JOHN POLKINGHORNE AND BERNARD LONERGAN ON THE SCIENTIFIC STATUS OF THEOLOGY

On the basis of his acquaintance with theoretical elementary particle physics, and following the lead of Thomas Torrance, John Polkinghorne maintains that the data upon which a science is based, and the method by which it treats those data, must respect the idiosyncratic nature of the object with which the science is concerned. Polkinghorne calls this the “accommodation” (or “conformity”) of a discipline to its object. The question then arises: What should we expect religious experience and theological method to be like if they are accommodated to the idiosyncratic nature of God? Polkinghorne's methodological program is typical of postcritical positions in the theology‐science dialogue in holding that the fiduciary element in theological method is simply a species of the fiduciary element that is a de facto part of all knowing—in other words, theological method does not differ in fundamental kind from the methods of the natural sciences. But this program may contain the seeds of an alienation of theological method from the transcendence of God similar to the double self‐alienation of theology described by Michael Buckley in At the Origins of Modern Atheism. I contend that something like Bernard Lonergan's position on how the method of faith seeking understanding is related to the methods of the natural sciences is exactly the sort of thing that one should expect on the supposition of Polkinghorne's principle of accommodation, at least if the God who is the object of theological science is transcendent. The way in which the divine differs from all other objects ought to be disclosed or reflected in religious experience and theological method. Polkinghorne charts the course for an accommodated theology, but it seems to be Lonergan who is more intent on following it.     

The <Emphasis Type="Italic">Not Unreasonable</Emphasis> Standard for Assessment of Surrogates and Surrogate Decisions

Standard views on surrogate decision making present alternative ideal models of what ideal surrogates should consider in rendering a decision. They do not, however, explain the physician's responsibility to a patient who lacks decisional capacity or how a physician should regard surrogates and surrogate decisions. The authors argue that it is critical to recognize the moral difference between a patient's decisions and a surrogate's and the professional responsibilities implied by that distinction. In every case involving a patient who lacks decisional capacity, physicians and the treatment team have to make judgments about the appropriateness of both the surrogate and the surrogate's decision. They have to assess the surrogate's decisional capacity and attitude toward the patient as well as the reasons that support the surrogate's decision. This paper provides a model for acceptable surrogate decisions and a standard for blocking inappropriate surrogates. Only decisions based on widely shared reasons are allowable for surrogate refusal of highly beneficial treatment.     

The Moral Contours of Empathy

Morally contoured empathy is a form of reasonable partiality essential to the healthy care of dependents. It is critical as an epistemic aid in determining proper moral responsiveness; it is also, within certain richly normative roles and relationships, itself a crucial constitutive mode of moral connection. Yet the achievement of empathy is no easy feat. Patterns of incuriosity imperil connection, impeding empathic engagement; inappropriate empathic engagement, on the other hand, can result in self-effacement. Impartial moral principles and constraints offer at best meager protection against these perils, and hence serve poorly in securing morally contoured empathy. More nuanced and practical guidance should be sought in normatively substantive conceptions of our roles and relationships and their defining moral stakes. These, joined with more abstract moral tools, can facilitate rich, narratively textured interpretations of moralitys demands. While the content of our normative conceptions must be continually debated, engaging in this debate is vital to the achievement of proper empathy, and thus to effective, respectful, morally healthy care of dependents.This paper was originally presented at the conference on Reasonable Partiality at the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, October 22–24, 2003. I wish to thank all those present for stimulating discussion. Special thanks go to Bert Musschenga, who organized the conference, and who has provided insightful feedback on this paper. Warm thanks as well to Brenda Almond and Bernie Rollin for lively exchanges on the issues addressed here and to Nancy Sherman for sharing with me an ongoing fascination with, and her own fantastic work on, empathy. Comments from an anonymous reviewer for the journal were challenging and helpful. Finally, I wish to express gratitude beyond normal bounds to Maggie Little both for her generosity, keen insight, and artful intervention at key points in this essays evolution and for her ground-breaking work on deontic pluralism that deeply influences the position I frame here.     

心理科学的生命力在于超越与容纳

科学心理学19世纪末传入中国。在中国经历了几十年的坎坷历程,直到1978年后,才得到正常的发展。改革开放20年来,心理学参与了国家的发展和建设,也强化了自身,取得了举世瞩目的成绩。但是,心理科学工作者必须超越自己原有知识的局限性,容纳一切自己没有学习过的东西;必须超越自己的视野,走出实验室,走出校门,面向社会,容纳一切个人不熟悉的东西;还必须超越本地区、超越国界,容纳先进地区、发达国家的先进经验,才能使我们的心理科学具有强大的生命力,才能推动心理科学的空前发展。     

