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The Word and Words in Abrahamic Faiths
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/asir/vol1/iss1/2/thumbnail.jpgJudaism, Christianity, and Islam are “word-based” faiths. All three are derived from texts believed to be revealed by God Himself. Orthodox Judaism claims that God has said everything that needs to be said to humankind—all that remains is to interpret it generation by generation. Historic Christianity roots itself in “God-breathed scriptures” that are “useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” Islam’s Qur’an is held to be a perfect reflection of the ‘Umm al-Kitab – the “mother of Books” that exists with Allah Himself. In addition, both Christianity and Islam share the concept of “The Word” – a concept that moves the idea of communication beyond mere linguistics. Both the Scriptures and the attendant writings of these faiths (i.e., the Talmud, creeds and traditions) are all word-based documents, in many cases taking centuries to forge. This essay explores the Abrahamic faiths’ characterization of “The Word” in textual form and the implications for this characterization in the culture of modern media. What is the prognosis for the future of such emphases in societies that are increasingly characterized by graphics-based media as opposed to text-based literacy? What, if anything, is lost in a media-based literacy? How are critical thinking and cognitive processes with respect to scriptural hermeneutics affected by a digital environment? How are credibility and authority maintained when the playing field is leveled for both novice and expert? Can the purveyors of the Abrahamic faiths maintain the richness of their past literary emphases and, if so, how might this be done?</p
Mutual Dependence and Task Uncertainty in Scholarly Communication of Theologians
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/14/thumbnail.jpgThis research studies the scholarly communication of theologians, taking Karl Barth as a case study. Based on Hjørland’s method of domain analysis and Whitley’s (1984) theory of “mutual dependence” and “task uncertainty”, this paper analyzes how the degrees of mutual dependence and task uncertainty affect the theologian’s information seeking and knowledge production. I hypothesize that Fish’s concept of “interpretive community” which is evident in Barth’s communication with peer theologians can be analyzed and explained through Whitley’s theory, namely, high degrees of mutual dependence will result in more coordinated information seeking and uses, while high degrees of task uncertainty in terms of technical uncertainty and strategic uncertainty, particularly the diverse reader response, leads to increasing information production.</p
Exploring the Mental Health Information Needs of Clergy
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/18/thumbnail.jpgFindings from the National Comorbidity Survey indicated that clergy were the first treatment contact for individuals seeking mental health care. However, recent research indicated that 71% of clergy felt inadequately trained to recognize mental illness symptoms. There is a gap in the literature regarding the mental health information needs of clergy. This study investigated the information gap(s), resources commonly utilized, the barriers to finding information, the clergy’s use of technology, and the format of information and education that would be most useful. The study results will be used to develop an outreach strategy to inform local clergy about mental health disorders. Methods: A survey consisting of qualitative and quantitative questions was sent out to clergy. Forty clergy at 144 houses of worship in Portage County, Ohio were randomly selected to receive the survey, and 19 surveys (48% return rate) were returned. Frequencies were calculated for multiple choice questions and mean scores and standard deviations were computed for Likert scale questions. Thematic analysis was utilized to examine open ended questions. Results: Participants indicated that they are interested in learning about mental health information, specifically general mental health information and treatment options. Their biggest challenges are identifying mental health professionals in general and identifying mental health professionals who share the same religious beliefs. Participants have access to computers and feel comfortable using technology. Finally, participants prefer handouts and lecture to learn about mental health information. Conclusion: Results indicate that providing education to assist clergy in identifying treatment options and treatment information, along with providing general information about mental health may be helpful with not only increasing clergy knowledge of mental health symptoms, but also increase comfort level with, and readiness to, facilitate referrals to appropriate resources.</p
A Methodology for Studying the Information Seeking Behaviors of Catholic Clergy
