Practical Theology Commons^™

Homemaking In And With Migrant Churches As Communities Of Care, Ma. Adeinev M. Reyes-Espiritu

Theology Department Faculty Publications

Research on migration and religion reports the significance of religion to migrants, particularly those who self-identify as religious. In particular, migrant churches have served as a sanctuary, a venue for social networking, and a community supportive of migrants’ wellbeing, to name a few things. However, migrant churches are also criticized for the possibility of becoming instruments of control over migrants. Heeding Boccagni and Hondagneu-Sotelo’s invitation to use the “homemaking optic” to inquire into the experience of integration of migrants, this paper analyzes how migrant churches foster migrants’ becoming at home in the receiving societies using Philippine migrant communities as a …

#Choosetochallenge: Covid-19, Community Research, And The Canaanite Woman, Ma. Marilou S. Ibita, Maricel S. Ibita

Theology Department Faculty Publications

This study theologises on the Urban Poor Women and Children with Academics for Reaching and Delivering on UNSDGs in the Philippines (UPWARD-UP) Project research team’s collaboration with the Alliance of Peoples’ Organisation Along the Manggahan Floodway (Alliance), Philippines. We posit that the theological process of see-judge-act, enhanced with evaluate-celebrate/ritualise, using feminist biblical characterisation in interpreting Matthew 15:21-28, serves as a spiritual resource for Christians working for the urban poor realisation of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. The Canaanite woman challenged Jesus’ identity and mission impacting on Christology and ecclesiology. This characterisation makes her …

Interview Of Margaret Mcguinness, Ph.D., Margaret Mcguinness Ph.D., Stephen Pierce

All Oral Histories

Dr. Margaret McGuinness was born in 1953, in Providence, Rhode Island. She went to an all-girls Catholic high school called St. Mary’s Academy Bayview in Providence where she graduated in 1971. McGuinness went on to major in American Studies and Civilization as an undergraduate at Boston University graduating with a B.A in 1975. She continued her work at Boston University where McGuinness earned a master’s of theological studies (M.T.S) focusing on Biblical and Historical Studies in 1979. She would move to New York to work on her dissertation at Union Theological Seminary finishing with her Ph.D. in 1985 concentrating on …

Sikh Self-Sacrifice And Religious Representation During World War I, John Soboslai

Department of Religion Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This paper analyzes the ways Sikh constructions of sacrifice were created and employed to engender social change in the early twentieth century. Through an examination of letters written by Sikh soldiers serving in the British Indian Army during World War I and contemporary documents from within their global religious, legislative, and economic context, I argue that Sikhs mobilized conceptions of self-sacrifice in two distinct directions, both aiming at procuring greater political recognition and representation. Sikhs living outside the Indian subcontinent encouraged their fellows to rise up and throw off their colonial oppressors by recalling mythic moments of the past and …

Sikh Self-Sacrifice And Religious Representation During World War I, John Soboslai

Department of Religion Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This paper analyzes the ways Sikh constructions of sacrifice were created and employed to engender social change in the early twentieth century. Through an examination of letters written by Sikh soldiers serving in the British Indian Army during World War I and contemporary documents from within their global religious, legislative, and economic context, I argue that Sikhs mobilized conceptions of self-sacrifice in two distinct directions, both aiming at procuring greater political recognition and representation. Sikhs living outside the Indian subcontinent encouraged their fellows to rise up and throw off their colonial oppressors by recalling mythic moments of the past and …

Religion And Genocide Nexuses: Bosnia As Case Study, Kate E. Temoney

Department of Religion Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Social scientists have been involved in systematic research on genocide for over forty years, yet an under-examined aspect of genocide literature is a sustained focus on the nexuses of religion and genocide, a lacuna that this article seeks to address. Four ways religion and genocide intersect are proposed, of which two will receive specific attention: (1) how religious rhetoric and (2) how religious individuals and institutions foment genocide. These two intersections are further nuanced by combining a Weberian method of typologies, the Durkheimian theory of collective violence, and empirical data in the form of rhetoric espoused by perpetrators and supporters …

A Survey Of Ethics Training In Undergraduate Psychology Programs At Jesuit Universities, Thomas G. Plante, Selena Pistoresi