Catholic missions in China: failure to form native clergy

The success and failure of Christianity in China was tied to the missionaries’ ability to accommodate to Chinese culture and the powers that ruled over this vast nation. A number of reasons have been put forward regarding the failure of Christian missions in China. Inability to adapt to native norms, ignorance of Chinese language, association with Western imperialism, rivalries among various religious orders, congregations and missionary societies, and the reluctance to establish a Chinese ecclesiastical hierarchy all contributed to hindering the propagation of the gospel. This paper argues that the main reason for their failure was the refusal of European clergy to hand over the leadership of the church to the Chinese, in spite of Rome’s edicts to establish an indigenous ecclesiastical hierarchy. With local clergy in charge, the issue of language and cultural adaptation would have been resolved. Unfortunately, the native clergy were looked down upon by their Western counterparts, who were mostly motivated by national and institutional interests rather than pastoral concern for the local people. The appointment of the first Chinese bishop, Gregorio Lopéz (Luo Wenzao), was more a political move than a pastoral need.     

Machiavelli among the doctors: The Prince and divine accommodation

This study will illustrate and reflect on how Niccolò Machiavelli shared terminology and a pattern of thought with contemporary theologians of ‘divine accommodation’. This is the idea that God, while remaining immutable, ‘accommodates’ himself to humankind's variety and to changing times in order to reveal himself profitably to his fallen creations. Theologians extended the capacity for accommodation to Christ's disciples and apostles, especially Paul. According to Machiavelli, the ideal Prince or ruler accommodates himself to the changing times and variety of circumstances by choosing among an unlimited diversity of human natures and utilizing them as the times require in order to achieve his ends. It is argued, therefore, that Machiavelli secularizes divine accommodation and transposes the powers of infinite adaptability and flexibility on to the ideal rulling prince. Machiavelli acknowledges, however, that his ideal is generally impracticable; humans have given natures, and most lack the capacity to transform themselves as needed – to their ruination.     

Interpersonal conflict and meaning making in early adulthood: a self-regulation perspective

The aim of this study was to explore meaning making in response to interpersonal conflict in a group of young adults. A self-regulatory perspective was taken to explore and elaborate on current approaches to meaning making. Participants were 127 young adults aged between 19 and 30. Interactive Qualitative Analysis was applied to first identify significant factors that play a role in interpersonal conflict, and second to develop a conceptual model based on perceived relations between these factors. A model with 11 themes in which 43.6% of the total number of relational pairs explained 71.8% of the variance, was developed. Findings support current approaches to meaning making as a dynamic self-regulated process, while new avenues for exploring meaning making as part of a larger complex system of psychological processes emerged.     

The behavioral origins of phylogenic responses and ontogenic habits

An examination of innate behavior and its possible origins suggests parallels with the formation of habitual behavior. Inflexible but adaptive responses—innate reflexive behavior, Pavlovian conditioned responses, and operant habits—may have evolved from variable behavior in phylogeny and ontogeny. This form of “plasticity-first” scientific narrative was unpopular post-Darwin but has recently gained credibility in evolutionary biology. The present article seeks to identify originating events and contingencies contributing to such inflexible but adaptive behavior at both phylogenic and ontogenic levels of selection. In ontogeny, the development of inflexible performance (i.e., habit) from variable operant behavior is reminiscent of the genetic accommodation of initially variable phylogenic traits. The effects characteristic of habit (e.g., unresponsiveness to reinforcer devaluation) are explicable as the result of a conflict between behaviors at distinct levels of selection. The present interpretation validates the practice of seeking hard analogies between evolutionary biology and operant behavior. Finding such parallels implies the validity of a claim that organismal behavior, both innate and learned, is a product of selection by consequences. A complete and coherent account of organismal behavior may ultimately focus on functional selective histories in much the same way evolutionary biology does with its subject matter.     

Tortoise or hare? Supporting the chronotope preference of employees with fluctuating chronic illness symptoms

Objective: Our aim is to understand how to facilitate the job retention of employees with chronic illness. We focus on multiple sclerosis (MS) as a criterion chronic illness.

Design: An opportunity sample of 20 individuals of working age (13 female; 7 male) were recruited who had been in paid employment for over 28 months with a concurrent diagnosis of MS. Participants took part in one of three focus groups with a topic guide comprising keywords: work, coping, performance, support, future, expectations, sharing and symptoms. Data were analysed using dialogical analysis.

Main outcome measures: As a qualitative study, no outcome measure was used. However, the specific focus of interest was to search for differential patterns of ‘timespace’ – chronotope – that people with chronic illness utilise to manage their condition in the workplace.

Results: Participants oriented to two distinct chronotope types: unsustainable epic (characterised by condensed time) and temporary idyll (characterized by condensed space). Perceived managerial discretion was identified as possibly influencing participants’ chronotope preference.

Conclusion: Identifying chronotope preference has practical implications for health psychologists and related professionals who provide and advise on support to facilitate people with chronic illness to thrive in the workplace.