“Narrow is the Way”: Clinical Practice, Scholarship, and Christian Discipleship
Dr. Sarah Jean Barton, Western Theological Seminary (moderator) Dr. Devan Stahl, Baylor University (panelist) Dr. Warren Kinghorn, Duke Divinity School (panelist) Dr. Todd Whitmore, University of Notre Dame (panelist)
The history of Christian adoptions and applications of the Hippocratic Oath raises important questions about the role of medicine in forming priorities for action among Christian clinicians. For example, commenting on “The Oath Insofar as a Christian May Swear It,” Allen Verhey suggests a distinctive prioritization of service to one’s patients rather than obligations to one’s teachers, in contrast to the content of the original Hippocratic Oath.1
Verhey argues, “Christians have a vocation to identify and articulate the significance of the Christian story for medicine not only because that agenda stands comfortable in an ancient tradition, but also because it will serve both integrity within the Christian community and humanity with medical practice.”2
Beyond Verhey’s emphasis on the importance of Christian clinicians identifying and articulating the Christian story, adherence to the Hippocratic Oath among many Christian clinicians calls for practicing medicine as a way of discipleship, or orthopraxis. Theologian Todd Whitmore defines this discipleship as “the practice of following Jesus Christ in proclaiming in word and action to and with the poor and the wicked that God loves them.”3
This panel addresses questions of how multiple commitments held by Christian clinicians in contemporary medical settings (including commitments to the historical Hippocratic tradition, as well as the observance of institutional, teaching, and clinical regulations such as “conflict of commitment” policies) constrict and/or enable the practice of faithful Christian discipleship. In conversation with Whitmore’s provocative essay on Christian discipleship in the most recent edition of the journal Practical Matters (“Narrow is the Way: Christian Discipleship and the R1 University”), this panel investigates the barriers and constraints on Christian discipleship for clinician-scholars in contemporary medicine, and how clinician-scholars might navigate these constraints not only to faithfully identify and articulate their Christian faith (orthodoxy), but also engage in clinical work as a practice of faithful discipleship (orthopraxy).
To open, the panel’s moderator (a theologian and non-physician clinician) will introduce the above questions as they emerge in conversation with Whitmore’s essay. The moderator will summarize Whitmore’s claims and explore their particular significance for clinicians who work in research university settings. In particular, the moderator will expand on Whitmore’s key claim that participation in local ethnographic research provides opportunities for faithful Christian discipleship, suggesting that participation in clinical work provides another salient yet complex opportunity for faithful Christian orthopraxy. Before inviting responses from the three panelists, the moderator will offer a brief reflection on their own experiences of the difficulties and promises of clinical work as an avenue of faithful Christian discipleship in the context of their role as a teacher-clinician-scholar.
The first panelist, a clinician teaching within a theological faculty, will further explore Whitmore’s argument by considering the relationship of clinical practice to theological scholarship. On one hand, clinical practice is both a laboratory for faithful Christian discipleship and a site of rich and deep “practical theology.” On the other hand, unlike practical-theological research, the work of clinical practice cannot easily be represented in theological scholarship without raising significant ethical questions related to representation, consent, and confidentiality. As a result, clinical practice remains a rich and time-consuming activity that nonetheless counts for little within the theological academy. Clinician-scholars must think creatively about how their clinical work might inform, enliven, and resource their scholarship and teaching.
The second panelist, a clinical ethicist teaching within an undergraduate department of religion, will explore the difficulties that arise when working at a secular R1 university that is skeptical of religious language and practice, especially in the professional sphere. The panelist will explore questions such as this: is Christian bioethics properly bioethics, or is it a fringe sector that is overly divisive within the traditional modes of academic assessment, including research, teaching, and clinical service? Finally, the panelist will explore strategies for remaining faithful as a Christian disciple while encountering direct opposition to this faithfulness in academia.
The final panelist, a theologian and community-based peer mentor for people living with addiction, will critically expand upon the original position put forth in the Whitmore article, in light of the presence of hybrid clinician-scholar positions within university settings and the concerns and constructive proposals raised by the panelists.
