The Future of Luther's Theology

Abstract : Some historical observations need to be made about Luther in his own time before his thought can be made useful for our future. First, theology was a collaborative undertaking for Luther and his Wittenberg colleagues. Second, theology was tied to their Reformation agenda of teaching a new way of practicing Christianity in accord with the gospel. That agenda required radical changes: a conversion of religious efforts to please God into advocacy of the neighbor; expansion of the church beyond Rome into an ecumenical assembly of holy and active believers; and a theological reorganization of public life that blurred the line between theology and ethics. In these areas, adapted to the 21st century, lies the greatest utility of Luther's theology for the future.     

Spare the Rod? Ideology,Experience, and Attitudes Toward Child Discipline Among Presbyterian Clergy

Despite the recurrent public and academic controversies over the issue of corporal punishment, few studies have examined the attitudes of clergy members. This oversight is noteworthy, because clergy members may influence the beliefs and behaviors of church members and others via their roles in parish ministry, counseling, and civic leadership. Our study addresses this gap in the research literature using data from a nationwide sample of Presbyterian Church (USA) clergy members. Key findings include the following: (a) Approval of corporal punishment is higher among male, non-white, less affluent, and parish (vs. specialized) clergy; (b) Theological conservatism is unrelated to corporal punishment attitudes, but political conservatism and Republican Party leanings are strongly predictive of greater approval of physical discipline; and (c) Clergy members who know someone in their congregation who has experienced abuse are less supportive of the corporal punishment of children, although direct personal experiences with physical or emotional abuse are less consistently related to corporal punishment attitudes. Several implications and promising directions for future research are discussed.

Effects of Transactional and Transformational Leadership of Pastors

Over the last 20 years, researchers and practitioners have become increasingly interested in the transactional–transformational leadership paradigm. However, only a few studies have tested the validity of this approach to leadership concerning Christian pastors. Thus, two studies were conducted in Germany that explored the effect of transactional and transformational leadership of pastors on several outcome criteria. The results revealed that transformational leadership was positively associated with followers’ satisfaction with their pastor, their extra effort, their effectiveness, and their job satisfaction. In addition to this effect on followers, transformational leadership showed positive effects on worshipers’ satisfaction with the worship service. Implications of these results for theory and practice are discussed.

Was Wittgenstein an Analytic Philosopher? Wittgenstein vs Russell

This article is in six main sections.In the first three sections,some indication of how and why philosophers have differed in their response to the title question is given by describing Wittgenstein's encounters with Camap,and by examining Wittgenstein's commitment to clarity and argument in philosophy,illustrating this commitment by reference to his Philosophical Investigations discussion of the will.In the remaining three sections,Russell is taken as a paradigm example of a central kind of analytic philosopher.The answer to the title question is unfolded by sketching Wittgenstein's and Russell's treatments of a few philosophical topics and problems,focusing on theories and questions surrounding propositions,judgments,and their constituents,in particular Russell's multiple relation theory of judgment and the question of the unity of the proposition.This approach displays,and does not merely assert,Russell's deployment of (sometimes repeated variants of) technical solutions to philosophical problems and how that deployment contrasts with Wittgenstein's attempts to make such problems disappear.     

《周易》与阳明心学

<周易>思想是阳明心学的思想渊源之一.其知行合一说与致良知说都运用了<周易>的思想资源,将"内求于心"的道德内求思想发挥到极致,完善地表达了关于本体、工夫一致的思想,最终的目的则是成就一种光明俊伟的人格,使人的自然生命和道德生命在本质上获得圆融一致的和谐.     

Prolegomena to any Future History of Analytic Philosophy

Abstract: The careful historical and metaphilosophical attention recently bestowed upon analytic philosophy has revealed that traditional ways of defining it are inadequate. In the face of this inadequacy, contemporary authors have proposed new definitions that detach analytic philosophy from its turn of the twentieth century origins. I argue that this contemporary trend in defining analytic philosophy is misguided, and that it diminishes the likelihood of our coming to an accurate historical and metaphilosophical understanding of it. This is especially unsatisfactory since such understanding is essential to finding an adequate remedy for the widely perceived ills of contemporary analytic philosophy. I suggest that a more fruitful approach to developing such understanding might begin with treating the unity of analytic philosophy as illusory.     

On the Way to a Postmodern Curriculum Theory -- Moving from the Question of Unity to the Question of Difference

This article will examine the consequences of highlighting subject and difference in one of the curriculum theories that has been inspired by postmodernism. The term postmodernism is here first and foremost meant to signify the attempt to combine politics and morality with epistemology in accordance with Levinas, Lyotard and Bauman. The article will highlight some themes that need to be developed further for a postmodernism-inspired curriculum theory. A starting-point is a critique of the type of curriculum theory which has its base in the new sociology of education. From this critique, focused on universal claims, the Habermasian-inspired universalism is quickly and critically dropped and left behind, and another form of reasoning is embarked upon. The latter is inspired by a minotarian politics concept and tries to dissolve universalism as a prerequisite for critical conversations. With this background and with the help of Levinas, the article sets out to talk about difference without reduction to the Same and finally suggest a direction for a postmodern curriculum theory with a normative focus on knowledge.     

Religious Organizations and Government: An Ecclesial Lutheran “Take”

Sharp debates exist today about the appropriate relationship between religious organizations and government, with views ranging from Christian nationalism to strict secularists. This essay explores a mediating position expressed in the conceptual phrase that religious bodies should “work with civil authorities in areas of mutual endeavor, maintaining institutional separation and functional interaction.” The essay uses historical and ecclesial sources to describe the struggles and underpinnings that lead to this position and then unpacks its meaning and import. While originating from within the conceptual and ecclesial American Lutheran tradition, the essay points to this approach as a public proposal for sound relationship between religious communities and political authority in the United States.     

Paradox explored: Climate shame,moral agency,the church,and the birds

This article explores shame and moral agency in relationship to the climate catastrophe, and the moral situation of the world's relatively high-consuming people who are implicated in greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. The author complexifies that situation in the conundrums of climate colonialism, climate racism, structural sin, and the moral ambiguities they raise, including such questions as: “What are the moral demands of climate sin grounded in historically rooted economic systems that one did not create but upon which the material conditions of one's life depend? To what extent, if any, is the individual morally accountable for the social structures of which one is a part and from which one benefits?” From there, the essay moves to its central question. It is whether shame theory might help to enable moral agency for what is desperately needed now by people of climate privilege and economic privilege in the North Atlantic world—wise and courageous action to address climate change and climate injustice. The article probes shame theory for clues to what disables moral agency and what catalyzes it. The author finds in shame theory pathways for transforming shame-based moral inertia into moral agency. Those pathways suggest vital roles for the church.