Michael J. Mahoney (1946-2006)
As reported in the Newport Daily News, Dr. Mahoney died unexpectedly at home on May 31, 2006. He was an influential psychologist of religion, who also was an active weighlifter and was involved in sport psychology.
The following remembrance comes from Adami A. Gabriel, who studied with Dr. Mahoney. It appears here with Gabriel's permission.
Dr. Cristiano Nabuco de Abreu, my professor in Brazil, first introduced me to the field of constructivism. At that time Dr. Abreu told me that I should get acquainted with the work of Dr. Michael J. Mahoney. I started reading a few articles and book’s chapters that I had available in Portuguese and Spanish. So impressed with his post-modern view of psychotherapy we stamped our class t-shirt with Mike’s thought “the psychologist is the guardian of the idea that life is worthy” and I still have it. Slowly but steadily, a huge intellect started to rise up before me. At first I was amazed that I was understanding that grandiosity so easily and thought it was my great intellect… Poor me, when I had the opportunity to get together for a lunch with Mike at Applebee in Denton, TX suddenly in his presence I could realize that he was the one bringing in me that such wonderful feeling that I was great…Then it dawned upon me that I had understood a little bit of his grandiosity, the capacity for make people around him feel valuable. For me, beyond all his intellectual accomplishments this humanistic characteristic was what most affected my life forever, I’m sure.
I want to extend my sympathies and condolences to his family (people that I don’t know but am deeply linked by this loss) and also to all who were close to him and learned to love him and appreciate him as a professional, a person, and a colleague.
Adami A. Gabriel
From Brazil but living in Flower Mound TX
Attending a doctoral program at
Texas School of Professional Psychology at
Argosy University/Dallas
If you are a colleague who would like to provide a reflection on Mahoney's life and work, contact Michael Nielsen.
6/30/2006
6/26/2006
Writing in Psychology & Religion
Two journals are seeking contributions dealing with psychology and religion. The Journal of Clinical Psychology is preparing a special issue on religion and psychotherapy. They are interested in such topics as the role of spiritaul factors in the development or treatment of mental health problems; evaluations of spiritually-integrated approaches to psychotherapy; or methodological issues in such research.
The second journal, Solidarity & Sustainability, is soliciting short articles on the impact of religious patriarchies on human solidarity ecological sustainability, and related issues. See my announcements page for more details on these writing opportunities.
The second journal, Solidarity & Sustainability, is soliciting short articles on the impact of religious patriarchies on human solidarity ecological sustainability, and related issues. See my announcements page for more details on these writing opportunities.
6/21/2006
Religion & Torture - Washington Post Story
A friend forwarded to me this story from the Washington Post about religious leaders who have signed a statement urging the US to stop torture. It is a fascinating story and well-worth reading. (You first may need to register with the Washington Post site. It takes only a minute.)
Several aspects of the story are interesting. Perhaps most interesting to me is the diverse group of religious leaders who have signed the statement. They range from Jewish (Elie Wiesel) to Catholic (Cardinal Theodore McCarrick) to Greek Orthodox (Archbishop Demetrios) to evangelical (Rick Waren and Ted Haggard). They clearly see torture to be immoral and are troubled by the US government's actions.
A White House press secretary is quoted as saying "I'll simply repeat what the president has said many times, which is that this government does not torture, and we adhere to the international conventions against torture." But the religious leaders apparently are more persuaded by Amnesty International's studies of torture in world affairs, which led to news stories such as this one from the BBC, or the United Nations study of Gitmo, as reported in CNN.
Several aspects of the story are interesting. Perhaps most interesting to me is the diverse group of religious leaders who have signed the statement. They range from Jewish (Elie Wiesel) to Catholic (Cardinal Theodore McCarrick) to Greek Orthodox (Archbishop Demetrios) to evangelical (Rick Waren and Ted Haggard). They clearly see torture to be immoral and are troubled by the US government's actions.
A White House press secretary is quoted as saying "I'll simply repeat what the president has said many times, which is that this government does not torture, and we adhere to the international conventions against torture." But the religious leaders apparently are more persuaded by Amnesty International's studies of torture in world affairs, which led to news stories such as this one from the BBC, or the United Nations study of Gitmo, as reported in CNN.
