Abstract
A fundamental characteristic of structural-developmental psychology is that development is governed by a logico-mathematical, hence scientific, principle of equilibrium. In this article I examine James Fowler's proposal for a metaphorical interpretation of logic in his theory of faith development. I intend to argue that a metaphorical understanding of logic radically shifts the theory of faith development away from Piagetian structuralism and towards dialectical psychology. A metaphorical reading of stages and their transformation raises serious questions about the attempt to define faith in terms of stages of individual psychological development. A secondary proposal to be considered is the relevance of metaphorical theology to faith development theory.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Fowler, James W. (1981).Stages of faith. San Francisco: Harper and Row.
Fowler, James W. (1986). “Faith and the structuring of meaning.” In C. Dykstra and S. Parks (Eds.),Faith development and Fowler, Birmingham, Alabama: Religious Education Press.
Grant, David. (1984).God: The center of value. Fort Worth: Texas Christian University.
Green, Garrett (1989).Imagining God. New York: Harper and Row.
Kohlberg, Lawrence & Power, F. Clark (1981). “Moral development, religious thinking and the question of a seventh stage.” In L. Kohlberg,Essays in Moral Development, vol. II, (pp. 212–319), San Francisco: Harper and Row.
Lindbeck, George (1984).The nature of doctrine: religion and theology in a postliberal age Philadelphia: Westminster Press.
Moseley, Romney M., Jarvis, D. & Fowler, J. W. (1986).Manual for faith development research. Atlanta: Center for Research in Faith and Moral Development, Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta.
Niebuhr, H. Richard (1960).Radical monotheism and western culture. New York: Harper and Row.
Piaget, Jean (1921). “L'orientation de la philosophie religieuse en Suisse romande.”La Semaine Litteraire, p. 412. Cited by Fernando Vidal, “Jean Piaget And The Liberal Protestant Tradition” in M. G. Ash and W. R. Woodward (1987).Psychology in Twentieth Century Thought and Society (p. 284). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Piaget, Jean (1923). “La psychologie et les valuers religieuses.”Sainte Croix 1922, Lausanne: La Concorde.
Piaget, Jean (1926).La representation du monde chez l'enfant. Paris: Alcan.
Power, F. Clark & Kohlberg, Lawrence (1980). “Religion, morality and ego development.” In J. W. Fowler & A. Vergote (Eds.)toward moral and religious maturity. Morristown, New Jersey: Silver Burdett.
Power, F. Clark (1987). “Hard versus soft stages of faith and religious development. A Piagetian critique.” Paper delivered at an international symposium on Religious Development and Religious Education, Blauberen, Federal Republic of Germany.
Riegel, Klaus (1976).Dialectical psychology. New York: Academic Press.
Smith, Wilfred Cantwell (1963).The meaning and end of religion. New York: Macmillan. Smith's interpretation of religion fits Lindbeck's “experiential-expressive” approach to religion by which the external features of religion are derived from inner experience
Streib-Weickum, Heinz (1989).Hermeneutics of metaphor, symbol and narrative in faith development theory. Ph.D. Dissertation, Emory University, Atlanta.
Wartofsky, Marx (1971). “From praxis to logos.” In T. Mischel (Ed.)Cognitive development and epistemology (pp. 129–147). New York: Academic Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
An earlier version of this paper was read at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion and the Religious Research Association in Salt Lake City, Utah, October 29, 1989. I am indebted to Professor Brown from the University of New South Wales, Australia for his helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Moseley, R.M. Forms of logic in faith development theory. Pastoral Psychol 39, 143–152 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01040802
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01040802