Head and Heart: Perspectives from Religion and Psychology - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1599474395 ISBN 13: 9781599474397

Verlag: TEMPLETON FOUNDATION PR, 2013

Inhaltsangabe

Theologians and religious figures often draw a distinction between religion of the ‘”head” and religion of the “heart,” but few stop to ask what the terms “head” and “heart” actually denote. Many assume that this distinction has a scriptural basis, and yet many Biblical authors used the word “heart” as a synonym for “mind.” In fact, there isn’t a strict separation of the two concepts until the modern period, as in Pascal’s famous claim that “the heart has its reasons that reason can not know.” Since then, many other philosophers and theologians have made a similar distinction.

The fact that this distinction has been so persistent makes it an important area of study. Head and Heart: Perspectives from Religion and Psychology takes an inter-disciplinary ap­proach, linking the thinking of theologians and philosophers with theory and research in present-day psychology. The tradition of using framing questions that have been developed in theology and philosophy can now be brought into dialogue with scientific approaches developed within cognitive psy­chology and neuroscience. Though these scientific approaches have not generally used the terms “head” and “heart,” they have arrived at a similar distinction in other ways. There is a notable convergence upon the realization that humans have two modes of cognition at their disposal that correspond to “head” and “heart.” The time is therefore ripe to bring the approaches of theology and science in to dialogue—an impor­tant dialogue that has been heretofore neglected.
 

Head and Heart draws on the unique expertise in relating theology and psychology of the University of Cambridge’s Psychology and Religion Research Group (PRRG). In addi­tion to providing historical and theoretical perspectives, the contributors to this volume will also address practical issues arising from the group’s applied work in deradicalisation and religious education.
 

Contributors include Geoff Dumbreck, Nicholas J. S. Gibson, Malcolm Guite, Liz Gulliford, Russell Re Manning, Glendon L. Moriarty, Sally Myers, Sara Savage, Carissa A. Sharp, Fraser Watts, Harris Wiseman, and Bonnie Poon Zahl.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

REV CANON DR FRASER WATTS is Reader in Science and Theology, and director of the Psychology and Religion Research Group, Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge (PRRG). He is a Fellow of Queens’ College, Cambridge, Chief Research Officer of the Cambridge Institute for Applied Psychology and Religion, and a former president of the British Psychological Society. He is the author or editor of many books, including Theology and Psychology (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2002).

DR GEOFF DUMBRECK is a former research associate in the Psychology and Religion Research Group. He is the author of Schleiermacher and Religious Feeling (Leuven: Peeters, 2012). He is now training for ordained ministry in the Church of England at Ripon College, Cuddesdon.

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Head and Heart

Perspectives from Religion and Psychology

By Fraser Watts, Geoff Dumbreck

Templeton Press

Copyright © 2013 Templeton Press
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-59947-439-7

Contents

Preface Fraser Watts, 
Introduction Geoff Dumbreck and Fraser Watts, 
Part 1: Theology, 
1. Head and Heart in Christian Theology Geoff Dumbreck, 
2. "Keeping Alive the Heart in the Head": Poetic Imagination as a Way of Knowing Malcolm Guite, 
3. "If You Can Keep Your Head When All about You / Are Losing Theirs and Blaming It on You": Head and Heart in Recent Analytical Philosophy of Religion and Natural Theology Russell Re Manning, 
Part 2: Psychology, 
4. Empirical Measures of the Religious Heart Bonnie Poon Zahl, Carissa A. Sharp, and Nicholas J. S. Gibson, 
5. Dual-System Theories of Religious Cognition Fraser Watts, 
Part 3: Application, 
6. Head and Heart in Preventing Religious Radicalization Sara Savage, 
7. Head God and Heart God: Pastoral Work to Help Clients Overcome Harmful God Images Glendon L. Moriarty, 
8. Religious Education Sally Myers, 
Part 4: Integration, 
9. Head, Heart, and Wisdom Harris Wiseman, 
10. The Head and the Heart of the Matter in Hope and Forgiveness Liz Gulliford, 
Conclusion: Head and Heart in Cultural Context Fraser Watts, 
About the Contributors, 
Index, 

CHAPTER 1

Head and Heart in Christian Theology

* * *

Geoff Dumbreck

In the introduction, we noted the ubiquity of the distinction between "head" and "heart." Many assume, without any serious reflection, that this has been a feature of Christian thought since the early church. In fact, the biblical authors and the church fathers saw little difference between the "heart" and what we might now call "mind." The distinction owes far more to comparatively recent theologians like Pascal, Wesley, Edwards, and the Romantics. We will consider several of these "theologians of the heart" in more detail here, focusing on the unique or innovative features of their accounts. Yet we will also point to some common themes, considering their continuity with other important strands of the Christian tradition. This will inevitably provide an incomplete series of "snapshots" rather than a comprehensive picture, but it should set the scene for the rest of this volume.

