Historical Inaccuracies Research Articles

The association of subcortical brain injury and abusive head trauma

BackgroundAbusive head trauma (AHT) remains a major pediatric problem with diagnostic challenges. A small pilot study previously associated subcortical brain injury with AHT. ObjectivesTo investigate the association of subcortical injury on neuroimaging with the diagnosis of AHT. Participants and settingChildren <3 years with acute TBI admitted to 18 PICUs between 2011 and 2021. MethodsSecondary analysis of existing, combined, de-identified, cross-sectional dataset. ResultsDeepest location of visible injury was characterized as scalp/skull/epidural (n = 170), subarachnoid/subdural (n = 386), cortical brain (n = 170), or subcortical brain (n = 247) (total n = 973). Subcortical injury was significantly associated with AHT using both physicians' diagnostic impression (OR: 8.41 [95 % CI: 5.82–12.44]) and a priori definitional criteria (OR: 5.99 [95 % CI: 4.31–8.43]). Caregiver reports consistent with the child's gross motor skills and historically consistent with repetition decreased as deepest location of injury increased, p < 0.001. Patients with subcortical injuries were significantly more likely to have traumatic extracranial injuries such as rib fractures (OR 3.36, 95 % CI 2.30–4.92) or retinal hemorrhages (OR 5.97, 95 % CI 4.35–8.24), respiratory compromise (OR 12.12, 95 % CI 8.49–17.62), circulatory compromise (OR 6.71, 95 % CI 4.87–9.29), seizures (OR 3.18, 95 % CI 2.35–4.29), and acute encephalopathy (OR 12.44, 95 % CI 8.16–19.68). ConclusionsSubcortical injury is associated with a diagnosis of AHT, historical inaccuracies concerning for abuse, traumatic extracranial injuries, and increased severity of illness including respiratory and circulatory compromise, seizures, and prolonged loss of consciousness. Presence of subcortical injury should be considered as one component of the complex AHT diagnostic process.

So Radically Jewish that He’s an Evangelical Christian: N.T. Wright’s Judeophobic and Privileged Paul

N.T. Wright remains an influential biblical interpreter among evangelical and conservative-mainline Christians. Critiques of his readings of Paul by scholars from the wider academy are not common in these spaces. This article illustrates the historical inaccuracies, Judeophobia, and erasures of exploitation that animate Wright’s discussions of Paul and philosophy, ancient Judaism, and the question of whether Paul was counter-cultural in Paul and the Faithfulness of God. Ultimately the apostle becomes a ventriloquist for the narratives, fixations, and voices that are comfortable to Wright’s readers, especially since they elide the people who do not benefit from the Christianity of Wright’s Paul.

New Polish Queer Literature and its Anglosphere Reception

&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; This article offers a theoretical perspective on the reception of new Polish queer literature in the Anglosphere as opposed to an “insider’s view”. The reception of queer literature is measured against the stereotype of Polish literature called “Pol- ish school of poetry”. This stereotype when applied to queer literature interacts with the idea of Poland’s “belatedness” in LGBTQ emancipation which is normatively understood as a carbon-copy of Western models, and not as a unique path. Therefore, the Anglosphere reading strategies often rely on “exoticisa-&#x0D; tion” and a certain “postcolonial gaze”. The case studies are two novels, Michał Witkowski’s Lovetown and a limitrophe case, a novel about Poland written in English by Tomasz Jędrowski, Swimming in the Dark. While in the former the political content is almost overlooked, in the latter the description of queer lives under communism seems brought to the forefront. I argue, however, that this vision in Swimming in the Dark does not surpass stereotypes and also is full of historical inaccuracies.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D;

Mā’ohi methodologies and frameworks for conducting research in Mā’ohi Nui

Historically, scholarship of and about Mā’ohi Nui (French Polynesia) has been conducted using western methods, methodologies, and frameworks which has, to a large extent, resulted in inaccurate and degrading representations of the people and the islands. In accordance with the empowering trends of Critical Pacific Studies, this article proposes a new way forward by advocating for the creation of Mā’ohi (French Polynesian) methodologies and frameworks and the incorporation of values and protocols in an effort to re-centre and de-centralise the historical inaccuracies of European scholarship, encouraging scholarship founded within the principles of for Mā’ohi researchers, by Mā’ohi researchers, or for Mā’ohi, by Mā’ohi.

