The Sovereign’s Beatitude

Though it may sound awkward to ask whether the political sovereign is happy or unhappy, the question is relevant to political theory, especially within a political theological perspective. Because man was created in the image of God, human happiness needs to be a reflection of divine beatitude, and as divine sovereignty is, at least analogically, related to political sovereignty, the conceptual coherence is secured. The main argument is, however, that the analogy does not hold. I shall show how St Thomas Aquinas’s short treatment of God’s beatitude may mislead us about power, fame, riches, and dignity being essential to happiness, based on an analysis of Franz Kafka’s major novel, The Castle, and a few other writings by him. I shall argue that our tradition of political thinking and behavior remains ambivalent on this issue. The political sovereign is born out of our unhappy condition, yet its power, fame, riches, and glory suggests to us that it has appropriated our happiness. But for this very reason it cannot be happy, and it therefore suggests a false analogy between the divine and the political sovereign. It is fundamentally at variance with our happiness, which incites us to abandon, reject, and eventually, kill it.

Obadiah

This essay touches on three topics: (1) the relation between Obadiah and Jeremiah not as an instance of one prophet quoting the other but as an example of both prophets quoting a traditional anthem; (2) the animosity between Edom and Judah in the book of Obadiah as not referring to Edom’s role during the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem but reflecting postexilic struggles after the Edomite occupation of Southern Judah; and (3) Obadiah’s conceptual coherence as a separate book. The contribution ends with a few hermeneutical remarks on the violent character of vengeance.

Researcher Positionality in the Dissertation in Practice

This chapter explores first the role of researcher perspective in the research process, then the unique nuances of the researcher positionality in dissertations in practice, followed by a discussion of the advantages and limitations of the unique positionality assumed by dissertations in practice. This chapter concludes by noting the importance of constructing conceptual coherence between the implications of the scholarly-practitioner's positionality statement and the discussion of the dissertation's ethical considerations and limitations. The dissertation in practice, more so than with traditional Ph.D. dissertations, assumes that the researcher holds close personal connections to the research site, participants, and contexts. Far from envisioning the researcher as an objective outside observer, the dissertation in practice assumes that the researcher has a vested interest in solving the professional problem of practice within their place of employment in the presence of colleagues. For this reason, the full disclosure of the researcher's positionality becomes all the more important.

Examining the Extent and Coherence of Nonprofit Hybridization Toward the Market in a Post-corporatist Welfare State

Despite widespread concerns about nonprofit organizations becoming “business-like” by hybridizing toward the market sphere, systematic knowledge about the extent and coherency to which this phenomenon finds traction beyond the liberal welfare context remains largely absent to date. Based on survey data ( N = 496), this study addresses this lacuna for the region of Flanders (Belgium), an emblematic case of a post-corporatist welfare state. We find that (a) business practices are on the rise yet not prominently present, and (b) the theorized conceptual coherence of this phenomenon corresponds with a more fragmented empirical reality. This raises the question to what extent the conception of nonprofit hybridization toward the market sphere as a “monolithic threat” to the distinctiveness of the nonprofit sphere is an empirical reality in a post-corporatist welfare context.

Etymologization as a Case of Pedagogical Lying in Plato

In the Cratylus, Plato criticizes the traditional rendering of Hades’ name as the ‘in-visible’ while in the Phaedo he endorses it. Despite this conflict, in both cases, the etymologies are used to oppose the negative characterization of this god by the tradition, just as prescribed in the Republic. Furthermore, both dialogues convey a similar description of Hades as an intellectual realm. Thus, there is an underlying conceptual coherence and a use of conflicting etymologies serving the same practical prescription. This article will verify if this scenario constitutes an instance of the serviceable lies presented in the Republic. Taking Hades’ different etymologizations as a case study, we will be able to better understand the justification for the pedagogical use of lies based on the complex interaction between souls with true and false beliefs. Two types of pedagogical lies emerge. Syrup lies characterize situations in which some true information is conveyed through an illegitimate but attractive cover such as etymologization or tales. In this way, they can capture the attention of souls who are hostage to false beliefs. Moreover, there is also the case for vaccine lies in which the illegitimate method used to convey some information has in itself a self-eroding element. Thus, those who receive the information are also encouraged to question the method in due course. After these determinations, it will be possible to evaluate how such a conception of lying scores morally.

