Caring for Souls in a Neoliberal Age PDF
Preview Caring for Souls in a Neoliberal Age
New Approaches to Religion and Power CARING FOR SOULS IN A NEOLIBERAL AGE Bruce Rogers-Vaughn New Approaches to Religion and Power Series Editor Joerg Rieger Vanderbilt University Divinity School Heidelberg Baden-Württemberg Germany Aims of the Series While the relationship of religion and power is a perennial topic, it only continues to grow in importance and scope in our increasingly globalized and diverse world. Religion, on a global scale, has openly joined power struggles, often in support of the powers that be. But at the same time, religion has made major contributions to resistance movements. In this context, current methods in the study of religion and theology have cre- ated a deeper awareness of the issue of power: Critical theory, cultural studies, postcolonial theory, subaltern studies, feminist theory, critical race theory, and working class studies are contributing to a new quality of study in the fi eld. This series is a place for both studies of particular problems in the relation of religion and power as well as for more general interpretations of this relation. It undergirds the growing recognition that religion can no longer be studied without the study of power. More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/14754 Bruce R ogers-Vaughn Caring for Souls in a Neoliberal Age Bruce Rogers-Vaughn Vanderbilt University Nashville, Tennessee, USA New Approaches to Religion and Power ISBN 978-1-137-55338-6 ISBN 978-1-137-55339-3 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/978-1-137-55339-3 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016956960 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2 016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifi cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfi lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifi c statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the pub- lisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Cover image © cryingjune / Getty Images Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Nature America Inc. New York The registered company address is: 1 New York Plaza, New York, NY 10004, U.S.A. To my wife, Annette, with gratitude and love And in loving memory for my son Taylor Vaughn 1986–1995 And my mother Doris Louise Vaughn 1933–2014 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. (Matthew 6:12) A CKNOWLEDGEMENTS As most authors are aware, books do not appear without a great deal of inspiration from and collaboration with others. I am particularly grateful to three professional associations of psychotherapists for opportunities to share my developing ideas concerning the social and political origins of the sufferings to which we collectively bear witness. The Southeast Region of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and the Tennessee Association of Pastoral Therapists both graciously allowed me to speak to this issue during their annual conferences. I was also invited to offer a day- long workshop on this subject during the spring of 2015, hosted by the Nashville Psychotherapy Institute. The encouragement and lively dialogue I enjoyed during these meetings have been critical in the effort to keep my theorizing grounded in the distresses experienced by actual human beings and in the challenges faced by those who must listen and respond to them. Along similar lines, I wish to thank my clinical associates at the Pastoral Center for Healing in Nashville, Tennessee—Tom Knowles-Bagwell, Rod Kochtitzky, Annette Rogers-Vaughn, Gay Welch, and Elizabeth Zagatta- Allison. It has been a pleasure to know them as both friends and col- leagues, and their support and ongoing companionship have contributed immeasurably to this project. I have lived and worked not only in clinical settings, but in academic ones as well. Here, I must especially recognize my colleagues in the Society for Pastoral Theology (SPT). During June of 2014, I was honored to deliver a “work in progress” address to the full body of the society. Without the energetic feedback that followed, this book might not ever have matured to see the light of day. Several members of SPT have been ix x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS regular conversation partners or have played pivotal roles in stimulating this work. These include Nancy J. Ramsay, Barbara J. McClure, Ryan LaMothe, Philip Browning Helsel, and Denise Dombkowski Hopkins. In parallel to my everyday associates in clinical work, I enjoy the company of esteemed scholars at Vanderbilt Divinity School, where I have been teaching for many years. My peers in the area of Religion, Psychology and Culture—Bonnie Miller-McLemore, Evon Flesberg, Jaco Hamman, Phillis Isabella Sheppard, and Volney P. Gay—have been a dependable source of encouragement and wise counsel. I am immensely indebted also to my students, especially those who enrolled in the course “Pastoral Care and Global Capitalism.” These individuals were patient with me as I rolled out partially formed ideas, and were keen to point out elements that were either missing or not yet quite digestible. One of these students, Aaron Palmer, helpfully tracked down several much-needed references early in the project. Another former student, Morgan Watts, provided indispensable assistance proofi ng the manuscript and preparing it for fi nal submission. My deep appreciation goes out to Joerg Rieger, the series editor for the collection in which this volume appears, for inviting me to submit a proposal and for his valuable advice and stimulating conversations along the way. My thanks also to all the dedicated staff members at Palgrave Macmillan for their help in bringing this task to completion, especially to my editor, Phil Getz, and his assistant, Alexis Nelson, whose correspon- dences were always timely and benefi cial. Many of the souls whose presence accompanied me through every page of this book literally cannot be named. They are the many individuals who sought me out for a psychotherapy relationship over the past three decades. Working with them has enriched my life beyond measure and, I believe, has made me wiser than I could have otherwise become. I can only hope I have represented their struggles accurately and fairly. Finally, I thank my family—Annette Rogers-Vaughn, Mackenzie Vaughn, and the twins, Blake and Huntley Rogers-Vaughn. Unfortunately, writing this book has often demanded too much sacrifi ce from them all. The currently eight-year-old twins’ recurring inquiry—“Are you done with the book yet?”—has been one of the primary motivations to actually fi nish. Thanks largely to passing the days with these four precious souls, I know at least as much about joy as I do suffering. C ONTENTS 1 Introduction: Preface to a Post-Capitalist Pastoral Theology 1 2 Neoliberalism, Inequality, and the Erosion of Social Well-being 35 3 Going Viral: The Neoliberal Infi ltration of the Living Human Web 67 4 Neoliberalism as a Paradigm for Human Affl iction: Third-Order Suffering as the New Normal 109 5 Muting and Mutating Suffering: Sexism, Racism, and Class Struggle 1 31 6 Beyond Self-Management: Re-Membering Soul 1 67 7 Concluding Theological Postscripts 2 09 Index 243 xi
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