Riding East—Western Myths, Nostalgia, and the Crossing of Generic Boundaries in Hidalgo (2004)

<i>Riding East</i>—Western Myths, Nostalgia, and the Crossing of Generic Boundaries in <i>Hidalgo</i> (2004)

Integrity of Authenticity and Real Presence in The Couple in the Cage

With performance often being used as a means of entertainment for many, audiences can sometimes be at fault for allowing their gullibility to fiction and historical inaccuracies led to dangerously self-constructed beliefs. Time and time again with regard to the colonial history of Indigeneity in the “New World,” we face the risk of falling victim to historical deceit. Coco Fusco and Guillermo Gómez-Peña’s performance, The Couple in the Cage: A Guatinaui Odyssey, is a masterfully produced stage play that reveals flaws in past and present historical beliefs that were strengthened by almost laughable false colonial narratives. Highlighting the ignorance to Indigeneity in Western mind, the two performers lead the viewer to question their relationship with the history of oppressed societies or “the Other.” This analysis seeks to consider the significance of The Couple in the Cage: A Guatinaui Odyssey in the context of the fragility and danger of colonial credence that leaves “the Other” as a victim of falsehoods.

Problems of Revisionism in Artistic Interpretations of Historical Events

In recent decades the discipline of American historical knowledge has been heavily influenced by the works of revisionist historians, who have dominated both science and education, as well as popular culture. New interpretations and reinterpretations of the past have become more popular than any previous efforts in the field. The contradictory nature and radical ideological content of revisionist interpretations of historical events made them highly appealing to a mass audience seeking an alternative to “boring” academic narratives, on the one hand, and on the other hand, they have caused considerable disruption for traditionalist historians, who had to evaluate and criticize not only the endeavors of their colleagues, but also those of laymen. Among the latter, representatives of cultural establishment, particularly literature and cinema, have a singular influence. In this article the author examines some examples of revisionist works of art, highlighting the main problems arising from specific readings of history, including historical inaccuracy, ideological bias, political partisanship, disregard for the sources, logical fallacies, a tendency to mythmaking, and numerous “artistic licenses”.

The Sin of American Jewish Exceptionalism

In recent years, scholars have offered valuable critiques of American Jewish exceptionalism that reveal the historical inaccuracy of an exceptionalist scholarly framework. However, as this essay explains, untethering Jewish studies scholarship completely from exceptionalism discourse may risk overlooking the prevalence of these beliefs and what they tell us about those who propagated them. Exceptionalism does not need to be historically accurate for it to warrant attention from scholars. Nor must scholars approve of exceptionalism, or deem it a positive, for it to be a worthy subject of study. Scholars may indeed view American Jewish exceptionalism as a fantasy that prevents believers from seeing the reality—in particular the problems—of their situation, but the fact that this fantasy had so many fervent espousers should make it a matter of interest. Examining the trail of American Jewish exceptionalist voices reveals the multiple ways these voices have been deployed.

Aesthetic Experience of Representational Art: Liking Is Affected by Audio-Information Naming and Explaining Inaccuracies of Historical Paintings.

Paintings in museums are often accompanied by additional information, such as titles or audio-texts. Previous research has reported mostly positive effects of additional information on the liking and subjective understanding of a painting. However, some studies have also reported negative effects when additional information introduces inconsistencies between the painting’s content and the represented reality. Therefore, the present study examined the negative effects of naming a painting’s historical inaccuracies, which are inconsistencies between the content of the painting and the real historic event, and whether these negative effects can be compensated by an explanation for the inaccuracies. The results revealed that liking was lower with inaccuracies named and that this effect was compensated by an explanation for the inaccuracies. No significant effects were observed for subjective understanding and aesthetic emotions. The results corroborate parts of the Vienna integrated model of art perception and have practical implications for the design of audio-texts in museums.