Psychology

Training in ethics is fundamental in higher education among both faith-based and secular colleges and universities, regardless of one’s academic major or field of study. Catholic colleges and universities have included moral philosophy, theology, and applied ethics in their undergraduate curricula for generations. The purpose of this investigation was to determine what, if anything, Jesuit college psychology departments are doing to educate psychology majors regarding ethical issues. A survey method was used to assess the psychology departments of all 28 Jesuits colleges and universities in the United States. A total of 21 of the 28 schools responded and completed the …

White Religious Educators Resisting White Fragility: Lessons From Mystics, Mary E. Hess

Faculty Publications

Decades of work in dismantling racism have not yielded the kind of results for which religious educators have hoped. One primary reason has been what scholars term “white fragility,” a symptom of the structural racism which confers systemic privilege upon White people. Lessons learned from Christian mystics point to powerful ways to confront and resist the siren call of such formation and instead to make resisting racism an integral part of Christian identity for White people.

Principles Of Incorporating Spirituality Into Professional Clinical Practice, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Incorporating spirituality into contemporary professional clinical practice has become more common in recent years most notably with the popular interest of mindfulness meditation, mindfulness based stress reduction, and yoga in particular. However, many other spiritual and religiously based assessment and treatment approaches have also been successfully utilized with a great deal of evidence-based research to support their use and effectiveness. The purpose of this brief article is to outline several guiding principles for those professionals interested in integrating spiritual and religious wisdom and approaches into their professional clinical practices in the spirit of diversity and multiculturalism sensitivity and respect. Psychology …

Psychometric Properties Of The Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale, Thomas G. Plante, Jesus Mejia

Psychology

The Santa Clara Brief Compassion Scale (SCBCS) is a five-item scale intended to operationalize and measure compassion. Santa Clara University has been administering the SCBCS, along with other demographic questions, to all new entering as well as exiting graduating students for the past decade. Previous research has utilized compassion scores and demographic data collected from these surveys in both between and within-subject designs to examine compassion among these undergraduate students. The purpose of the current study was to examine the reliability and validity of the SCBCS through various psychometric tests utilizing 6,763 responses that have been collected in recent years. …

Beyond Mindfulness: Expanding Integration Of Spirituality And Religion Into Psychotherapy, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Since the publication of Bergin’s classic 1980 paper “Psychotherapy and Religious Values” in the Journal of Clinical and Consulting Psychology, an enormous amount of quality research has been conducted on the integration of religious and spiritual values and perspectives into the psychotherapy endeavor. Numerous empirical studies, chapters, books, blogs, and specialty organizations have emerged in the past 35 years that have helped researchers and clinicians alike come to appreciate the value of religion and spirituality in the psychotherapeutic process. While so much has been accomplished in this area of integration, so much more needs to occur in order for the …

Psychological Well-Being Of Roman Catholic And Episcopal Clergy Applicants, Shannon Nicole Thomas, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

The current study investigated the psychological functioning of over 200 applicants to the priesthood or diaconate in the Roman Catholic and Episcopal churches, as revealed by the subjects’ scores on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Second Edition (MMPI-2). Results revealed an overall trend of psychological health in the sample population, evidenced by few systematic elevations in indices of psychopathology. Within the Catholic sample, deacons demonstrated lower MMPI-2 scores on several measures, perhaps suggesting slightly better psychological well-being than their priest counterparts.

Six Principles To Consider When Working With Roman Catholic Clients, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Although the majority of Americans consider themselves to be Christian and affiliated with various Protestant denominations, a quarter of the American population identify themselves as Roman Catholics who are the largest single religious denomination in the country. Yet, surprisingly, fairly little research has been published in the professional psychology literature about working with this very large and diverse group. Psychologists have an ethical responsibility to be aware of and respectful to diversity including diversity based on religious background, affiliation, and perspectives. The purpose of this brief reflection is to offer 6 important principles to keep in mind for professional psychologists …

Four Lessons Learned From Treatingcatholic Priest Sex Offenders, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Perhaps there is no one in our society more despised and vilified than sex offenders, especially those who sexually violate young children. And during the past decade perhaps no particular subgroup of sex offender has been more despised than those who are Roman Catholic priests. We need to be attentive to the state-of-the-art facts, best practices, and create policies and procedures to keep those who might harm children away from children. To do otherwise is foolish and harmful. Yet strong opinions, advocacy, and hysteria sometimes gets more attention than actual evidence-based quality research and practice which is not ultimately in …

