Christian Virtue Research Articles

Defoe, William Hendley, and "Charity Still a Christian Virtue" (1719)

Argues against the attribution to Defoe of the tract 'Charity Still a Christian Virtue'. This patently high-church polemic is in a style impossible to associate with Defoe, and it seems hard to see why he should be regarded as the author when the Rev. William Hendley, with his printer and his publisher, were all arrested on 25 October 1719 for publication of the tract.

The Logic and Lyric of Contrition

“[T]aken quite literally, the phrase, ‘there is no health in us’ exaggerates. There must be some spiritual health in us for us even to notice that we are sinners, and still more for us to care about that fact (contrition is a Christian virtue). But the lyric of contrition, like any other lyric, affords a certain license; having a poetic quality, good prayers do not have to be precise theology at every turn. However uncomfortable we may feel with it, the phrase expresses quite excellently that we have fallen very far short of the glorious life to which God has called us—that we are badly spoiled, even if not quite completely.”

Developing Wisdom in Christian Psychologists

A major topic of the Rech Conference on Christian Graduate Training in Psychology was that of the “Christian virtues” as potentially powerful therapeutic factors that should be manifested in the lives of Christian psychologists. Yet, the Christian training programs do little to intentionally develop such virtues. This paper is a case study examining the virtue of wisdom as one of the central characteristics that should be encouraged in psychology graduate students. I begin by suggesting a way of defining or thinking about the nature of wisdom from a Christian perspective. A wise human person is someone who truly understands what it is to be human and the nature of the possible ways of existing that confront human beings. Understanding what it is to be human is inextricably tied to knowing and understanding God. Selection of those students who have the greatest potential of growing in wisdom during their graduate training is then discussed. I conclude with suggestions for fostering growth in wisdom during the years of graduate study.

The papacy and the Jews: Catholic reformation and beyond

With the coming of the sixteenth century, many of the assumptions and values that had shaped and sustained European society for more than a thousand years were challenged and subsequently rejected. One of these assumptions was that the Jews played an indispensible role in Christian society. Their social marginality and legal singularity, in the context of unshakable religious non-conformity, furnished a necessary example of the fate awaiting all social and doctrinal deviants. Jews provided the requisite balance to Christian virtue on the architectonic scholastic scale of values. In the explosive atmosphere of the sixteenth century, this traditional posture proved to be quintessentially medieval and no longer viable. New ways of perceiving and dealing with the Jews had to be devised.

An Appeal for a Christian Virtue Ethic

An Appeal for a Christian Virtue Ethic

Rational Suicide and Christian Virtue

Rational Suicide and Christian Virtue

Rethinking Romans 12–15

The bulk of these chapters is invariably understood as a general, or as it were abstract, exposition of Christian virtues, without particular reference to a situation at Rome. We read in Luther, for example, that ‘the apostle is about to teach a Christian ethic’ when he begins chapter 12. Nygren states that none of Romans is aimed at circumstances peculiar to Rome, and that chapters 12–13 contain Paul's ‘central view of the ethical life of the Christian’. Käsemann regards 12–13 as general exhortation, only 14.1–15.3 being directed at problems in Rome. According to E. P. Sanders, nothing in Romans is called forth by the situation of the letter's recipients. ‘It seems best’, he writes, ‘to view Romans as being Paul's reflection on the problem of Jew and Gentile, in the light of the coming encounter in Jerusalem’. There are, however, several difficulties with this view. One is that the chapters do not include areas of Christian ethics with which we know Paul was concerned, such as marriage (1 Cor 7; Col 3.18 ff.), slavery (Col 3.22 ff.; Phlm), slander (1 Cor 6.10), suffering for Christ (2 Cor 1.7), generosity (2 Cor 8.6 ff.), avoiding witchcraft and gluttony (Gal 5.20; Phil 3.19), working hard (1 Thess 4.9–11). If Paul were writing a deliberatelygeneralethic, we should have expected perhaps more system and certainly a greater range of items.6More importantly, the view leads to fussy, artificial or disjointed divisions of the chapters into a multiplicity of exhortations which fail to grasp the broad sweep of Paul's thought. In particular the precise relevance of 13.1–7 is left obscure.