Background

Given that the Bible is of crucial importance to the theologians considered here, it is important to begin with scriptural references to the "heart." The Old Testament is replete with figurative references to lev. This is roughly equivalent to the English term "heart," but is usually used to mean "intellect." Take, for example, this proverb, as translated in the King James Version:

Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the midst of fools is made known. (Proverbs 14:33)

Because, in modern English, we associate thoughts with our "heads" or "minds," many recent editions translate lev as "mind" when it is used in this sense. The author of this proverb does not mean that wisdom belongs to the heart as opposed to the mind; he simply uses the word for "heart" to denote what we would usually call the "mind." Although this seems counterintuitive, there is a parallel in the English phrase, "to learn by heart."

Elsewhere, lev is used to denote a range of human experiences. It may denote the will (for example, 2 Chronicles 12:14 or Job 11:13), the conscience (1 Samuel 24:5), or personal character (Jeremiah 12:3 or Isaiah 38:3). In a few cases it is used, as we now frequently find it, to symbolize emotions and feelings (Judges 16:25). But, more importantly, lev may also denote the whole person. Thus Solomon prays to the God of Israel, who keeps "covenant and steadfast love for your servants who walk before you with all their heart" (1 Kings 8:23).

We find a similar picture in the New Testament. The Greek word for heart, [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], is also used to denote the mind (Matthew 13:15), conscience (1 John 3:19–20), and emotion (John 14:1). There are instances where "heart" and "mind" are in the same sentence, which might suggest that the authors were drawing a distinction between the two. For example, in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus identifies the greatest commandment as, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37). This appears to be a paraphrase of a verse in Deuteronomy: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might" (Deuteronomy 6:5).

Instead of "and with all your might," Matthew includes the phrase "and with all your mind," even though he has already referred to the "heart." The equivalent passages in the Gospels of Mark (12:30) and Luke (10:27) also introduce a reference to the mind, while retaining the reference to strength. Yet there is an explanation that suggests there is no real distinction between "heart" and "mind" in these passages. The presence of both terms may stem from a conflation of the original Hebrew, which refers to heart, soul, and might, and the Greek of the Septuagint, which refers to mind ([TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]), soul, and power (see Allen 1912). If this is the case, "heart" and "mind" are not opposed, but identical.

Notably, in the epistles, Paul identifies the "heart" as the location of the Holy Spirit within Christian believers. Thus he observes, "hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). Paul is not afraid to draw an ontological distinction between Christians and non-Christians, describing the former group as being "in the Spirit" or "in Christ." At the same time, he emphasizes the limitations of the "head" in religious matters. In this life, we cannot hope for anything more than a distorted picture of God:

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. (1 Corinthians 13:12, KJV)

Biblical language about the heart unsurprisingly found its way into the works of major early Christian theologians. Perhaps the most prominent example is St. Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–430). Augustine shared Paul's belief that the heart is God's "land" or dwelling place within us, and in his autobiographical work, the Confessions (republished 1998), he declares to God: "I was seeking you outside myself, and I failed to find 'the God of my heart'" (VI.i,1). This stance is informed by his conception of divine grace. Humans cannot find God by themselves. Rather, he penetrates our hearts, and we discover him there.

Like the Old and New Testament writers, Augustine uses the word "heart" (cor) to denote the intellect, the will, and the emotions. Yet he is adamant that religion is not rooted in a passing attitude, momentary determination of will, or fleeting passion. It requires firmly held conviction:

My love for you, Lord, is not an uncertain feeling but a matter of conscious certainty. With your word you pierced my heart, and I loved you. (X.vi,8)

Notably, when Augustine makes this claim that God has pierced his heart, he does not mean that God has pierced his mind alone, or will alone, or emotion alone. His point is that God penetrates every aspect of our inner life, and that our love of God should likewise encompass every aspect of our inner life. As with...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: TEMPLETON FOUNDATION PR
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2013
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1599474395
• ISBN 13: 9781599474397
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Auflage: 1
• Anzahl der Seiten: 343
• Herausgeber: Watts Fraser, Dumbreck Geoff
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Anja's; service@anja-karge.de; ; Von-Gumppenberg-Str. 94; Pöttmes; 86554; Deutschland