Peirce, Pragmatism, and Religious Education: Participating More Deeply in God’s Imagination

Abstract

Approaching Christian education in light of Charles Sanders Peirce's Classical Pragmatism can help catechists make Christian tradition more intelligible to present-day North Americans; it can provide them with a rich framework for pedagogical practices; and it can help them offer a compelling vision of deeper participation in the Trinitarian life of God. A Peircean pedagogy of religious education emphasizes attentiveness, discernment, creativity, artistry, and the key role of the Holy Spirit.

Notes

I set aside the neo-Pragmatism of Richard Rorty and focus on Classical Pragmatism, both the “Cambridge School” (C.S. Peirce and Josiah Royce), and the “Instrumentalist School” (John Dewey and William James). See Gelpi (2007, 137–206; Murray 2004).

For introductions to Peirce, see Atkin (2016); Gelpi (2007).

For panentheism in Christianity, see Keller (2014).

In the New Testament, “the holy spirit” is generally not “understood as a gift from birth.” Nevertheless, “the qualities of the spirit … coalesce” around habits that can be cultivated like other natural endowments (Levison 2013, 49).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

John P. Falcone

John P. Falcone received his Ph.D. in Theology and Education from Boston College, and is Editor of the Journal of Adult Theological Education. He teaches undergraduate and graduate theology in the New York metropolitan area. E-mail: [email protected]