6/19/2006
Reconcilable (?) Religious Differences
A few weeks ago I received an email from someone searching for resources that might help a married couple overcome their religious differences. I queried participants on the Psychology of Religion email list of the APA, and asked a few friends as well. Here is the resulting list of resources, ready for your files (or comments).
- - -
Hi all-
Two weeks ago I wrote, asking for suggestions for books that might be helpful for people who are experiencing marital stresses because of religious differences. Based on your replies, it would appear that either this is a field that is ready for new books, or that the issue comes up so seldom that it doesn't merit any books! I am more inclined to think it is the former than the latter. ;-)
One person suggested that improved communication would help such a couple, and therefore recommended books by John Gottman. He has a strong research program in couples' communication, and has written several highly-rated books such as
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work
The Relationship Cure
Ten Lessons to Transform Your Marriage
It seems to me that such advice may help some situations.
One person wrote, saying that she found herself in just such a situation. She has read the following books recently in an effort to help her deal with her husband's disbelief:
Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas
Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay by Mira Krishenbaum
The Dance of Anger by Harriet Lerner, Ph.D.
Covenant Relationships by Keith Intrater
She also has read biographies of Christians as a source of encouragement:
A Chance to Die by Elisabeth Elliott
In The Presence of My Enemies by Gracia Burnham
To Fly Again by Gracia Burnham
Prisoners of Hope by Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer
There is a Broken Heart in Every Pew by Ruth Graham
Inside Afghanistan by John Weaver
Why? Trusting God When You Don?t Understand by Anne Graham Lotz
On Eagles Wings by Geoff Gorsuch
Scientists Who Believe by Eric C. Barrett and David Fisher
Depending on one's religious affiliation, there may be online groups that would prove supportive. Just as one example, there is the Faces East bulletin board that is intended to support believing Latter-day Saints whose spouses do not share their views.
http://www.aimoo.com/forum/freeboard.cfm?id=675731
From what I've observed reviewing that board's previous posts, it seems like it could be a supportive place for a person dealing with such a situation. Of course, your mileage may vary. Locating such a resource may be the (first) difficult step- As a starting point, I'd suggest starting with a google search using the terms
online support disbelief + your religious affiliation
but it may take some time before you'll find something helpful for your particular situation. You might also try the Religion and Spirituality Index at Yahoo.com.
Two other book suggestions were
Reconcilable Differences, by Virginia Holeman
How to Save your Marriage Alone, by Ed Wheat
Those are the suggestions I received. I have not read them, so I'm simply passing along to you the suggestions of others. If you are familiar with any of these books and found them praiseworthy or troubling, I'd appreciate knowing it.
- - -
Hi all-
Two weeks ago I wrote, asking for suggestions for books that might be helpful for people who are experiencing marital stresses because of religious differences. Based on your replies, it would appear that either this is a field that is ready for new books, or that the issue comes up so seldom that it doesn't merit any books! I am more inclined to think it is the former than the latter. ;-)
One person suggested that improved communication would help such a couple, and therefore recommended books by John Gottman. He has a strong research program in couples' communication, and has written several highly-rated books such as
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work
The Relationship Cure
Ten Lessons to Transform Your Marriage
It seems to me that such advice may help some situations.
One person wrote, saying that she found herself in just such a situation. She has read the following books recently in an effort to help her deal with her husband's disbelief:
Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas
Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay by Mira Krishenbaum
The Dance of Anger by Harriet Lerner, Ph.D.
Covenant Relationships by Keith Intrater
She also has read biographies of Christians as a source of encouragement:
A Chance to Die by Elisabeth Elliott
In The Presence of My Enemies by Gracia Burnham
To Fly Again by Gracia Burnham
Prisoners of Hope by Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer
There is a Broken Heart in Every Pew by Ruth Graham
Inside Afghanistan by John Weaver
Why? Trusting God When You Don?t Understand by Anne Graham Lotz
On Eagles Wings by Geoff Gorsuch
Scientists Who Believe by Eric C. Barrett and David Fisher
Depending on one's religious affiliation, there may be online groups that would prove supportive. Just as one example, there is the Faces East bulletin board that is intended to support believing Latter-day Saints whose spouses do not share their views.
http://www.aimoo.com/forum/freeboard.cfm?id=675731
From what I've observed reviewing that board's previous posts, it seems like it could be a supportive place for a person dealing with such a situation. Of course, your mileage may vary. Locating such a resource may be the (first) difficult step- As a starting point, I'd suggest starting with a google search using the terms
online support disbelief + your religious affiliation
but it may take some time before you'll find something helpful for your particular situation. You might also try the Religion and Spirituality Index at Yahoo.com.
