From Recreational to Sacramental: Observing Past Entheogenic Practices and Considering Their Potential Application in the Future of Christianity

This dissertation aims to consider whether Jesus followers in North America could begin to adopt entheogens as items of sacramental worship. Section One will describe the opportunity on the horizon for the institutional church in North America. Section Two will focus on alternative readings of biblical texts and look at the basis of convictions about entheogenic use. By looking at the history of entheogens around the world, I attempt to show that entheogenic use is not a new trend to adopt, but part of religious history. Additionally, I will present a proposed path forward on culture-wide adoption of entheogens. Section Three will consider the potential of entheogens as sacramental objects. I will use my semiotic training to to re-sign the concept of “sacrament” by focusing on sacraments throughout Christian history and present a larger scope of what could define sacramental. Section Four will describe what an entheogenic spiritual retreat would look like. Since sharing my experience, many have approached me to lead them through a similar experience. In this section, I will suggest what that environment and setting might look like. Section Five will include the mechanics of hosting an entheogenic retreat. This section will feel highly pragmatic as I delve into the artifact’s schedule, budget, purpose, form, and function. Section Six will share what I have learned throughout the process, will note problems that have come to light through the process, and will offer helpful suggestions for the future of research and conversation in this area. The evangelical church in North America has often shown up late to culturally relevant conversations. For there to be beauty that grows from the rubble of a post- Christian church, it will be of importance for the church to provide a Christ-following analysis of whatever new topic might be on the horizon

Playing with color

Master's Project (M.F.A.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2018This paper is a description of the history of my study of art for my Masters of Fine Art program, focusing mainly on painting, that were influenced by various artists and mentors over a 19 year period. I was accepted into the University of Fairbanks Art Department MFA program in 1999, withdrew in 2002, and re-applied and was accepted back into the program in 2015. My program concluded with a verbal presentation with PowerPoint, and a show of my paintings at the Well Street Art Company on April 6, 2018

Forgone, but not forgotten: Toward a theory of forgone professional identities

Through an inductive, qualitative study, I developed a process model of how people deal with professional identities they have forgone by choice or constraint. I show that, when forgone professional identities are linked to unfulfilled values, people look for ways to enact them and retain them in the self-concept. I further identify three strategies that people use to enact foregone professional identities: (1) real enactment (i.e., enacting the forgone identity through real activities and social interactions either at work or during leisure time), (2) imagined enactment (i.e., enacting the forgone identity through imagined activities and interactions, either in an alternate present or in the future), and (3) vicarious enactment (i.e., enacting the forgone identity by observing and imagining close others enacting it and internalizing these experiences). These findings expand our conceptualization of professional identity beyond identities enacted through activities and interactions that are part of formal work roles, and illuminate the key role of imagination and vicarious experiences in identity construction and maintenance

When work comes home: technology-related pressure and home support

Given the prevalence of workers bringing work home, issues arising from this practice are a central concern of human resource development (HRD) researchers and practitioners. This study investigates factors related to home boundary permeability (the extent to which one’s home domain is interrupted by work-related matters). Specifically, we examine the impact of technology-related pressure on home boundary permeability, and test both positive and negative consequences of home boundary permeability, along with the role of home support. Based on quantitative data from 267 full-time employees in the Midwestern United States, we found technology-related pressure predicted home boundary permeability, even after accounting for a person’s preference for work–home segmentation. Our findings suggest that high home boundary permeability may be a double-edged sword as it was significantly associated with both greater work-to-home conflict and positive spillover. Further, home support was found to play a buffering role in the relationship between home boundary permeability and work-to-home conflict. Suggestions for how HRD and management practitioners can help employees achieve a healthy balance between work and home are offered

Work interrupted: a closer look at work boundary permeability

Purpose: Given the prevalence of work interrupted by home-related matters, this paper aims to increase knowledge of the antecedents of work boundary permeability by investigating both individual and situational factors; and to better understand the consequences of work boundary permeability by examining both negative and positive effects using a finer-grained measure. Design/methodology/approach: Data were obtained using two surveys from 308 full-time employees from an information technology firm in the Midwestern USA. Structural equation modeling was used to test hypotheses. Findings: Individual differences in segmentation preferences (whether one prefers to keep work and home separated or integrated) and situational factors such as workload and home demands were found to predict work boundary permeability. Further, the results showed that maintaining a highly permeable work boundary may be detrimental rather than beneficial. High work boundary permeability led to greater time- and strain-based home-to-work conflict, but not to affective and instrumental positive spillover. Originality/value: Unlike much previous work–home research focusing on how work intrudes on time outside of work, this study focuses exclusively on how the work domain is affected by intrusions from the home domain. The findings deepen the knowledge about today’s workplace that is subject to continual interruptions and spillover from home-related matters