Interview Of John Mackin, John Mackin, Alex Palma

All Oral Histories

John Mackin was born in 1943 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He moved to Longbeach, New York when his father returned home from WWII. Soon after his family moved there, they moved again to Collingswood, New Jersey. Finally, his family moved to Cherry Hill, New Jersey when John was 16. John attended public and Catholic school growing up and attended Boston College for his higher education. John hit a rough page after college during which he struggled with alcoholism. At the time of the interview, he worked at the La Salle University Connelly Library. A position he got in 1984 while the …

Interview Of Brian Henderson, F.S.C., M.A., Brian Henderson F.S.C., Rebecca Oviedo

All Oral Histories

Brother Brian Henderson was born in 1959 and grew up in Southwest Philadelphia. He graduated from West Catholic High School for Boys in 1977 and La Salle University with a B.A. in Religion and Psychology in 1981, and later earned a Masters Degree in Pastoral Studies in 1992. He has been a De La Salle Christian Brother since 1979, taking final vows in 1987. All of Brother Brian’s apostolic assignments have placed him serving inner city youth. His first assignment was as a youth care worker and religion teacher at Saint Gabriel’s Hall in Audubon, PA, a residential treatment facility …

[Book Review Of] American Protestant Theology: A Historical Sketch, By Luigi Giussani, Denis Kaiser

Faculty Publications

Many scholars in the field of American religious and theological history may never have heard the name of Luigi Giussani (1922-2005) because he spent most of his life in his home country Italy, his proficiency in English was limited to reading literacy, and the majority of his writings were not concerned with American religious history anyway. Giussani was a Catholic priest, theologian, high school teacher, professor, and founder of the international movement Comunione e Liberazione. He was closely acquainted with Pope John Paul II and the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. His influence on Italian and European religious life and culture …

A Place For Dialogue, Scott Kelley

Mission and Ministry Publications

Pope Francis, through his recent encyclical on the environment and his upcoming remarks to the United Nations, offers Catholic higher education the opportunity to reflect on its mission. - See more at: http://www.accunet.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3800#sthash.95ltCmnu.dpuf

Some Reflections On The Field Of Sermon Studies, Robert Ellison

English Faculty Research

Multidisciplinary endeavours with the word ‘studies’ in their names have brought like-minded scholars together for over sixty years. Those specializing in certain parts of the world, for example, can join the North American Conference on British Studies (founded in 1950), the British Association for American Studies (1955), the African Studies Association (1957), or a host of other groups. Similarly, organisations for scholars interested in specific time periods include the Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies (1983), the Society for Renaissance Studies (1967) and the European Network for Avant-Garde and Modernism Studies. Finally, students of politics, gender and other aspects …

Vatican Ii And Intellectual Conversion: Engaging The Struggle Within, Dennis M. (Dennis Michael) Doyle

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

In 1980 I took a course with Joseph Komonchak entitled “The History and Theology of Vatican II” at the Catholic University of America. True to the title, Komonchak was doing history and theology together at the same time on a class-by-class basis. He would bring in documents from the Council and from the times leading up to it, often in Latin, and he would talk about how his goals as a theologian required him to work in a historical manner. To understand Vatican II, or the Church itself for that matter, required not just understanding theological concepts but also grasping …

Learning With Digital Technologies: Privileging Persons Over Machines, Mary E. Hess

Faculty Publications

Learning with digital technologies, at least when framed by moral commitments, requires lifting up specific epistemological frames, beginning with a conviction that learning involves human persons in interdependent communities who are involved in a shared search for truth. Such a conviction necessitates moving from teaching-centered to learning-centered pedagogies, and from explicit content to shaping tacit forms of knowing. Digital technologies can prove highly beneficial when used within those constraints.

The Santa Clara Strength Of Religious Faith Questionnaire (Scsorf): A Validation Study On Iranian Muslim Patients Undergoing Dialysis, Amir H. Pakpour, Thomas G. Plante, Mohsen Saffari, Bengt Fridlund

Psychology

The Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire (SCSORF) is an often used and validated scale that is uncommonly utilized in culturally diverse populations. The purpose of this research investigation was to adapt the SCSORF for use among Iranian Muslim patients undergoing dialysis and to examine the reliability and validity of the scale among this population. A total of 428 patients (228 females, 200 males, M age = 52.2 years, SD = 10) were selected from five dialysis center in Tehran and Qazvin, Iran. A comprehensive forward–backward translation system was used for cross-cultural translation. Patients completed a baseline questionnaire obtaining …

Infinite Horizon: The Prairie Spirituality Of Ronald Rolheiser, Michael W. Higgins

Mission Integration & Ministry Publications

Ronald Rolheiser, president of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio Texas (but a native of the Saskatchewan prairie), is one of the most popular Catholic spiritual writers and syndicated columnists at work today.