Sense of Humor as a Christian Virtue

Sense of Humor as a Christian Virtue

Kierkegaard On Doctrine: A Post–Modern Interpretation

Though Kierkegaard never explicitly formulated a theory of religious doctrine, he did have a clear position on the role that Christian doctrine ought to play in the lives of believers. Briefly stated, he maintained that Christianity, as a human activity, involves more than merely believing certain propositions about matters of fact. The doctrines of Christianity take on a true religious significance only when they are given the power to transform the lives of those who accept them; only when they are given expression in the existence of the believer. This was, however, far from evident to Kierkegaard's theological contemporaries who, in the collective absentmindedness of the age, sought to replace the Christian virtue of faith with the philosophical ideal of objective knowledge.

The Gendered Meanings of Virtue in Revolutionary America

In its contemporary colloquial usage, "virtue" is usually a term for female sexual prudence and benevolent activity with old-fashioned connotations. It evokes traits like chastity and altruism and, in a cynical post-sexualrevolution world, prudery and hypocritical do-goodism. On the one hand, these connotations are very old in Western culture. The sexual meaning of the word dates back to medieval and ancient times when the virtues were symbolized as virgins.' The Catholic ideals of celibacy and charity also reinforced the association of Christian virtue with sexual purity and personal sacrifice. On the other hand, the Protestant Reformation placed less emphasis on these qualities, criticizing the monastic ideal of celibacy and denying the spiritual efficacy of church offerings. It stressed other individual virtues-piety, temperance, frugality, and work in a useful calling.

Christian Virtues and the Doctrine of the Mean

Christian Virtues and the Doctrine of the Mean

Carl Rogers and the Christian Virtues

This article is a conceptual evaluation of the therapeutic theory and practice of Carl Rogers, using as critical vantage point the personality theory suggested in the various New Testament virtue-concepts. The topics discussed are Rogers’ concept of the self, the power of unconditional positive regard, integrity as congruence, the absence of transcendence in Rogers’ thought, and Rogers’ concept of autonomy. The verdict is mixed Features compatible with Christian psychology and useful in the formation of the Christian virtues are discerned, but the limits of this usefulness are delineated.

Assertiveness Training in Christian Perspective

The most common procedure for relating Christian faith to the cognitive-behavioral technique of assertiveness training has been to attempt to determine whether or not assertiveness is a Christian virtue. Such a procedure flows from a view of integration which implicitly separates the goal of therapeutic change (a product of values) from the process by which change is produced and the manner in which research on the construct is conducted (a product of science). While these distinctions can be useful ones, it is argued that Christian faith impacts not just the goal of treatment, but the methods of treatment and the conduct of research as well. Alternative taxonomies for response classification and theological/philosophical variables influencing choice of treatment modalities and the conduct of research are discussed and possible alternatives presented. The overall goal is to use assertiveness training as an example to suggest ways in which non-Christian belief has, and Christian belief might, influence and infuse our clinical, empirical, and theoretical work.