Two other book suggestions were
Reconcilable Differences, by Virginia Holeman
How to Save your Marriage Alone, by Ed Wheat
Those are the suggestions I received. I have not read them, so I'm simply passing along to you the suggestions of others. If you are familiar with any of these books and found them praiseworthy or troubling, I'd appreciate knowing it.
6/14/2006
Dissent and Sexuality in the University
Following up on my last entry, there is more news about the discussion of religious ideals in the university. This time the university in question is Brigham Young University. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which sponsors BYU, came out in support of a republican-led effort to amend the constitution to limit marriage to “a man and a woman”. The church sees this as being consistent with its The Family: A Proclamation to the World. It has in the past lobbied for legislation prohibiting same-sex marriage in California, Hawaii and other states, so its support of the amendment is nothing new. What is new is that the support was tied explicitly to a partisan political effort. The amendment was widely seen as being unlikely to pass, and in fact it fell well short of the 60 votes needed.
An adjunct professor of philosophy at BYU, Jeffrey Nielsen (no relation to me) wrote in the Salt Lake Tribune about his objection to the church’s support of the republican bill. He considers himself a loyal and supportive member of the LDS church, but supports gay marriage. Four days after his opinion was published, he learned that he would no longer be teaching philosophy at BYU. His department chair wrote that Nielsen’s public opposition to a church policy makes him ineligible to teach at BYU.
What are the limits of discussion in a university? This is a question that has affected even liberal, secular universities such as Columbia, as this story describes. The scholar’s effort to learn requires an assumption of doubt, the belief that we do not yet know all that is to be known about a subject. Most religious institutions , in contrast, require the assumption that certain core ideas are known and not subject to question. Nope, you don't need binoculars to see the potential for conflict here.
This is is not something unique to BYU. Notre Dame recently has been dealing with the issue, as it has tried to reconcile its Catholic teachings with explorations of sexuality and gender. The President of Notre Dame, John Jenkins, earlier this year gave an address on the subject that makes good reading for people trying to understand how institutions and individuals balance the competing demands of faith-based belief with scholarly inquiry. Whether you agree with Jenkins or disagree with him, it is useful to understand the issues from his perspective because he makes explicit the competing values. The scholar is obligated to question the existing knowledge base, while religion expects devotion to an existing belief system. Ultimately, the two simply may be too incompatible to coexist fully in a religious university. Religious belief systems seldom (if ever?) allow one to question basic tenets of one's understanding the way that scholarly inquiry obliges one to do.
I find it interesting that in both the BYU and the Notre Dame cases, the issue is sexuality or gender. Would it be too facile to say that we are passionate about passions? Perhaps so, but it is true nevertheless that sexuality seems to raise a religious community’s ire like few other subjects can.
An example of this is found in the excommunication of the owner of the website www.lds-mormon.com. On his website is a treasure trove of history and opinion regarding Mormonism, much of which runs counter to the more rose-colored version of its story conveyed in the church’s own materials. Eventually he was excommunicated for the material on his site. But it wasn’t his criticisms of LDS doctrine, history, or even his belief that the Book of Mormon was the product of Joseph Smith's creative imagination that led to his excommunication, it was his critique of the church's proclamation on the family. Public disagreement about the role of gender is apparently worse than apostasy over issues such as LDS priesthood authority or pointing out inconsistencies in the Book of Mormon.
Yes, there is something uniquely powerful in sexuality, and religions seek to control that power. This is an area that deserves further study. But for now, it appears that such studies shall not be done at BYU.