Multiple documents of text and picture: Naming a historical painting’s inaccuracies influences conflict regulation strategies

Referring to theories of multiple documents and narrative processing, two experiments investigated how viewers process pairs of documents about historical events, namely, historical paintings together with audio-texts either naming or not naming historical inaccuracies in the paintings. The results of Experiment 1 revealed that participants encountering discrepancies allocated more attention to the pictorial element, compared to participants without discrepancies, but not to the source label containing information about the artist. Participants in the two conditions reported an equal amount of interest in receiving further information and did not differ with regard to the retention of pictorial elements. In Experiment 2, participants rated the painting’s trustworthiness lower with discrepancies named than without, and this effect was compensated by an explanation for the discrepancy. Retention of the manipulated pictorial elements was not affected by either presenting these elements as discrepant or not, but an explorative analysis indicated that the pictorial elements presented always as consistent were remembered worse with discrepancies named. In Experiment 1, the reported transportation into the historical narrative was lower with compared to without discrepancies named, but we could not replicate this effect in Experiment 2. Our results extend multiple documents literature on multiple documents of text and picture.

Sanitizing history: National identification, negative stereotypes, and support for eliminating Columbus Day and adopting Indigenous Peoples Day.

Despite the fact that Christopher Columbus did not discover America and was arguably one of the most brutal colonizers in recorded history, the United States continues to celebrate a holiday in his honor. A growing movement by Native American activists and allies aims to adopt Indigenous Peoples Day in lieu of Columbus Day to shed light on historical inaccuracies, acknowledge the legacy of colonialism, and celebrate Indigenous Peoples. Research suggests that national narratives, such as those undergirding Columbus Day, build on negative stereotypes about minoritized groups to help bolster national identities. We examined whether national identification and negative stereotyping of Native Americans shapes support for each holiday. We conducted 2 large-scale national studies (Study 1: college students, N = 4,625; Study 2: adults, N = 2,805). Across both samples, people who endorsed the continued celebration of Columbus Day and people who were least supportive of adopting Indigenous Peoples Day were those high in national identification. In contrast, people who endorsed eliminating Columbus Day and people who supported adopting Indigenous Peoples Day were relatively low in national identification who also believed that negative stereotypes about Native Americans were highly unacceptable (Studies 1 and 2) and/or inaccurate (Study 2). The results suggest that garnering support for eliminating Columbus Day and adopting Indigenous Peoples Day requires interrogating the roots of national identification and rejecting negative stereotypes about Native Americans. Implications for why people continue to hold onto national narratives that reify the continued subordination of minority groups are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Celluloid Chains: Slavery in the Americas through Film ed. by Rudyard J. Alcocer, Kristen Block, and Dawn Duke

