolistic, highly institutionalized faith tradition among Hispanics, produces weaker antiabortion attitudes than those exhibited in Latino conservative Protestantism. Among Latinos, conservative Protestantism operates as a niche voluntaristic faith. These factors produce a religious schema that yields robust antiabortion attitudes. This study has important implications for understanding the intersection of race‐ethnicity, religion, and public policy preferences.     

The Limits of Razian Authority

It is common to encounter the criticism that Joseph Raz??s service conception of authority is flawed because it appears to justify too much. This essay examines the extent to which the service conception accommodates this critique. Two variants of this critical strategy are considered. The first, exemplified by Kenneth Einar Himma, alleges that the service conception fails to conceptualize substantive limits on the legitimate exercise of authority. This variant fails; Raz has elucidated substantive limits on jurisdiction within the service conception of authority, albeit reluctantly and equivocally. The second, exemplified by Scott Hershovitz, alleges that the service conception fails to conceptualize procedural limits on the legitimate exercise of authority. He objects that the normal justification thesis fails to deny legitimacy to rational and expert dictators. This argument is more potent, but its force is concealed when it is aimed at the normal justification thesis rather than the quite separate jurisdictional limits of Raz??s theory. Clarifying those jurisdictional aspects of the service conception shows why the first argument fails and exposes the real strength of the second. Both variants have important consequences for our understanding of the service conception.     

Aligning with lives of faith

The philosophical and theological discussion regarding religious faith has primarily concerned itself with the abstract issues of what faith is, whether it can be rationally held, and how an agent can acquire, sustain, or deepen faith. The issue of how we should orient ourselves to the faith of others and the role such orientation might play in the religious life hasn’t been much discussed. It is this topic that I propose to address in this essay. I do so by considering a little-known nineteenth-century saint of the Eastern Orthodox church, St. Jacob of Alaska, exploring the ways in which the liturgy calls for its participants to engage with St. Jacob’s life of faith. I develop and defend the claim that it calls for the religiously committed to align their lives with the lives of exemplars such as St. Jacob.