Theological Foundations of Pastoral Care in Catholic Universities

One defining element of life in any Catholic educational institution, whether it be primary, secondary, or tertiary, is the focus on pastoral care for staff and students. This paper provides a distinctly Catholic definition of the term ‘pastoral care’ and briefly examines the theological foundations that underpin this concept, particularly, in relation to its application in the Catholic university. The paper traces the motif of pastoral care through the Scriptures and, building on insights from St. Pope John Paul II’s Apostolic Constitution on Catholic Universities, Ex Corde Ecclesiae (1990) and the broader theological anthropology of the Vatican II Council. The paper highlights that pastoral care is not something of an extrinsically added offering to students in a Catholic educational institution, but rather something intrinsically built into its fabric

Book Review: God and Eros: The Ethos of the Nuptial Mystery

No abstract available for this book review

Catholic Theology. By Tracey Rowland. Pp. 256, London, T&T Clark, 2017, $20.89

Book Review: Catholic Theology. By Tracey Rowland. Pp. 256, London, T&T Clark, 2017, $20.89

The nature of nature: Concerning the efficacy of natural law reasoning

Recourse to natural law reasoning has long been a part of how Catholics and Christians engage in debates about issues of public and private morality with people and communities of people who do not share the Catholic/Christian faith. But with the rise of modernity, the scientific revolution, and the relative success of Charles Darwin\u27s theory of evolution, many Catholics have begun to question traditional natural law reasoning. Some, including theorists like Germain Grisez, and John Finnis have sought to modify traditional natural law reasoning and continue to employ it within debates concerning public and private ethics, while others, acknowledging the radically altered conception of nature that followed the scientific revolution have thought to look for alternative modes of engagement. The following paper will seek to develop an argument against proponents of this altered version of natural law theory, what has come to be called New Natural Law theory, on the basis of the altered understanding of nature in the contemporary West, and the New Natural Law propensity to sideline the question of nature itself. The paper will then go on to advocate for an alternative and more confessional mode of engagement in public debate

Book Review: Dietrich von Hildebrand, Liturgy and Personality

Book Review: Liturgy and Personality. By Dietrich von Hildebrand. Steubenville, OH: Hildebrand Press, 2016. Pp. 160. US$17.99. ISBN 9781939773005

Dynamical effects induced by long range activation in a nonequilibrium reaction-diffusion system

We both show experimentally and numerically that the time scales separation introduced by long range activation can induce oscillations and excitability in nonequilibrium reaction-diffusion systems that would otherwise only exhibit bistability. Namely, we show that the Chlorite-Tetrathionate reaction, where autocatalytic species diffuses faster than the substrates, the spatial bistability domain in the nonequilibrium phase diagram is extended with oscillatory and excitability domains. A simple model and a more realistic model qualitatively account for the observed behavior. The latter model provides quantitative agreement with the experiments.Comment: 19 pages + 9 figure

Experimental Demonstration of Signal-to-Noise-Ratio Improvement of Fourier-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography

A recent advance in optical coherence tomography (OCT), termed swept-source OCT, is generalized into a new technique, Fourier-domain OCT. It represents a realization of a full-field OCT system in place of the conventional serial image acquisition in transverse directions typically implemented in "flying-spot" mode. To realize the full-field image acquisition, a Fourier holography system illuminated with a swept-source is employed instead of a Michelson interferometer commonly used in OCT. Fourier-domain OCT offers a new leap in signal-to-noise ratio improvement, as compared to flying-spot OCT systems. This paper presents experimental evidence that the signal-to-noise ratio of this new technique is indeed improved.Comment: submitted to Optics Letters 7/14/200

Signal-to-signal-to-noise ratio of full-field Fourier domain optical coherence tomography: experiment

We report a new approach in optical coherence tomography (OCT) termed full-field Fourier-domain OCT (3F-OCT). A three-dimensional image of a sample is obtained by digital reconstruction of a three-dimensional data cube, acquired using a Fourier holography recording system illuminated with a swept-source. This paper presents theoretical and experimental study of the signal-to-noise ratio of the full-field approach versus serial image acquisition approach, represented by 3F-OCT and "flying-spot" OCT systems, respectively

Interventions to Reduce Adult Nursing Turnover: A Systematic Review of Systematic Reviews.

Background: Nurse turnover is an issue of concern in health care systems internationally. Understanding which interventions are effective to reduce turnover rates is important to managers and health care organisations. Despite a plethora of reviews of such interventions, strength of evidence is hard to determine. Objective: We aimed to review literature on interventions to reduce turnover in nurses working in the adult health care services in developed economies. Method: We conducted an overview (systematic review of systematic reviews) using the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts, CINAHL plus and SCOPUS and forward searching. We included reviews published between 1990 and January 2015 in English. We carried out parallel blinded selection, extraction of data and assessment of bias, using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews. We carried out a narrative synthesis. Results: Despite the large body of published reviews, only seven reviews met the inclusion criteria. These provide moderate quality review evidence, albeit from poorly controlled primary studies. They provide evidence of effect of a small number of interventions which decrease turnover or increase retention of nurses, these being preceptorship of new graduates and leadership for group cohesion. Conclusion: We highlight that a large body of reviews does not equate with a large body of high quality evidence. Agreement as to the measures and terminology to be used together with well-designed, funded primary research to provide robust evidence for nurse and human resource managers to base their nurse retention strategies on is urgently required