Reviewed by: Celluloid Chains: Slavery in the Americas through Film ed. by Rudyard J. Alcocer, Kristen Block, and Dawn Duke Christopher D. Stone Celluloid Chains: Slavery in the Americas through Film Rudyard J. Alcocer, Kristen Block, and Dawn Duke, eds. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2018 Scholarship on slavery's cinematic presence has been surprisingly sparse. Before 2018, the only book-length analysis came from Natalie Zemon Davis's Slaves on Screen (2002), a brief but perceptive study of five films. Celluloid Chains ups the ante. Fifteen essays conceived from a range of academic disciplines tackle fifteen films released between 1975 and 2015. In short, this anthology is, as the introduction boasts, "the most complete collection of critical essays" for this cinematic genre to date (x). After Rudyard J. Alcocer's introduction, the collection opens with El otro Francisco (1975). Julia C. Paulk explains how director Sergio Giral radically reworked a landmark novel under the watchful eye of Cuba's ICAIC. Giral recasts the novel's suffering, but docile slaves into righteous, rebellious revolutionaries. Although the rebels fail, the film's list of subsequent revolts (mostly anticolonial uprisings led by whites) as well as the image of surviving rebels ensconced in the mountains, an obvious allusion to Castro's 26th of July Movement, positions this slave uprising (and other rebellions) as precursors to 1959 and the supposed eradication of inequality and prejudice. Robert J. Norrell offers the anthology's second and final foray into the 1970s with his discussion of Roots (1977). Norrell largely abstains from original in-depth textual analysis, relying instead on Leslie Fiedler. Most of Norrell's essay functions as a useful introduction to the production and reception of Roots as well as an overview of the accusations of plagiarism and historical inaccuracy that dogged Alex Haley. If Norrell takes a greater interest in the big picture, Haley Osborn offers a close reading of Cecilia (1981), Humberto Solás's lavish adaptation of Cirilo Villaverde's seminal novel. In particular, she examines the film's use of lighting, which, to cite one example, repeatedly marks the film's heels, both strong, ambitious women, as manipulative, malevolent, and even inhuman. Unlike the big-budgeted Cecilia, Cimarrones (1982) is a low-budget short about fugitive slaves. As Rachel Sarah O'Toole notes, the film offers a counter-memory to the one enshrined in Peruvian archives, dominated as they are by filings from imperial officials and slaveholders. Instead of the lawless marauders imagined by the colonial elite, maroons appear as champions of justice who live in a sustainable, orderly community. Here O'Toole expresses envy. Untethered by archives that reveal little about what fugitives said or felt or how they interacted, the filmmakers could use their imaginations to create a "vision that historians like me suspect but have been unable either to prove or disprove" (63). Quilombo (1984) shares some similarities to Cimarrones. Both are set in the 1600s. Both are about fugitive slaves. Both seek to integrate a historically marginalized group within their nation's imagined past. However, compared to O'Toole, Ignacio López-Calvo adopts a more critical tone, He charges the filmmakers with caricaturing the Portuguese, exoticizing Afro-Brazilians, and romanticizing Quilombo, Brazil's most famous maroon settlement, by depicting it as a perfectly harmonious, always festive realm. Alcocer's essay on Cobra Verde (1987), written and directed by Werner Herzog, returns the collection to the 1800s, its favored century. Cobra Verde is the collection's only film that does not foreground the experience of slaves, focusing instead on the titular character, a Brazilian slave trader. Alcocer spends much of his essay debating about whether this film, which, as he concedes, renders the enslaved voiceless, fits within the current study. The stylized documentary Passage du milieu (1999) illuminates the experiences of those souls captured and transported by the likes of Cobra Verde. While this film, which juxtaposes slow-motion images of slaves [End Page 57] against poetic narration, divided critics, Anny Dominique Curtius deems it compelling and more effective than the Walter Mosley-revised script aired by HBO in 2001. In her analysis, the film's tidalectic nature embodies "an ecopoetic counter-epistemology to a...

A Cartography of Kinship: Domestic Space, Tomb Cult, and the Re-Mapping of Ephesus in the Acts of John

Scholars have long dismissed the apocryphal Acts of John as insignificant for reconstructing Christian origins in Ephesus, despite the fact that this city serves as the primary locale for John's activities in the text's (extant) narrative. This is due in large part to the Acts's historical inaccuracies, especially its claim that the apostle John destroyed the Artemision a full two centuries before the famous temple would actually experience wholesale destruction. This article, by contrast, puts aside the issue of historical accuracy in favor of examining the Acts's inventive dimensions, namely, how and to what effect the Acts imaginatively reconfigures cultic space within (and outside) the city of Ephesus. I argue that the Acts privileges domestic and extra-urban spaces, such as the home and the tomb, as significant sites for Christian cultic activities at the expense of public polytheistic sites such as the temple of Artemis. In doing so, the Acts constructs a "counter-cartography" that places emphasis on the importance of cultic activities (e.g., domestic cult, burial rites), which underscore ties of kinship within nascent Christian communities. The article concludes by demonstrating important ties between the Acts's constructions of Christian space and the subsequent history of Christian Ephesus in late antiquity, thus underscoring how, despite its reputation for historical irrelevance, the Acts's "cartography of kinship" had important ramifications for the succeeding realities of Christian thought and practice in the ancient Mediterranean world.

