The purpose of this article is to explore enduring ethical vulnerabilities of the nursing profession as illustrated in historical chapters of nursing’s past. It describes these events, then explores two ethical vulnerabilities in depth: conflicting loyalties and duties, and relationships with patients as ‘other’. The article concludes with suggestions for more ethical approaches to the other in current nursing practice. The past may be one of the most fruitful sites for examining enduring ethical vulnerabilities of the nursing profession. First of (...) all, professional identity, which includes moral identity, comes in part from knowledge of the nursing profession’s past. Second, looking to the past to understand better how events and ideologies have brought vulnerabilities to the fore raises questions about ethical nursing practice today. (shrink)

This article poses a challenge to contemporary theories in psychology that portray empathy as a negative force in the moral life. Instead, drawing on alternative psychological and philosophical literature, especially Martha Nussbaum, I argue that empathy is related to the virtue of compassion and therefore crucial for moral action. Evidence for evolutionary anthropological accounts of compassion in early hominins provides additional arguments for its positive value in deep human history. I discuss this work alongside Thomistic notions of practical wisdom, compassion, (...) misericordia, and the importance of reason in the moral life. The tension between “bottom up” accounts of empathy and that according to a theological interpretation of “infused” virtues also needs to be addressed. From a secular perspective, infused virtue is a projection of the ideal moral life, but from a theological perspective, it is a way of understanding how human capacities through the action of grace can reach beyond what seem to be the limits of psychological moral identity. (shrink)

Finding a way to come to terms with the disvalues in the evolutionary world is a particular challenge in the light of Neo‐Darwinian theories. In this article I trace the shift in Christopher Southgate's work from a focus on theodicy to a theologian of glory. I am critical of his rejection of the tradition of the Fall, his incorporation of disvalues into the work of divine Glory, and the specific theological weight given to scientific content. I offer a critique of (...) Holmes Rolston III's approach to the valuation of nature that I believe has influenced Southgate's theology. Constructively, I offer an alternative that seeks to recover an understanding of the origin of evil and the Adamic event that draws on the work of Paul Ricoeur. I also draw on the work of anthropologist Tim Ingold for an alternative philosophical approach to evolution which opens up a space for a recovery of the concepts of creaturely Sophia and shadow Sophia in the work of Sergius Bulgakov. (shrink)

Psychology training programs emphasize competencies like professional behavior, interpersonal skills, and emotional intelligence. Some students, known as students with problems of professional competence (SPPC), struggle in these areas. This study explored SPPC characteristics and educator experiences in managing them through semi-structured interviews with twelve Australian psychology educators. Thematic analysis revealed that SPPC often struggle with professional attitudes, feedback integration, reflective skills, and mental health, placing demands on resources and contributing to educator stress. The role of educators as gatekeepers, assessors, and (...) evaluators also raises concerns about maintaining ethical standards. Findings highlight the need for better understanding, support, and strategies for managing SPPC to uphold ethical standards. (shrink)

Abstract This paper argues that a genuine engagement of Christianity with evolution needs to include a discussion of Christology. Further, it develops a particular approach to Christology through a theo-dramatic account of incarnation. The somewhat static post-Chalcedon theological categories of divine and human natures are hard to square with contemporary evolutionary accounts of human origins. Once the divine Logos is portrayed in the active categories of Wisdom it becomes easier to envisage divine and creaturely wisdom coexisting in the person of (...) Christ. I argue, in particular, that a focus on God's agency through a modified version of Hans Urs von Balthasar's account of theo-drama invites participation and affirms human agency in a way that grand narratives do not. More particularly, drawing on examples from hominid evolution, contemporary discussion of paleontology and cooperative evolutionary theories, I suggest that the most convincing accounts of evolutionary biology fit into this theo-dramatic account more readily than alternatives. As such, in the spirit of Robert Boyle, this paper deliberately blurs the categories of revealed and natural theology by arguing that we can make sense of the former through concentration on the latter. (shrink)

An overwhelming majority of business travelers are now members of frequent flier programs operated by the airline industry. This article addresses relevant ethical issues, particularly employee perceptions of ethical issues, in such programs. A structured questionnaire technique, supported by personal interviews, was used to gather insights into frequent flier practices and attitudes. A fundamental conclusion of the research is that (1) significant ethical dilemmas are posed by frequent flier programs, (2) employees and employers generally choose to ignore these ethical dilemmas, (...) and (3) employee perception of the ethical issues in frequent flier programs is not significantly influenced by employee attributes such as education level, salary, organizational position, age or sex. Recommendations are offered to reduce the inherent ethical dilemmas in frequent flier programs. (shrink)

This essay lays out preliminary grounds for an alternative theological approach to animal ethics based on closer consideration of natural law theory and ethological reports of wild justice compared with dominant animal rights perspectives. It draws on Jean Porter's interpretation of scholastic natural law theory and on scientific narratives about the laws of nature to navigate the difficult territory between nature and reason in natural law. In Western societies, attempts to detach from our animal roots have fostered forms of legal (...) provisions that treat animals as property rather than as living, social beings entangled with human societies. (shrink)