The constitutional paradox of complex diversity: A systemic path towards political integration through deliberation

Identity and democracy and, more particularly, national identity and deliberative democracy account for a controversial relationship. However, from a classical deliberative democratic point of view, the controversy over who is the ‘we’ that needs to stand together in contemporary complex societies settled with the constitution of modern states. In this sense, the main contribution of this paper is twofold. On the one hand, I rebut the analytical appropriateness and conceptual coherence of Habermas’ discursive approach to democracy for the case of plurinational societies in contemporary constitutional democracies. A discussion of a test case – Catalonia – demonstrates that this inadequacy renders incoherent the deliberative model regarding one of its most fundamental premises: the equal weight of the principles of law and the principle of democracy. On the other hand, I sustain that the challenge is not about identity but democracy, and more particularly, about the role deliberative democracy is called to play when controversy challenges whether the people of a state do conform to a single people or not. More concretely, I explore the opportunities offered by the systemic turn to sustain a more realistic approach to deliberative democracy regarding its capacity to steer society towards integration in the context of the system of public deliberation.

Hocus Totus: The Elusive Wholeness of Christ

This article responds to David Moser’s essay commending the Totus Christus to Protestants who wish to be biblical, identify with the catholic tradition, and speak truly about the Church. The article recognizes the Totus Christus as an important case study of the relationship between Christology and ecclesiology. The article evaluates Moser’s case in three movements: first, by examining the way in which biblical language of Christ as the “head” of the Church “body” has been interpreted by Augustine and others; second, by comparing and contrasting the Reformed (soteriological) emphasis on mystical union with the Roman (ecclesiological) emphasis on mystical body; third, by examining the metaphysics of the Totus Christus and, in particular, the conceptual coherence of claiming that the Totus Christus designates a “united person” with “two subjects” that are “distinct in their being.” The article concludes by asking about the practical consequences of accepting the Totus Christus, and by noting that the Totus Christus never did receive the necessary creedal support commensurate with catholic doctrine.

Brain activity links performance in science reasoning with conceptual approach

Understanding how students learn is crucial for helping them succeed. We examined brain function in 107 undergraduate students during a task known to be challenging for many students—physics problem solving—to characterize the underlying neural mechanisms and determine how these support comprehension and proficiency. Further, we applied module analysis to response distributions, defining groups of students who answered by using similar physics conceptions, and probed for brain differences linked with different conceptual approaches. We found that integrated executive, attentional, visual motion, and default mode brain systems cooperate to achieve sequential and sustained physics-related cognition. While accuracy alone did not predict brain function, dissociable brain patterns were observed when students solved problems by using different physics conceptions, and increased success was linked to conceptual coherence. Our analyses demonstrate that episodic associations and control processes operate in tandem to support physics reasoning, offering potential insight to support student learning.

Textbooks as source for conceptional confusion in teaching and learning ‘acids and bases’ in lower secondary school

Chemistry teaching and learning bears some subject-specific challenges. For example, explanations and considerations of chemical phenomena drawing on the macroscopic, the sub-microscopic and the representational level. In this paper, we focus on the topic ‘acids and bases’ where the confusion of these levels leads to numerous misconceptions among learners. One possible source of these problems are textbooks, which can have an important impact on the quality of teaching and learning. To identify scientific and didactical appropriate textbooks for lower secondary classes, we draw on the work of Roseman, J. E., Stern, L. & Koppal, M. (2010), who developed an instrument to analyse textbooks using a conceptual coherence map. To develop our topic-specific instrument, big ideas of the topic were formulated, arranged in a conceptual coherence map, and set in relation with each other. Then we development a coding manual that describes precisely how to apply the different categories while analysing textbooks. The process described is part of a design-based research project with the aim to contribute to better chemistry teaching and learning. We give insight into the process of developing this instrument for analysing chemistry textbooks. Furthermore, it presents some examples for problematic representations from textbooks in the field of ‘acids and bases’.