Exposé of the Popular Heroine: The Female Protagonists of Eliza Haywood

Expose of the Popular Heroine: The Female Protagonists ofEliza Haywood MARY ANNE SCHOFIELD Eighteenth-century fiction bristles with unforgettable women charac­ ters. Pamela Andrews and Clarissa Harlowe, on the one hand, are models of Christian virtue and behavior, while Moll Flanders and Fanny Hill, on the other, are women of little virtue but extraordinary sexual power. And as protagonists of the acknowledged masters of the eighteenth-century novel, Pamela Andrews, Clarissa Harlowe, Sophia Western (Tom Jones), and Fanny Goodwill (Joseph Andrews), to name the most prominent, have been adequately examined by critics and scholars. Such is not the case, however, with the heroines of the popular, though minor, female novelists of the period, most especially Eliza Haywood, whose first novel, Love in Excess; or, The Fatal Enquiry (1719), rivaled Defoe's Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe and Swift's Gulliver's Travels as "the most popular English fiction of the eighteenth century be­ fore Pamela."1 Haywood had intimate knowledge of women's problems in the eigh­ teenth century; she left her husband, the Rev. Valentine Haywood, and supported herself and her two children by her literary efforts. With a few exceptions,2 each of her novels concerns itself with the heroine and her problem of self-identity. Just as Mary Astell (Serious Proposal to the Ladies, 1697) and Defoe (Essay on Projects, 1692, 1697) were concerned with the state of women's education and Richard Steele (essays in The Tatler and The Spectator) with their position in the family and society, so Haywood, the first popular novelist to investigate the feminist milieu to such an extensive degree, deals with an even more basic need: a woman's 93 94 / SCHOFIELD concept of self, an understanding of herself as an independent, selfcontrolled , perhaps even an aggressive person. It is this quest for feminine identity which forms the basis of Haywood's novels. The majority of her novels of her first period (1720s and 1730s)3 depict the troubled situation of the divided heroine who is unable to reconcile diverse elements within herself and accept her position in society; she ends her struggle in exile or death. The novels of her later period (1740s and 1750s) offer a more con­ servative portrait of the virtuous heroine who is tested throughout the novel but remains true to her virtue and her womanly position and is hap­ pily rewarded with marital bliss at the conclusion. A study of Haywood's heroines and the novels in which they appear not only rekindles interest in Eliza Haywood but also, because of the sheer abundance and popularity of her work (sixty-odd romances, nov­ els, and secret histories, excluding her translations of continental ro­ mances, poetry, and other prose) provides us with the most comprehen­ sive treatment of the "woman question" in the period and allows us a brief look at the impact of the popular novel upon the traditional conceptions of "woman," "wife," and "mother." Like the eighteenth century itself, the novel was undergoing revision. With both, it was the changing status of women that accounted for the upheaval. Murial Williams observes that the "position of women, especially of the middle class, was changing dras­ tically because of a decline of industry in the home and the corresponding mechanization and centralization of industry."4 Because women were less in demand at home, they turned to other areas in which they could assert themselves. The large number of minor female novelists during the eigh­ teenth century is just one facet of this new movement, while the increased number of female novels readers is another.5 Haywood caters to this growing and influential group of women in her numerous romances and novels. To them she presents a pattern of femi­ nine behavior during this period of the eighteenth century. Her character­ istic fable of feminine distress, of persecuted virtue, was natural to her as a novelist alert to the preoccupations of her audience, for the cult of eighteenth-century womanhood was centered on the encounter between a sexually aggressive male and an innocent, superior female — a fictional­ ized portrayal of readers' sense of traditional conduct.6 Because the moral values of the bourgeoisie supported and aided...

Corporate Enterprise and Christian Ethics

Throughout the world, the moral basis of the free enterprise system faces both new and persistent challenges. It is convincing to a Christian and a man of business that these challenges cannot be met without a new, ethical vision of private enterprise, and a reconfiguration of the moral purpose of corporate life. By a new vision and a moral purpose, I mean a perception of the future that would develop the logic, stimuli, incentives, convictions and commitments which would lead to a more serving and more caring soci? ety, one that would liberate mans spirit. Rarely has there been a greater need for such a vision than at this moment in history. For, indeed, we live in turbulent and troubled times. Across every continent, nations and people are caught up in conflict, confrontation, terror and violence of unprecedented dimension. Much of this turbulence is born out of the spiritial vacuum of our days. In the ultimate analysis, it represents a quest for a new social and economic order that would give purpose and meaning to modern men. In this complex, anonymous and interdepen? dent world, people have become disenchanted with communism while, at the same time, questioning the moral validity of classic capitalism. Where will a new social and economic vision come from? As Elmer Johnson correctly states, moral philosophers since the 18th Century have thought that man can manage his passions and sentiments out of enlightened Classical philosophers maintain that, through the cognitive process, man can acquire a passion for the com? mon good. Utilitarian morality, we are told, will produce the new vision needed to preserve our society. The experience of history indicates that man will not act nobly, with compassion and fidelity, simply out of enlightened self-interest. In effect, what utilitarian philosophers have tried to do is find a substitute for virtue. In contrast, I wish to suggest that the new vision needed by modern men and women is to be found not in self-interest but in Judeo Christian virtues. Moreover, I am convinced that the Judeo-Christian system has the power to transform modern man and to stimulate him to a life of service, stewardship and compassion, values that I describe below.

Centripetal Mission or Evangelization by Hospitality

Bishop Arias points out that traditionally hospitality has been a well-used evangelistic tool for the church and suggests that it is a neglected topic in missiological circles, even though he recognizes that our Western context makes hospitality a Christian virtue that is sometimes uncomfortable to practice.