Darwin thought that the moral sense was among the most challenging aspects of human life to account for through evolutionary explanations. This article seeks to probe the question about human uniqueness primarily from a theological perspective by focusing in depth on one distinctive moral sentiment, gratitude, particularly in the thought of Thomas Aquinas. It uses that example as a case study about how to consider the validity of arguments for human uniqueness within the broader compass of the cultural evolution of (...) sociality and morality within the human sciences, including evolutionary anthropology. Further questions about the evolution of religion surface in this discussion since gratitude, from a theological perspective, necessarily includes gratitude to God as a fundamental aspect of religious faith and practice. (shrink)

Chapter 13 covers a broad waterfront, encompassing digital transformation, the unevenness in access to new technologies, the complex power dynamics that underpin the new media and communication space, the shifting role of journalism in enabling public knowledge, and the challenges and opportunities for social progress in media access, with particular attention focused on the role of citizen journalism and alternative media.

This paper offers a theological critique of the future of ‘nature’ as suggested by New Biology, including recent developments in genetic engineering. It explores the biblical basis for grounding a theology of creation in the wisdom motif. The relationship between wisdom and creation in the Old Testament is discussed. The link between wisdom, Christ and the Holy Spirit is suggestive of wisdom's involvement in re‐creation as well as initial creation. An argument is put forward for a Trinitarian basis for wisdom. (...) The relationship between wisdom and apocalyptic literature gives a clue as to how wisdom might contribute to theological reflection on the future. Wisdom as metaphor is used to construct a new future of science. By reformulating the future of creation in the light of wisdom a future of science comes into view that meets the postmodern requirement for adaptability and diversity, but without forgetting the idea of distinction between humanity and the natural world. The long tradition of wisdom brings both a rootedness in historical perspectives and dynamic flexibility that serves to inform the relationship between God and the natural world. A measure of stability is a requirement in shaping perspectives for the future, particularly if the ambivalence and anxiety associated with new explorations in science are to be met. (shrink)

According to the Chinese military philosopher Sunzi, a military commander's actions must be “formless.” Ender Wiggin, in Ender's Game, displays this formlessness in the fact that when we try to analyze his actions we are left with a sense of confusion about his reasoning. Sunzi advocates tactics including strengthening the martial spirit of your own soldiers through rewards and punishments, targeting the enemy's martial spirit through tricks, exploiting their fear and anger to inspire or sap their abilities, and outwitting the (...) opponent through a mix of orthodox and unorthodox maneuvers. Sunzi stressed the importance of psychological self‐control, unfeeling and cold analysis driven by practical considerations, and adroit maneuvering of soldiers and formations on the battlefield. This chapter demonstrates how Ender's own military decisions can be illuminated by the writings of Sunzi and other seminal Asian philosophers like Confucius and Laozi. By these standards, Ender qualifies as a military genius. (shrink)

New Blackfriars, Volume 103, Issue 1104, Page 171-188, March 2022.

Volume 26, Issue 2, June 2020, Page 190-194.

Educational Theory, Volume 72, Issue 1, Page 47-64, February 2022.

The starting point for discussion in this paper is a case study, namely that of the controversy surrounding the case of withdrawing feeding from Eluana Englaro who had been in a permanent vegetative state (PVS) for seventeen years. I press the case for a recovery of classical prudence or practical wisdom, as understood by Thomas Aquinas, rather than beginning with deontological or utilitarian arguments. I suggest that prudence has relevance not just for specific issues concerned with cases involving PVS, but (...) also addresses wider problems raised by secular end-of-life ethical discourse, with its emphasis on individual choice on the one hand and concerns about the slippery slope towards more liberal legislation on the other hand. Greater attention to the hospice movement is, I suggest, ambiguous in ethical terms. Finally, I argue that one of the strengths of a Thomistic understanding of prudence is its deep connection with the life of grace as that informed by consideration of the work of the Holy Spirit. This incorporates a theological element without falling into the trap of a deontology that can be dismissed by those outside the household of faith, while allowing a Christian witness to persist in such a contested public arena. (shrink)

Tom Andersen’s reflecting team process, which allowed families to witness and respond to the talk of professionals during therapy sessions, has been described as revolutionary in the field of family therapy. Reflecting teams are prominent in a number of family therapy approaches, more recently in narrative and dialogical therapies. This way of working is considered more a philosophy than a technique, and has been received positively by both therapists and service users. This paper describes how dialogical therapists conceptualise the reflective (...) process, how they work to engage families in reflective dialogues and how this supports change. We conducted semi-structured, reflective interviews with 12 dialogical therapists with between 2 and 20 years of experience. Interpretative Phenomenological analysis of transcribed interviews identified varying conceptualisations of the reflecting process and descriptions of therapist actions that support reflective talk among network members. We adopted a dialogical approach to interpretation of this data. In this sense, we did not aim to condense accounts into consensus but instead to describe variations and new ways of understanding dialogical reflecting team practices. Four themes were identified: Lived experience as expertise; Listening to the self and hearing others; Relational responsiveness and fostering connection; and Opening space for something new. We applied these themes to psychotherapy process literature both within family therapy literature and more broadly to understand more about how reflecting teams promote helpful and healing conversations in practice. (shrink)