“Good Teachers” with “Good Intentions”: Misappropriations of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy

This conceptual work examines the misappropriation of culturally responsive pedagogy by identifying ways in which misappropriations commonly occur in urban teaching and learning environments. They include culturally responsive practices as a smokescreen of good intentions, culture as a hook to gain students’ attention, and culturally responsive pedagogy as a tool of assimilation. As teacher educators, we see a need to critically examine pedagogical approaches to specifically identify the perpetuation of historical inaccuracies, harmful stereotypes, and masks of good intentions. Three premises are proposed that reflect a commitment to defining and identifying culturally responsive teacher education practices.

Metamorphoses in the Law of Contract: Mythological Reflections

A human body grows and changes but remains the same body. The same is true of other organisms, even though some transform dramatically. Metamorphosis is a poetic and mythological conceit of identity, change, and continuity. It applies just as well to the law of contract and helps us understand the power of the contract law canon and the conventional understanding of the legal history of contract. The ideas probably hold true for private law generally, but the focus is on Anglo-American contract law with a foray into Scots private law. Three aspects of mythology and metamorphosis are highlighted. First, the conventional understanding of legal history shapes what the law is. In the story of legal development, we see an implicit notion of progress — with missteps and complications of plot, but with the conviction that eventually the law, like any myth, will work itself out in a way that is right — not necessarily a way that is good but instead a way that fits with society. And in any system based on case law, this conventional understanding of legal development shapes the law itself. Second, the force of this conventional understanding is scarcely lessened by demonstrable falsity. Classic books, lectures, and cases illustrate the idea that historical inaccuracy is an insignificant check on the power of myth. Finally, myths consist not only of explanatory plotlines; they also draw on characters and settings that reflect and inspire the society they serve. Legal myths are no different. Understanding legal mythology requires an attentive ear and a sharp eye for the characters, as well as the storytellers. The reasonable man is not the same as the reasonable person (or is he — a metamorphosis?), and in any case is not the same as the bonus paterfamilias or bon pere de famille—the good father of the family, or good family man, the comparable figure of Roman and civil law. Setting matters as much: the heritage of kings and lords, and judges and Westminster Hall, makes for different offspring than that of Rome and Continental learning, of wise thinkers and treatise authors, of Parliament House and institutional writers. When law is understood as a humanistic and rhetorical discipline, the force of myth, in all its aspects, is only natural.

Reconstrucción virtual del anfiteatro de Tarragona a través de la procesión inaugural