Faith, Reason, and Love: A Reply on behalf of Cardinal Newman

In a recent paper,1 Professor Jay Newman alleged that Cardinal Newman was entangled in a conundrum about faith and reason — a conundrum from which the cardinal tried, but failed utterly, to escape by means of a doctrine about love. He alleges that Newman is finally unable to arbitrate amongst rival faiths and is left holding an implausible account of love and of its relation to Christian virtue.

JOHN GOWER, "SAPIENS" IN ETHICS AND POLITICS

Minnis argues that in the CA Gower takes on the role of "sapiens" (wise man) in ethics and politics (two overlapping disciplines), and that "this role enables us to appreciate the essential unity of the diverse materials in his work." Minnis first points out that Gower's debt to the moralized Ovid of the Middle Ages explains the ethical framework of his exempla about love. For instance, from the commentaries on Ovid's Heroides, Gower borrows the idea that "exempla amantium" should juxtapose the fates of good and chaste lovers with the misfortunes of foolish and illicit lovers. By contrast, Chaucer's LGW is unusual in that all the stories figure good women. In his exempla, Gower sometimes widens the moral character of the Medieval Ovid (for instance, in his stories of Penelope and Phyllis, which he uses to illustrate Sloth), and he always treats the virtues and sins of the lover as Christian virtues and sins (214). Gower's role as "sapiens" is also evident in Book 7, which Minnis argues is closely integrated with the surrounding books. For instance, Book 6 introduces Aristotle in the story of Nectanabus, thus providing a smooth segue to an overview of Aristotle's teachings. In addition, Book 7 ends with a discussion of "the political virtue of chastity" (217), which reveals the close connection between kingly rule and self-rule. The relevance of the Prologue to the CA is explained in connection with the medieval classicizing commentaries on the Sapiential Books of the Old Testament. These suggested a significant overlap between Solomonic and Aristotelian wisdom, introduced and organized this wisdom by means of an extrinsic and intrinsic prologue, and distinguished between the various personae of the author. All of these features are evident in the CA's Prologue as well. Thus, Gower's heterogeneous materials "would have been regarded as quite compatible by the learned mediaeval reader" (225). [CvD]

Christian ‘Atheism’ and the Peace of the Roman Empire

Sometime betweena.d.176 anda.d.180 Athenagoras, a Christian, an amateur philosopher and possibly an Athenian, wrote aPleaaddressed to the emperors Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. This document is marked by a carefully controlledapologeticaim unmarred by crude efforts to convert and is remarkable for the positive attitude it shows toward the Roman emperors and the administration of justice throughout their realm. Athenagoras' apology was lost sight of in antiquity, in all likelihood, because it contributed so little to theology; precisely for the same reason it is valuable to us in our assessment of the political and social awareness of a segment of Christians shortly before the empire plunged into the troubles of the third century. Athenagoras was obviously well trained in rhetoric; he had dabbled in philosophy; and he clearly felt himself culturally superior to the “common men, artisans, and old women” whom he praises for their simple, if unreasoned, display of Christian virtue (11.4). He is representative of a growing elite in Christian circles which was seeking to explain the new religion to the Graeco-Roman world.

An Interpretation of Dryden's Fables

T1HE INNER COHERENCE of Dryden's Fables (1700) quickly becomes evident as one notices the repeated situations and character types. Though Dryden has grouped together translations (from Boccaccio, Ovid, Chaucer, and Homer) with only four poems of his own, the effect of the total work is that it is original.' What Dryden was saying in the Fables is a further question. The meaning of each poem depends not on its original but on the surrounding context of poems between which one can draw parallels and concrete relationships. The series of comparisons between the poets in Dryden's Preface suggests that he expected his readers to find parallels, diverse as the poets are. However, the special praise of Chaucer's poetry and the attempt to make him an equal of Homer and Virgil imply that the comparisons are not wholly objective. The poets form a historical continuum, from the heroic age in Greece, to a civilized but still pagan Rome, to the fourteenth-century Boccaccio and Chaucer, and finally to Dryden himself. This distribution through time implies that Dryden's plan was typological-although these poets all had similar insights into human nature, their capacity for moral judgment improved with the development of civilization in time, with a crucial change occurring at the birth of Christ. Dryden's treatment of his central themes and the structure of the Fables bear this out. The Fables is a variety of epic,2 but one whose main action is to undermine the motives behind the violent actions of classical epic and to substitute the Christian virtues of charity and natience. which could