Thoughts: quoting the bible and the Pope in an academic paper on PostgraduateForum.com

jamesontheroad 54 posts
14 years ago

Good afternoon folks.

It's a rainy day here in Glasgow, and I'm ploughing through some articles from unrelated disciplines to mine but which have a certain crossover of content (I'm examining a certain kind of pedagogical activity).

I've just been reading a paper published in an American management journal in which the author not only quotes the Bible, but ends with a quote by Pope John Paul II with regards to morality and economic prosperity.

Being an atheist / humanist who has, through progressive stages of education, completely abandoned Christianity, I was wondering what others here think about quoting Biblical passages or the words of a religious leader in an academic paper...

Ta!

P

peljam 432 posts
14 years ago

Depends how relevant it is to the subject I guess. Whether it's an example of certain topics that's then discussed and analysed. If it's thrown in for no good reason, isn't analysed in the same fashion or is just the author's personal opinion then it definately shouldn't be in.

I've read a study that quotes Harry Potter though. It was oddly relevant.

D

DanB 1332 posts
14 years ago

Agree with Peljam; I personally hate seeing waffle of any kind in papers.

B

BilboBaggins 3744 posts
14 years ago

I wouldn't have a problem with it if it's a theology paper. Otherwise big big no-no for me.

K

kizzy 42 posts
14 years ago

Ah the Glasgow rain has seeped into my bedroom window and left a lovely puddle...

I had a first year mention the bible throughout essays - it was interesting to read one in the pile that said something different even though I'm a atheist it was generally slightly relevant. In the end I side stepped the religion issue and marked them down on out-dated sources, inadequate referencing and lack of peer-reviewed sources... How professional am I!

W

Walminskipeasucker 3964 posts
14 years ago

If I thought my viva examiner was a religious zealot, I'd certainly do it. Slip in sly little religiously themed sentences in my results. Something like...

Further, all correlations were found to be highly significant (p = <0.01). And Jesus said let this thesis pass. However, the strength of positive association between the two subscales was below 0.45. This may be attributable to Pope John Paul II, who convincingly argued: 'Love is never defeated, and I could add, the history of Ireland proves it, so make sure you pass this thesis with [very] minor corrections at the most'.

Sadly, I'm fairly sure my external is quite the rational man of science, so I doubt it'll work.

A

algaequeen 1714 posts
14 years ago

eh Wally..."the history of Ireland proves it.." what now?! :-)

W

Walminskipeasucker 3964 posts
14 years ago

Quote From algaequeen:

eh Wally..."the history of Ireland proves it.." what now?! :-)

Hmm, I just cut and pasted it from famous pope quotes with little regard for the fact that it might be offensive or confusing to some people. I'd be horrible at plagiarising famous quotes. Sorry, Algaequeen.

A

algaequeen 1714 posts
14 years ago

lol it wasn't offensive Wally at all, I just have no idea what he means by it and was hoping you might know! :D Maybe I'm not holy enough to understand!

P

peljam 432 posts
14 years ago

Quote From algaequeen:

lol it wasn't offensive Wally at all, I just have no idea what he means by it and was hoping you might know! :D Maybe I'm not holy enough to understand!

I think it refers to how Catholicism has survived in Ireland to the present day despite various efforts by past monarchs and then the troubles. But it's a pretty weak arguement for love, especially considering the more recent history!

J

jamesontheroad 54 posts
14 years ago

Quote From kizzy:

I had a first year mention the bible throughout essays - it was interesting to read one in the pile that said something different even though I'm a atheist it was generally slightly relevant. In the end I side stepped the religion issue and marked them down on out-dated sources, inadequate referencing and lack of peer-reviewed sources... How professional am I!

Reminds of me of the recent spat between the humanist and religious groups that paid for adverts on the sides of London buses. The humanists kicked things off with a great advert that read "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life." This inspired a response from a religious group along the lines of "There definitely is a God."

There was some mention of the Advertising Standards Authority getting involved (for deceptive advertising) but I think it was thrown out before it far because it would have necessitated the Christian group going before an ASA panel and proving the existence of God.

G

gero2009 10 posts
14 years ago

Quote From kizzy:

Ah the Glasgow rain has seeped into my bedroom window and left a lovely puddle...

I had a first year mention the bible throughout essays - it was interesting to read one in the pile that said something different even though I'm a atheist it was generally slightly relevant. In the end I side stepped the religion issue and marked them down on out-dated sources, inadequate referencing and lack of peer-reviewed sources... How professional am I!

Professional? I think the word you are looking for is 'bigoted'.

C

cj_again 58 posts
14 years ago

======= Date Modified 13 Oct 2010 23:39:34 =======

Quote From gero2009:

Quote From kizzy:

Ah the Glasgow rain has seeped into my bedroom window and left a lovely puddle...

I had a first year mention the bible throughout essays - it was interesting to read one in the pile that said something different even though I'm a atheist it was generally slightly relevant. In the end I side stepped the religion issue and marked them down on out-dated sources, inadequate referencing and lack of peer-reviewed sources... How professional am I!

Professional? I think the word you are looking for is 'bigoted'.

Hey Gero2009, I am intrigued by your response....

Is it the student in question or Kizzy that you find bigoted - and if kizzy, was it the sidestepping of religion in the essay or the insistence on a reference or two???

B

bleebles 310 posts
14 years ago

======= Date Modified 14 Oct 2010 01:52:08 =======

Quote From gero2009:

Professional? I think the word you are looking for is 'bigoted'.

Like CJ, I too am curious. Did you get the impression that Kizzy purposely marked the student down using the pretense that it was because of out-dated sources etc, when really it was because she is an atheist and was somehow so disgusted by quotations from the bible that she unfairly punished the student? It's not the impression I got, but perhaps Kizzy will clear that up. Still, bit harsh to accuse her of being bigoted with no real evidence.

As for quoting the bible/pope etc - depends how they're used and how much authority is given to sentiments expressed. If the quotation is relevant and not presented as though it is a generally accepted reality, I don't see the problem.

sneaks 9243 posts
14 years ago

Quote From walminskipeasucker:

If I thought my viva examiner was a religious zealot, I'd certainly do it. Slip in sly little religiously themed sentences in my results. Something like...

Further, all correlations were found to be highly significant (p = <0.01). And Jesus said let this thesis pass. However, the strength of positive association between the two subscales was below 0.45. This may be attributable to Pope John Paul II, who convincingly argued: 'Love is never defeated, and I could add, the history of Ireland proves it, so make sure you pass this thesis with [very] minor corrections at the most'.

Sadly, I'm fairly sure my external is quite the rational man of science, so I doubt it'll work.

I've been thinking about putting an ever, ever, ever so slightly faint watermark on everyother page, that just says "pass this" on it, as a kind of submliminal message.

Thoughts: quoting the bible and the Pope in an academic paper

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