Faith and Institutional Purpose in the Psychology Program – Walter Murphy

The Psychology program at Lenoir-Rhyne is very invested in relating Christian faith to our teaching and research. Our program descriptions in the college=s general catalog mentions the attempts to develop and maintain creative tension between modern psychology as a scientific field and academic elements of Christian faith. The current faculty all profess Christianity, and we have one faculty member who is a Lutheran. The service orientation of the Human and Community Service major and the Art Therapy minor offer students the opportunity to use their learning and training to help others. Involvement of some of our faculty as faculty-in-residence at one of the dorms, as advisors to student organizations (including two faculty who have previously served as advisors to the college=s Newman Club), and at chapel and at faith-based events on campus contribute to the department=s involvement in the religious ethos of the college. Our program faculty are also currently developing a grant proposal to fund a religiously-oriented research project called the Power of We Institute, based on David Ludwig’s work.

At times, I find it difficult to relate Christian faith and teaching to some classes I teach. As an experimental psychologist, I mainly teach classes that relate little to the clinical and personality issues in psychology that are more amenable to linking to theological ideas. For example, in psychology of learning (classical and operant, not educational learning), in physiological psychology, and in cognitive psychology there are no Christian or even religiously-affiliated theories, and research in these areas on religious belief is sometimes anti-religious. In research methods and in developmental psychology, I am able to address some matters of religious faith (such as ethics in research and moral development), but the nature of much of the research literature does not easily allow incorporation of religious theories. Because I want students to learn the importance of using scientific methodology to study human nature and behavior, I emphasize a critical analysis of all research and an openness to accepting beliefs that may conflict with people=s upbringing and personal beliefs. For example, I discuss the theory of evolution in several classes. I do not require students to accept the theory, but I do expect them to learn it. Some students find this requirement difficult since evolutionary theory contradicts the Genesis story of Creation. I feel, though, that a mature understanding of human nature cannot be developed by someone who refuses to acknowledge ideas in conflict with what they have been taught previously, so I challenge students to seek support for their own beliefs. I believe that, in the long term, that will strengthen the religious beliefs of students who take this risk.

The two classes I teach in which I can and do address matters of religious faith are Freshman Seminar and General Psychology. In Freshman Seminar I invited students to attend chapel with me, including 2 classes in which the whole class was expected to attend as a group (although I did not penalize students who chose not to attend since I believe that faith can be encouraged but not mandated). We also discuss students= own religious traditions and when students write stories to present to the class, some use their stories to witness to their faith. I advocate students being tolerant of each other=s religious traditions as part of the class=s discussion of multicultural awareness. In General Psychology I discuss and encourage students to explore the importance of religious faith to development of the self and to interpersonal experiences, as well as to several other areas of psychology such as ethical research, multicultural issues, and therapies for clinical disorders. For example, we discuss the idea of Christian counseling as opposed to secular counseling. While I do not discuss my own religious faith (I do not discuss myself or my life in general), I have been open to students= discussions of their own faith in class and in classwork submitted. I feel this helps some students develop a mature sense of faith.