An adjunct professor of philosophy at BYU, Jeffrey Nielsen (no relation to me) wrote in the Salt Lake Tribune about his objection to the church’s support of the republican bill. He considers himself a loyal and supportive member of the LDS church, but supports gay marriage. Four days after his opinion was published, he learned that he would no longer be teaching philosophy at BYU. His department chair wrote that Nielsen’s public opposition to a church policy makes him ineligible to teach at BYU.
What are the limits of discussion in a university? This is a question that has affected even liberal, secular universities such as Columbia, as this story describes. The scholar’s effort to learn requires an assumption of doubt, the belief that we do not yet know all that is to be known about a subject. Most religious institutions , in contrast, require the assumption that certain core ideas are known and not subject to question. Nope, you don't need binoculars to see the potential for conflict here.
This is is not something unique to BYU. Notre Dame recently has been dealing with the issue, as it has tried to reconcile its Catholic teachings with explorations of sexuality and gender. The President of Notre Dame, John Jenkins, earlier this year gave an address on the subject that makes good reading for people trying to understand how institutions and individuals balance the competing demands of faith-based belief with scholarly inquiry. Whether you agree with Jenkins or disagree with him, it is useful to understand the issues from his perspective because he makes explicit the competing values. The scholar is obligated to question the existing knowledge base, while religion expects devotion to an existing belief system. Ultimately, the two simply may be too incompatible to coexist fully in a religious university. Religious belief systems seldom (if ever?) allow one to question basic tenets of one's understanding the way that scholarly inquiry obliges one to do.
I find it interesting that in both the BYU and the Notre Dame cases, the issue is sexuality or gender. Would it be too facile to say that we are passionate about passions? Perhaps so, but it is true nevertheless that sexuality seems to raise a religious community’s ire like few other subjects can.
An example of this is found in the excommunication of the owner of the website www.lds-mormon.com. On his website is a treasure trove of history and opinion regarding Mormonism, much of which runs counter to the more rose-colored version of its story conveyed in the church’s own materials. Eventually he was excommunicated for the material on his site. But it wasn’t his criticisms of LDS doctrine, history, or even his belief that the Book of Mormon was the product of Joseph Smith's creative imagination that led to his excommunication, it was his critique of the church's proclamation on the family. Public disagreement about the role of gender is apparently worse than apostasy over issues such as LDS priesthood authority or pointing out inconsistencies in the Book of Mormon.
Yes, there is something uniquely powerful in sexuality, and religions seek to control that power. This is an area that deserves further study. But for now, it appears that such studies shall not be done at BYU.
6/05/2006
Religious Studies and Academic Freedom
People interested in religious studies should know about an alleged violation of academic freedom at Roosevelt University. In a case that is almost too incredible to believe, an adjunct professor there has been fired for allowing student discussion of Judaism and Islam. In a religion course!
First is this statement by the professor, which was posted at Daily Kos.
Next you may want to read his union's statement of the grievance (scroll down to the section titled "More Details on Academic Freedom Grievance".)
Finally, you may wish to visit the Yahoo group on academic freedom.
By all accounts I have read, the classroom discussion and the exam question were reasonable and appropriate for a university class. But apparently the chair of the department, a historian with little or no experience teaching a course in religion, disagreed. If ever there were a case for the AAUP, this would seem to be it! It can be difficult to balance scholarly inquiry with personal faith. Indeed, the AAUP itself has had several disagreements with religiously-affiliated institutions over the question of balancing institutional goals with faculty and students' personal exploration. But I have never heard of a case quite as astonishing as this one.
First is this statement by the professor, which was posted at Daily Kos.
Next you may want to read his union's statement of the grievance (scroll down to the section titled "More Details on Academic Freedom Grievance".)
Finally, you may wish to visit the Yahoo group on academic freedom.
By all accounts I have read, the classroom discussion and the exam question were reasonable and appropriate for a university class. But apparently the chair of the department, a historian with little or no experience teaching a course in religion, disagreed. If ever there were a case for the AAUP, this would seem to be it! It can be difficult to balance scholarly inquiry with personal faith. Indeed, the AAUP itself has had several disagreements with religiously-affiliated institutions over the question of balancing institutional goals with faculty and students' personal exploration. But I have never heard of a case quite as astonishing as this one.
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