The professionalisation of non-denominational religious education in England: politics,organisation and knowledge

In response to contemporary concerns, and using neglected primary sources, this article explores the professionalisation of teachers of Religious Education (RI/RE) in non-denominational, state-maintained schools in England. It does so from the launch of Religion in Education (1934) and the Institute for Christian Education at Home and Abroad (ICE) (1935) to the founding of the Religious Education Council of England and Wales (1973) and the British Journal of Religious Education (1978). Professionalisation is defined as a collective historical process in terms of three inter-related concepts: (1) professional self-organisation and professional politics; (2) professional knowledge; and (3) initial and continuing professional development. The article sketches the history of non-denominational religious education prior to the focus period, to contextualise the emergence of the professionalising processes under scrutiny. Professional self-organisation and professional politics are explored by reconstructing the origins and history of ICE, which became the principal body offering professional development provision for RI/RE teachers for some 50 years. Professional knowledge is discussed in relation to the content of Religion in Education which was oriented around Christian Idealism and interdenominational networking. Changes in journal name in the 1960s and 1970s reflected uncertainties about the orientation of the subject and shifts in understanding over the nature and character of professional knowledge. The article also explores a particular case of resistance, in the late 1960s, to the prevailing consensus surrounding the nature and purpose of RI/RE, and the representativeness and authority of the pre-eminent professional body of the time. In conclusion, the article examines some implications which may be drawn from this history for the prospects and problems of the professionalisation of RE today.     

Rortian Realism

This paper motivates and defends “Rortian realism,” a position that is Rortian in respect of its underlying philosophical theses but non‐Rortian in terms of the lessons it draws from these for cultural politics. The philosophical theses amount to what the paper calls Rorty's “anti‐representationalism” (AR), arguing that AR is robust to critique as being anti‐realist, relativist, or sceptical, invoking Rorty's historicism/ethnocentrism as part of the defence. The latter, however, creates problems for Rorty in so far as his reformative views on the nature of philosophical and academic activity are meant to be foisted on an academy that ex hypothesi holds views different from these. The paper suggests we can motivate a different conception of the consequences of AR more amenable to the academy: Rortian realism, a view that makes greater concessions to realism and a kind of scientific naturalism than Rorty would like, but that for those very reasons is more likely to allow AR to prevail.     

Political Ecumenism and 1968

The political night prayers in Cologne were a project that reflected the politicization and ecumenism that occupied the Christian confessions in 1968, not only in Uppsala. They were an attempt to consistently bring public policy and faith together. A large group of organizers, influenced by the work of women intellectuals, held monthly services that dealt with current issues. They were distinguished by the information they provided and by discussions, which aimed at stimulating meditation and concrete actions. The services attracted up to a thousand participants and became well known throughout Germany. The political night prayers encountered resistance from church leaders and conservative theologians. In this project, ecumenism was realized as local political ecumenism.     

The Enduring Influence of Religion on Senators’ Legislative Behavior

Does a senator's personal religion influence their legislative behavior in the Senate? To date, empirical research has answered this question only using senators’ religious traditions, while more concurrent work implies that religion should be measured as a multifaceted phenomenon. This study tests this proposition by compiling a unique data set of senators’ religion, conceptualized and measured by three different elements—belonging, beliefs, and behavior. The study estimates the association between these three religious facets and senators’ legislative behavior on economic, social, and foreign policy issues, while controlling for their constituencies’ political and religious preferences. It finds that religious beliefs are a strong predictor of senators’ legislative behavior, while religious tradition and behavior are mostly not. Furthermore, it finds that religious beliefs are associated with legislative behavior across a wide array of policy areas and are not confined to sociocultural issues.     

组织政治知觉与组织承诺:工作不安全感的调节作用研究

该文以314名企业员工为被试,运用问卷调查法和调节层级回归分析的统计方法,考察了工作不安全感在组织政治知觉与组织承诺之间的调节作用。结果表明:组织政治知觉对情感承诺和规范承诺都具有显著的负向预测作用,但数量性工作不安全感正向调节着组织政治知觉对情感承诺和规范承诺的消极影响,而质量性工作不安全感则负向调节着组织政治知觉对情感承诺的消极影响。     

Can Anything Good Come Out of Premillennialism? A Response to Robert O. Smith

Abstract :  This review expresses great concern with so-called Christian Zionism. The author explains the confusing push-pull relation of Pentecostalism to Christian Zionism's underlying apocalyptic eschatology, premillennial dispensationalism. He agrees with the thrust of Smith's discussion from a Lutheran perspective of the complex historical, theological, and political dynamics involved in Christian Zionism's formation and development, but accents distinctions between a generally harmless conventional form and a particularly virile fundamentalist form that can be aggressive and possibly even dangerous. Of special concern is articulation of an erudite political ethic informed by the theology of a Christian pneumatic apocalyptic eschatology, faithful to the incoming reign of God taking seriously predictive prophecy. In conversation with Smith, this appreciative response suggests a possible paradigm for positive involvement in political and social aspects of the present world congruent with apocalyptic hope expressed in premillennialist terms.     

Man in the age of technology

Abstract :  This paper argues that technology is no longer merely a tool for man's use but has become the environment in which man undergoes modifications. The author traces the role of technology from the Greeks to the present day. For the Greeks, Nature was governed by necessity and therefore unchangeable whereas in the Judeo-Christian tradition, nature was entrusted to man for him to dominate. Modern science studies the world in order to manipulate and dominate nature through the use of technology which has now become an end in itself, governing the solution of political problems and confronting us with problems beyond our competence to resolve. The ethical impact of technology has been to create a change from 'acting' which assumes responsibility for one's actions to 'doing' which is concerned only with the effective execution of a 'job' without concern for the wider consequences. It can no longer be argued that technology is good or bad according to the use we make of it since technology now makes use of us and thus transforms our ethics, social relationships and psychological being.     

工作场所的组织政治会危害员工绩效吗？基于个人-组织契合理论的视角

本研究基于个人-组织契合理论的视角, 通过对286份员工与直接主管的配对数据, 揭示了组织政治知觉对员工绩效(任务绩效和组织公民行为)的影响, 马基雅维利主义人格对这两者之间关系的调节作用, 组织认同在这两者之间的中介作用。层次回归分析结果发现：组织政治知觉对任务绩效、组织公民行为具有显著的消极影响, 马基雅维利主义人格可以显著调节组织政治知觉与任务绩效、组织公民行为两者之间的关系, 而组织认同是组织政治知觉与任务绩效、组织公民行为之间的完全中介变量。调节路径分析结果表明：马基雅维利主义对组织政治知觉与员工绩效之间关系的调节作用也是以组织认同为中介, 具体表现为被中介的调节作用。