1. Allen Verhey, “The Doctor’s Oath – and a Christian Swearing It,” in On Moral Medicine, Ed. M. Therese Lysaught, Joseph Kotva, Stephen E. Lammers, and Allen Verhey, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2012), 232. 2. Ibid., 233. 3. Todd Whitmore, “Narrow is the Way: Christian Discipleship and the R1 University,” Practical Matters, 12 (2019): 1.
Verhey argues, “Christians have a vocation to identify and articulate the significance of the Christian story for medicine not only because that agenda stands comfortable in an ancient tradition, but also because it will serve both integrity within the Christian community and humanity with medical practice.”2
Beyond Verhey’s emphasis on the importance of Christian clinicians identifying and articulating the Christian story, adherence to the Hippocratic Oath among many Christian clinicians calls for practicing medicine as a way of discipleship, or orthopraxis. Theologian Todd Whitmore defines this discipleship as “the practice of following Jesus Christ in proclaiming in word and action to and with the poor and the wicked that God loves them.”3
This panel addresses questions of how multiple commitments held by Christian clinicians in contemporary medical settings (including commitments to the historical Hippocratic tradition, as well as the observance of institutional, teaching, and clinical regulations such as “conflict of commitment” policies) constrict and/or enable the practice of faithful Christian discipleship. In conversation with Whitmore’s provocative essay on Christian discipleship in the most recent edition of the journal Practical Matters (“Narrow is the Way: Christian Discipleship and the R1 University”), this panel investigates the barriers and constraints on Christian discipleship for clinician-scholars in contemporary medicine, and how clinician-scholars might navigate these constraints not only to faithfully identify and articulate their Christian faith (orthodoxy), but also engage in clinical work as a practice of faithful discipleship (orthopraxy).
To open, the panel’s moderator (a theologian and non-physician clinician) will introduce the above questions as they emerge in conversation with Whitmore’s essay. The moderator will summarize Whitmore’s claims and explore their particular significance for clinicians who work in research university settings. In particular, the moderator will expand on Whitmore’s key claim that participation in local ethnographic research provides opportunities for faithful Christian discipleship, suggesting that participation in clinical work provides another salient yet complex opportunity for faithful Christian orthopraxy. Before inviting responses from the three panelists, the moderator will offer a brief reflection on their own experiences of the difficulties and promises of clinical work as an avenue of faithful Christian discipleship in the context of their role as a teacher-clinician-scholar.
The first panelist, a clinician teaching within a theological faculty, will further explore Whitmore’s argument by considering the relationship of clinical practice to theological scholarship. On one hand, clinical practice is both a laboratory for faithful Christian discipleship and a site of rich and deep “practical theology.” On the other hand, unlike practical-theological research, the work of clinical practice cannot easily be represented in theological scholarship without raising significant ethical questions related to representation, consent, and confidentiality. As a result, clinical practice remains a rich and time-consuming activity that nonetheless counts for little within the theological academy. Clinician-scholars must think creatively about how their clinical work might inform, enliven, and resource their scholarship and teaching.
The second panelist, a clinical ethicist teaching within an undergraduate department of religion, will explore the difficulties that arise when working at a secular R1 university that is skeptical of religious language and practice, especially in the professional sphere. The panelist will explore questions such as this: is Christian bioethics properly bioethics, or is it a fringe sector that is overly divisive within the traditional modes of academic assessment, including research, teaching, and clinical service? Finally, the panelist will explore strategies for remaining faithful as a Christian disciple while encountering direct opposition to this faithfulness in academia.
The final panelist, a theologian and community-based peer mentor for people living with addiction, will critically expand upon the original position put forth in the Whitmore article, in light of the presence of hybrid clinician-scholar positions within university settings and the concerns and constructive proposals raised by the panelists.
1. Allen Verhey, “The Doctor’s Oath – and a Christian Swearing It,” in On Moral Medicine, Ed. M. Therese Lysaught, Joseph Kotva, Stephen E. Lammers, and Allen Verhey, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2012), 232. 2. Ibid., 233. 3. Todd Whitmore, “Narrow is the Way: Christian Discipleship and the R1 University,” Practical Matters, 12 (2019): 1.