Reflecting on the Past,for the Sake of the Future

Abstract : The Lutheran decision to ordain women happened in two broader contexts—ecumenical and inter‐Lutheran—that still influence the way that the decision has been received in the congregations and in the wider public realm. Ordained women have not “arrived” yet, but the ongoing journey has been interesting and rewarding.     

It's a Total Way of Life? Catholic Priests,Women's Ordination,and Identity Work

Research has shown Catholic priests to be polarized on a few issues, including women's ordination. Explanations have been offered for why priests are initially polarized—particularly the influence of ordination cohort—but not for how attitudes are maintained over time. Using 31 in‐depth interviews with Catholic priests in the United Kingdom, I find that priests are indeed polarized into groups I call “Total Identity Priests” and “Plural Identity Priests.” Taking the example of women's ordination, I show that these two groups of priests maintain their anti‐ or pro‐women's ordination attitudes (respectively) via patterned, everyday identity work, in which they mobilize available cultural schemata. I highlight four areas in which their identity work differs: explicit identity talk, narratives of calling, clericalism and titles, and clothing. This identity work serves to summarize, communicate, and reinforce their personal identities, which in turn reinforce their existing attitudes towards women's ordination.     

Encountering the shadow in rites of passage: a study in activations

Jung's concept of the shadow is explored in this paper through his writings on its realization and assimilation in which he says the shadow may be experienced as the regressed and denied 'other self' in each individual. However, this is not the whole picture, and he also points to the fact that the shadow contains more than something merely negative. While in no way treating them as 'patients', the paper will also touch on the experience of the anthropologist, Bronislaw Malinowski, and the writer, Joseph Conrad, in their personal encounters with the shadow. All three encountered the shadow whilst going through rites of passage of their own and each owes much to the Romantic Movement. In this context, attention is directed to the writings of the philosopher and theologian, Johann Gottfried von Herder, who discovered a deeper understanding of his destiny in the course of a sea voyage.     

Grief Therapy: An Experiential Workshop

The authors conducted a workshop at a family therapy conference in South Africa in 1997 to explore the use of healing rituals in grief work. There were two levels involved: First, an experiential workshop, and, second, a metalevel in exploring the use of rituals as a rite of passage to facilitate transitions. A draft of the authors' paper was sent to all participants for their comments, which are included in the text.     

孔、孟“乐”理念比较研究

本文对孔子和孟子的"乐"理念的各自特点及其异同之处进行了初步分析和评价。作者认为,孔子的"乐"理念具有明显的泛伦理化倾向。他所关注和注重的,乃是"乐"的社会教化、社会整合的伦理调节功能。孔子视"礼""仁"为"乐"之魂魄,视"至善"为"乐"之归宿和极致。"乐"的艺术审美特质被淡化和边缘化。孟子对孔子"乐"理念的最大修正,在于他将其"民本"的政治诉求贯彻于其"乐"理念之中,诉诸"与民同乐"的政治氛围,从而将"乐"理念平等化、平民化、感性化,扬弃了孔子对"乐"的种种宗法等级束缚,破除了对"乐"的雅俗之别的偏见,从而使"乐"理念向其平等的、感性的审美氛围迈出了重要的一步。同孔子泛伦理化的"乐"理念相比较,孟子的"乐"理念则具有泛政治化的理论倾向。     

The role of liturgy in Apostolicae curae and Saepius officio

The aim of this article is to critically investigate the arguable role attributed to liturgy in two official documents issued by different ecclesial authorities in the late nineteenth century. Of these documents, Apostolicae curae is definitely the most commonly known, for, in it, Pope Leo XIII declared Anglican orders to be ‘absolutely null and utterly void’. In Saepius officio, their response to this declaration, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York developed a solid and detailed argumentation which directly addressed the issues involved. Strangely enough, however, their letter has scarcely received any scholarly attention, especially not from a liturgical perspective. Therefore, this article embarks on a comparative analysis of the liturgico-theological quality of both documents and endeavours to reopen discussions and reflections on the dignity and validity of Anglican orders at a time in which there seems to be little enthusiasm for that kind of enterprise.     

唐伯元的心性论与修身崇礼说

本文从唐伯元的治学经历入手,探讨他的学术、思想的渊源与主要内涵:唐伯元心性论的基本结构,他对性与身、心与物、理与欲的看法;在此基础上,他将修身看作一个包容着齐家治国平天下的渐次扩展的过程,以此为孔门学问之要旨;因此,他批评阳明学派“以心为学”的倾向,并着力推崇“礼”学,以礼为儒者内外双修、成己成物的必须遵循的途径。     

哲学的教化与教化的哲学——论儒学精神的根本特质

Edification 教化 is one of the central concepts of Confucianism. The metaphysical basis of the Confucian edification is the “philosophical theory” in the sense of rational humanism rather than the “religious doctrine” in the sense of pure faith. Confucianism did not create a system of ceremony and propriety owned by Confucians only. The system of ceremony and propriety on which Confucians depend to carry out their social edification is that of “rites and music,” the common life style of ancient China. After continual metaphysical explanation and elevation, the system of ceremony and propriety and that of rites and music have undergone a sort of ever-evolving historical fluctuation, and evinced a sort of openness and forgiveness comparable to that of any other religious form. Compared with typical religious practices, whose ceremonies and rituals that have their own special fixity and exclusivity, Confucian ceremonies and rituals are fundamentally different. The edification of Confucianism can be labeled as “edification in the sense of philosophy.” As a “philosophy”, Confucianism’s vision did not focus on cognition but on completion and realization. Translated by Lei Yongqiang from Tianjin Shehui Kexue 天津社会科学 (Tianjin Social Sciences), 2005, (6): 19–26     

Gift narration: dynamic themes of reciprocity,debt, and social relations in Theravāda Buddhist Myanmar

ABSTRACT

Scholarly studies of Buddhist gift-giving have explored the many ways in which gifts are or are not reciprocal. This topic is revisited in this article by the author drawing greater attention to the practice of narration. Instead of understanding Buddhist words about dāna as representing religious doctrines or the experience of its social practice, the author considers how Buddhists narrate dāna as a means of maintaining relationships with self and others. Examining narratives of one monastic gift-recipient, meanings of dāna and moral principles of gift-giving are shown to vary alongside shifting relations between givers and receivers. This case suggests that themes of reciprocity are most salient when narrators grapple with interpersonal threats. Offering possible interpretations of this correlation, the author argues how reciprocal forces could be external social conditions to which narratives respond as well as created ex nihilo through the practice of narration as a strategy of ordering interpersonal conflicts potentially unrelated to reciprocity.