&lt;p&gt;This paper is focused on a three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of Tarragona’s amphitheatre. The intention is to improve the current museography of the monument, which poorly performs its main purpose: cultural heritage dissemination. Firstly, most of the grandstands and the main entrance are the results of a partial restoration carried out during the 1960s, based more on pragmatic rather than scientific criteria, and with many historical inaccuracies. Secondly, the worship complex, consisting of a sanctuary on the arena and another one down of, goes unnoticed by most visitors. Finally, the only area where the grandstands remain, and the only one where someone can understand the vaulted construction technique, it is not available for public entrance.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Facing this situation, the present reconstruction proposal provides people with a useful tool to comprehend the Roman building, especially where the remains are poorly preserved or inaccurately restored. In this regard, a set of rendered images has been created and, by such means, people can compare the reconstruction of the Roman building with its current remains. For this purpose, scientific methods have been employed, as well as 3D modelling technologies. First and foremost, all publications relating to Tarraco’s amphitheater have been thoroughly reviewed. Then, the archaeological remains have been redrawn using CAD tools. Henceforth, the plans and sections have been reconstructed, 3D modelled and rendered.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;While the reconstruction was being developed, Roman ludic processions were found to be an interesting topic that could serve as a common thread. This way, the sectors to be reconstructed were sequenced as follows. First, the eastern entrance or Porta Triumphalis, which led the entourage to the arena. Second, the upper sacellum, where the priests conducted the liturgies to inaugurate the games. Third, the southern area, through which the gladiators and the authorities left the arena to their positions (for the first group, the service's rooms located in the underground, while for the second one, the authorities stand). Last but not least, the sanctuary under the arena, where the gladiators could perform their last prayers before the combat began.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Along with the text below, images of the reconstruction can be found next to photographs of the state of preservation, following the aforementioned sequence. Therefore, Figures 2, 3 and 4 explain the image and functioning of the main entrance (Porta Triumphalis): while Figures 2 and 4 show virtual restorations from the inside and the outside, Figure 3 presents the development of the corridor in section and plan. Figures 6 and 7 display how the upper sanctuary had looked like from the arena and once inside respectively. Figures 9 and 10 are a 2D restoration of the southern area, where its role as a hub can be understood. Figure 11 shows the southern sector from the outside, where the double entrance can be appreciated, as well as the outside stairs used by the authorities to climb to the first level and one of the multiple configurations that the façade could have taken. Figure 12 reproduces the authorities stand as the Roman spectators would have seen it. Finally, Figures 13 and 14 are images of the lower sacellum, as seen by the gladiators down the arena and in axonometry together with the upper sanctuary.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In summary, this work aims to improve the museography of Tarragona’s amphitheatre. An immediate application would be including the images in the signposting. Furthermore, they can be used as a basis to undertake a bigger project to adapt the whole museography to be better understood by society.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Highlights:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Reconstrucción del anfiteatro de Tarragona presentada a través de un catálogo de imágenes realizadas mediante software de tratamiento 3D.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Propuesta para la divulgación del patrimonio arqueológico a través de una reconstrucción virtual didáctica e históricamente rigurosa.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Interpretación de los restos arqueológicos del anfiteatro de Tarraco desde una nueva óptica: las ceremonias de inauguración de los juegos.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;

Correcting a Historical Error about Female Participation in Training Studies Before 1975

ABSTRACT An influential journal in the history of kinesiology is Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport (RQES). In 2005, RQES published a historical review in which the authors claimed the first training study in RQES to focus on women was by Wallace in 1975. In the current paper, the author corrects this historical inaccuracy. The electronic archives of RQES were downloaded and titles of papers published between 1930 and 1975 were screened to identify training studies. A training study was defined as an examination of the effects of a physical activity intervention of ≥1 week on any physical or mental health outcome. A total of 33 female-only training studies were published in RQES between 1930 and Wallace’s 1975 paper. The 33 studies included 4,960 female participants and consisted of various training modalities, durations, and outcomes. Also, the broader claim made in the historical review that women's health issues were not a focus of RQES until Title IX in the 1970s is challenged. A number of non-training studies in RQES between 1930–1975 focused on women’s health issues (e.g., dysmenorrhea), and sex-specific analyses were performed in early RQES studies. This information corrects the historical record about female participation in RQES studies and informs contemporary discussions about female research participation.

Meaning and context in political theory

The two books offer a contextual reinterpretation of Rawlsian and post-Rawlsian liberalism. Nelson’s main thesis is that debates in liberal political theory re-enact theological debates about theodicy going back to the Pelagian controversy. This claim is criticized for its historical inaccuracy. Nelson’s invocation of theodicy as a refutation of luck egalitarianism and the Rawlsian rejection of desert rest on a claim of possibility that is too weak to uphold a plausible refutation. Forrester locates Rawls’s rejection of desert in the thinking of his contemporaries. She not only shows the development of Rawls’s thought but also details its broad influence. However, her thesis that the role of economic planning in a theory of justice remained undeveloped by Rawls ignores the intrinsic difficulties of designing a system of economic planning. The persistent antinomies of grace and free will in metaphysics, and of planning and the price mechanism in economics, show the continuing relevance of meaning beyond context.