What some critics see as Rolheiser’s complacency, his supposedly uncritical embrace of modern secular society, is actually borne of his remarkable faith and confidence in God’s abiding presence and care. Like the philosopher Charles Taylor, a fellow Canadian and Catholic, Rolheiser is keenly aware that modern liberal values such as tolerance and benevolence, and especially respect for individual dignity and freedom, have deep Christian roots.

Misunderstandings Of Tolerance And The Path Of Mercy, Karin Heller

Theology Faculty Scholarship

Contribution to a study seminar organized by the Lateran University, Rome, May 2014, in preparation for the Synod on Marriage and the Family convened by Pope Francis.

Thinking With Nostra Aetate: From The New Pluralism To Comparative Theology, Mathew N. Schmalz

Religious Studies Faculty Scholarship

A consideration of the Vatican II document Nostra Aetate specifically in relation to comparative theology and theologies of religious pluralism. The article discusses two noted Catholic theologians: Paul Griffiths and Francis X. Clooney. The article also considers Pope Francis and the implications of his washing the feet of non-Christians. The article was published in Asian Horizons, a peer reviewed journal published by Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram in Bangalore, India

Fruit Of Faith, Fruit Of The Spirit, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

As contemporary behavioral scientists living and working within an often secular, scientific, and empirically focused world as well as being affiliated with rigorous academic institutions and research programs, we wonder if the fruits of the spirit have any empirical and scientific basis. Does engagement with religion and spirituality make us better people or make us worse?

The Santa Clara Strength Of Religious Faith Questionnaire: Assessing Faith Engagement In A Brief And Nondenominational Manner, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

The Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire is a brief (10-item, or five-item short form version), reliable and valid self report measure assessing strength of religious faith and engagement suitable for use with multiple religious traditions, denominations, and perspectives. It has been used in medical, student, psychiatric, substance abuse, and among general populations nationally and internationally and among multiple cultures and languages. Brief non denominational self report measures of religious and faith engagement that have demonstrated reliability and validity are not common but can have potential for general utility in both clinical and research settings. This article provides an …

Why Study Mary?, François Rossier

Marian Library Faculty Presentations

Simple as the title "Why Study Mary?" may sound, Father François Rossier situates Marian studies in the broader context of Scripture and the Christian tradition. Making special reference to the Marianist tradition and its intimate connection with the University of Dayton's spirit and vision, he sees in Mary the "origin of theological reflection." It is a reflection that is documented not in a book, but in Mary's person. Being the "first theologian," she has a "concretizing function." She makes Jesus "tangible, concrete, accessible to our senses," but she also helps us "to get a sense of God's action and presence …

Integrating Spirituality And Psychotherapy: Ethical Issues And Principles To Consider, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Professional and scientific psychology appears to have rediscovered spirituality and religion during recent years, with a large number of conferences, seminars, workshops, books, and special issues in major professional journals on spirituality and psychology integration. The purpose of this commentary is to highlight some of the more compelling ethical principles and issues to consider in spirituality and psychology integration with a focus on psychotherapy. This commentary will use the American Psychological Association's (2002) Ethics Code and more specifically, the RRICC model of ethics that readily applies to various mental health ethics codes across the world. The RRICC model highlights the …

Are Successful Applicants To The Roman Catholic Deaconate Psychologically Healthy?, Thomas G. Plante, Kathleen Lackey

Psychology

The current investigation evaluated psychological and personality profiles of successful applicants to the deaconate in several Roman Catholic dioceses in California. The MMPI-2 and 16PF were administered to 25 applicants between 2004 and 2006 who subsequently entered the permanent deaconate program. Results indicate that these applicants to the deaconate were generally well-adjusted as well as being socially responsible. Findings also suggest some tendency for defensiveness, repression, naivete, and a strong need for affection, as well as for being emotionally stable, genuine, and cooperative.