conscientia 2009

T H E UT I L I T Y O F

T H E COM MON FRU I T FLY

ins ide : PIECES OF HISTORY // SIDE EFFECTS OF SECULARISM // WINDOWS OF THE SOUL

T h e R e s e a R c h Pub l i c aT i o n of T R i n i T y W e sT e R n un i v e R s i T y

conscientia | 20092 T R I N I T Y W E S T E R N U N I V E R S I T Y 3conscientia | 20092 T R I N I T Y W E S T E R N U N I V E R S I T Y 3

DEAN OF ACADEMIC RESEARCH Dr. Elsie Froment

EDITOR Leighton Sawatzky

PUbLISHER Trinity Western University Office of Research & Faculty Development

DESIgN / LAYOUT University Communications

CONTRIbUTINg AUTHORS Leighton Sawatzky, Erin Mussolum, Laura Ralph

CONTACT

office of research & faculty developmentTrinity Western University 7600 Glover Rd., Langley, British Columbia v2y 1y1Ph: 604 888 7511 (ext. 3615) Fx: 604 513 2010

Email the Editor [email protected]/academics/research

PURPOSE STATEMENT

To communicate to its audience of academic peers the contributions of Trinity Western University’s faculty to knowledge and understanding in the sciences, liberal arts and professions.

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to University Communications7600 Glover Road, Langley BC V2Y 1Y1

Printed in CanadaISSN 1499-2868Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010502

conscientia: LATIN, NOUN; CONSCIENTIA f (gENITIVE: CONSCIENTIAE).

eTymology: FROM SCIRE, TO kNOW. kNOWLEDgE SHARED WITH OTHERS, bEINg IN THE kNOW, jOINT kNOWLEDgE,

kNOWLEDgE WITHIN ONESELF, CONSCIOUSNESS (ESPECIALLY OF RIgHT AND WRONg)

T R I N I T Y W E S T E R N U N I V E R S I T Y ’ S

We at Trinity Western university appreciate learning of the

research being carried on at other universities and other research

institutions, through their research publications. This inaugural

issue of Conscientia highlights TWU’s scholarly service to Canada

and the world through the research of its faculty members.

Conscientia’s theme of “shared knowledge” emphasizes

TWU’s commitment to the vital inter-connectedness of many

stakeholders, including investigators, investigators-in-training,

partners, and funders, that inquiry and knowledge transfer depend

upon for the benefit of communities. Together, utilizing disciplinary

and interdisciplinary approaches, we pose questions and pursue

understanding, focusing in the areas of religion and culture, biblical

texts, chronic diseases and aging, health and its determinants,

and ecosystem health and dynamics. One of TWU’s distinctive

contributions to the scholarly enterprise is the posing of questions

arising in these fields from a faith-based worldview. TWU employs

well-trained, ambitious faculty who are passionate about teaching

and research to engage human needs.

We are grateful for the facilitation our investigators receive

from public and private agencies and foundations, particularly the

exceptional encouragement and service provided by the national

agencies, and for the collaborations and partnerships on which our

research capacity strategically depends.

I hope you will find the shared knowledge represented by

Conscientia relevant and worthwhile in the Canadian research

spectrum. We will be pleased to receive your questions and

comments.

Dr. Elsie Froment

Dean of Academic Research

Office of Research and Faculty Development

Trinity Western University

2 0 0 9 I S S U E


twu launches gender studies institute L AUR A R ALPH

The gender stereotypes that define what it is to be male or female in contemporary society are perhaps the single most influential fact of a person’s existence.

TWU’s gender Studies Institute is a multidisciplinary team, incorporating diverse perspectives, including Education, History, English, and Computing Science.

hat’s why Trinity Western University has launched a Gender Studies Institute (GSI) - to foster research and discussion on the inescapable questions of gender.

Trinity Western University’s Associate Professor of Education and Co-Director of the Gender Studies Institute Dr. Allyson Jule has found that gender differences are apparent in something as simple as the way that we talk. In fact, linguistic differences between genders are noticeable even in the way that infants respond to sounds and language while still in the womb.

Jule has been exploring how the ability of parents to determine the gender of their child in the womb has inf luenced the way parents treat him or her before birth. “The nursery is painted the ‘correct color’ and certain gendered lives begin to take shape,” says Jule, noting that these ideals conform to “cultural expectations concerning gender: that women must be beautiful and men must be active.” Although Jule states that gender tendencies are real and that it is helpful to be aware

of them, she also notes the importance of not being limited by expectations.

Many Gender Studies programs are associated primarily with Women’s Studies or the study of the female gender. What makes

Trinity Western’s institute unique is its commitment to exploring both what it means to be male and what it means to be female, as well as its inter-disciplinary focus. Faculty involvement in the program, with an equal number of representatives from each gender and across many different disciplines, demonstrates this commitment to engaging both masculinisms and feminisms from diverse perspectives.

what makes trinity western,s institute unique is its commitment to exploring both what it means to be male & what it means to be female.