Feminist Legal Biography: A Model for All Legal Life Stories

ABSTRACT Legal biography remains, with some exceptions, strongly influenced by Victorian biographical models, with a focus on ‘great’ men (since women could not become lawyers before 1920, and there have been few ‘great’ women lawyers) and their public achievements and contributions to law, and with little attention given to their private lives or their attitudes to women’s subordination in law. Feminist legal historians have widened the net to include women pioneers working in and with law before 1920. But feminist legal biography is not just about uncovering the lost lives of women; rather, it focuses on gender – the relationship between the sexes – and recognizes that biographies of men require consideration of the ways in which men maintained their dominant position in law and society, as much by the private support of women at home as by excluding and marginalizing women professionally. As for biographies of women, recent enthusiasm to recover their stories has suffered from a tendency to mould them into heroines or role models, again on the Victorian model. Feminist legal biographers of women need to avoid the perils of over-identification with their subjects (manifested by anachronistic familiarity and historical inaccuracy) and the siren call of anecdote and myth.

Evangelizing A Modern Agnostic Culture

Evangelizing A Modern Agnostic Culture Eugene P. Trager (bio) One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (called the Twin), was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" Thomas said to them, "Unless I see the scars of the nails in his hands and put my finger on those scars and my hand in his side, I will not believe." A week later the disciples were together again indoors, and Thomas was with them. The doors were locked, but Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and look at my hands; then stretch out your hand and put it in my side. Stop your doubting, and believe!" Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Do you believe because you see me? How happy are those who believe without seeing me." (John 20:24-31) In recent years, there has been an effort by biblical scholars such as John Dominic Crossan, Marcus Borg, Bishop Robert Barron, Andrew Newberg, and Eugene D'Aquili to provide interpretations of scripture that would appeal to modern highly educated, scientifically minded agnostic people in our secular culture who live on the fringe of our religious traditions. This is a rather unique evangelistic strategy. The problem with such an approach according to Cardinal John Henry Newman is that in order to be evangelized, people need to believe in something that cannot be apprehended by the senses or understood by reason. [End Page 354] (Apologia 1865-Chapter 5) That's a problem for modern agnostics. This article examines the evangelizing efforts of Crossan, Borg, Barron, Newberg and D'Aquili in their attempt to deal with this problem. Borg and Crossan begin by focusing on the epistles attributed to St. Paul and the text of Acts. They point out that Paul's epistles to the churches he established make up over one-fourth of the New Testament, that he is considered the greatest missionary in Church history and that without him there would not be Christianity as we know it. Therefore to address the agnostic's doubt, evangelization must begin with Paul. First, in trying to make Paul appeal to modern agnostics Borg and Crossan emphasize that Paul was transformed from a radical egalitarian champion of democracy and freedom for all, including slaves, women and the poor, to a conservative defender of the status quo by others writing or editing in his name.1 Clearly this is an appeal to the liberal political sentiments of modern agnostics: There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free,There is no male and female, for you all are one in Christ Jesus: (Galatians 3:28) But then: Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. (Ephesians 6:5-8) Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. (Romans 13:1) I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man, she must be quiet. (Timothy 2:12) Second, they point out that the problem with the biblical account of Paul's trip to Damascus was that he could not have been empowered with authority from a high priest in Judea to go to Damascus to arrest dissident Jewish followers of Jesus, and bring them back to Jerusalem for punishment, because a Jewish high priest in Judea could never exercise authority across Roman provincial borders, especially as far away as Damascus.2 More likely, they imply, Paul went to Damascus, his old stomping grounds where he was educated, to ally himself with his former Jewish [End Page 355] colleagues, the members of the Damascus synagogue where he received his Pharisaic education, in order to develop a strategy for punishing members of the Jewish Jesus sect. This alternative explanation appeals to the modern agnostic's concern about scripture's legal and historical inaccuracy and provides a more credible explanation. Third, and more compelling, Crossan and Borg suggest that when Paul...