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/22/thumbnail.jpgThis paper describes the construction of a set of interview questions to be used for discovering the information seeking behavior of Catholic clergy. It acknowledges previous findings, which indicate that clergy very infrequently consult library resources to fulfill their information needs. Instead of asking clergy about their information needs, the study team asks about decisions clergy make and about the resources they consult when making these decisions. The study looks at seven different responsibilities of clergy: Preaching, Teaching, Care Giving, Administering, Conducting Service/Liturgy, Counseling, and Reflecting/Engaging in Personal Development. The study differentiates between time spent executing a responsibility and time spent gathering the necessary information to do so. Initial findings indicate that clergy rely primarily on their personal resources and personal contacts to satisfy their information needs. None has mentioned the use of a library in the process of information gathering.</p
The Christian Icon as Information Object
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/8/thumbnail.jpgInformation studies, from the discipline’s origins in the field of documentation, has long been concerned with the question, What Is a Document? (See, for instance, the work of Paul Otlet, Suzanne Briet,Michael K. Buckland, Ronald E. Day, and Bernd Frohmann). The purpose of this paper is to examine Christian icons—typically paintings, usually in tempera, on wooden panels—as information objects, as documents: documents that obtain meaning through a formula of tradition and standardization, documents around which a sophisticated scaffolding of classification and categorization has developed, documents that highlight their own materiality. Theological arguments that associate the icon with Incarnation are compared and contrasted with theories on the materiality of the document and “information as thing.” Icons are also examined as exemplars of visual and multimedia information objects—all icons are graphic and pictorial, many also incorporate textual information. Through this examination emerges an understanding of the icon as a complex information resource, a resource with origins in the earliest years of Christianity and evolved over centuries with accompanying systems of standardization and classification, a resource at the center of theological and political differences that shook empires, a primarily visual resource within a theological system that places the visual on an equal footing with the textual, a resource with continuing relevance to hundreds of millions of Christians, a resource that continues to evolve as ancient and modern icons take on new material forms made possible through digital technologies. Keywords: Information, documentation, religion, icons, images.</p
Tempest (2011)
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/theatregallery/20/thumbnail.jpgDirected by: Daniel-Raymond Nadon
Set Design: Robert Katkowsky
Costume Design: Cara Barker
Actors: Peter Byrne, Dylan Aaron White, Hannah Gillespie</p
Hemingway’s The Garden of Eden: Twenty-five Years of Criticism
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/hemingway/7/thumbnail.jpgFirst book-length study of the novel that transformed Hemingway scholarship
When The Garden of Eden appeared in 1986, roughly twenty-five years after Ernest Hemingway’s death, it was a watershed event that changed readers’ and scholars’ perceptions of the famous American author. Following five months in the life of protagonist David Bourne, a rising young writer of fiction, and his highly intelligent but artistically frustrated wife, Catherine, the novel is unique among Hemingway’s works. Its exploration of gender roles and identities, unconventional sexual practices, race, and artistic expression challenged the traditional notions scholars and readers had of the iconic writer, and it sparked a debate that has revolutionized Hemingway studies.
It was also the first of Hemingway’s posthumously published novels to garner a storm of criticism regarding the editing of its text. Many comparative studies have been done between the original manuscript, which contains over 2,000 pages, and its heavily edited published version, which has little over 200 pages. Despite the whirlwind surrounding The Garden of Eden, no book-length study of the novel has ever been published—until now.
In Hemingway’s The Garden of Eden, editors Suzanne del Gizzo and Frederic J. Svoboda have collected the best essays and reviews—pieces that examine the novel’s themes, its composition and structure, and the complex issue of editing a manuscript for posthumous publication—and placed them in a single, cohesive volume. Among the included works are E. L. Doctorow’s famousNew York Times review “Braver Than We Thought,” a new essay by Tom Jenks examining his editing process in “Editing Hemingway: The Garden of Eden,” and Mark Spilka’s “Hemingway’s Barbershop Quintet: The Garden of EdenManuscript,” a precursor to his groundbreaking study of Hemingway’s concerns with sex and gender roles, Hemingway’s Quarrel with Androgyny.
Hemingway’s The Garden of Eden is a must-read text for scholars, students, and readers of Hemingway.</p
The Denial of Relevance: Avoidance, Awakening, and Guidance
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/asir/vol1/iss1/3/thumbnail.jp
Shamanic knowledge: the challenge to information science
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The Burr Spring 2011
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