Jule is an Associate Professor of Education and Co-director of

the gender Studies Institute at Trinity Western University, as well

as an Adjunct Professor at the University of glamorgan in Wales.

Her areas of expertise are Feminism; Feminist Pedagogy; gender

and Achievement; gender, Language and Silence in Classrooms;

Literacy; Language Arts and Literature; and Applied Linguistics in

Education. For more information on her research and publications,

see her website www.allysonjule.com.


A client covers and uncovers her eyes one at a time as she follows the sweeping movement of her

therapist’s finger. Soon emotions crest on her brow and she begins to shake and sob.

the windows of the soulERIN MUSSOLUM


to as “glitches”. At the point where the eye halts - a “glitch” - Bradshaw will ask the client to describe what s/he is experiencing physically and emotionally.

“What I think is happening with our glitch work is that we are recognizing the same halts and skips in eye movement that occurred during initial traumas, and then guiding the eyes through movements that approximate the original movement sequences, allowing the brain to release or resolve the original traumatic incident,” says Bradshaw.

The success of OEI lies in its ability to deal with these long-hidden memories and traumas. Throughout sessions, clients are encouraged to override appropriate social norms and behaviors, allowing themselves to express emotions and memories

more primitively. In some instances, patients have had startling physical responses. Bradshaw recalls a woman who was choked unconscious by a relative on several occasions as a child. “As we

connected with the event visually using OEI, the marks on her neck showed the hand-prints of her abuser.”

Bradshaw cites other phenomenal OEI success stories. He recalls a man who was struck unconscious with a crowbar by intruders in his home. He suffered loss of clear speech and sensation in one portion of his leg. Through OEI with Bradshaw, the patient regained clear speech and sensation in his leg.

Bradshaw describes OEI as a “psychological emergency room procedure”. “Everyone has incidents that were overwhelming or disturbing to the point where they become stuck. Traumas that we experience earlier in life build foundations for problems later. It’s important, as soon as possible after an initial trauma, to reduce the fight, f light, and freeze responses that can occur by getting to the centre of the stored traumatic memory. We do this using OEI.”

hat looks like a neurological eye exam is a powerful new alternative therapy, steadily gaining in

popularity thanks to researchers at Trinity Western University. Results with One Eye Integration (OEI), currently in its clinical trials, support the adage that “the eyes are the windows to the soul.”

OEI was originally discovered by Vancouver psychothera-pist Audrey Cook and co-developed with her business partner, psychologist Rick Bradshaw, Ph.D., an Associate Professor of Counselling Psychology at TWU. The two therapists have been

using OEI to identify and unlock traumatic memories stored in areas of the brain that are seldom touched through traditional psychotherapy or hypnotic techniques.

OEI is based on neurobiological science. “The eyes are the only direct exposure of the brain to the outside world. We store experiences in our brains, through our eyes. Often traumatic memories are stored deep in the mid-brain,” says Bradshaw.

“These areas typically can't be unlocked or tapped easily through talking.”

During an OEI session, Bradshaw will track the eye movements of a client, watching for tiny responses referred

the eyes are the only direct exposure of the brain to the outside world.

fight, flight, and freeze responses to traumatic memories are reduced using oei.

Dr. bradshaw explains how he uses guided eye movements as part of a new therapeutic technique called ‘One Eye Integration.’

More information on One Eye Integration Therapy can be found by visiting www.oneeyeintegration.com.


the chi system uses methods targeted at common blockages to

linguistic accuracy and fluency.

body, languageIn an English as a Second Language Institute (esli) classroom at Trinity Western University, international students are learning language pronunciation through an instructional method that blends sign language, therapeutic techniques from OEI, and Tai Chi.

LEIgHTON SAWAT zk Y

TWU’s Dr. bill Acton integrates

a kinesthetic component into

the language instruction method he has developed.

he heart of the system is called CHI, or Continuous Haptic Integration, and is the culmination of 30 years of research by TWU Professor of Applied Linguistics William Acton, Ph.D.

His work in the field goes back to the 1980’s, while a professor at the University of Houston. Acton was working on the problem of accent reduction with a clientele of international businessmen. He noticed a frequent disparity between their verbal f luency and their written f luency and listening comprehension. The system that Acton developed uses a handful of methods targeted at common blockages to linguistic


accuracy and f luency. The most apparent of these is its haptic aspect: the use of movement and touch.

In class, students are guided through a series of motions which are paired with an assortment of sounds − simple monosyllables at first, which are gradually added to until complete sentences are formed. Each new syllable may be choreographed to a motion − anything from a tap on the leg to the wave of a hand.

These motions are carefully crafted to serve pedagogical, physiological and psychological purposes. The larger arm movements are designed, in part, to manipulate

the diaphragm, help coach the body in proper intonation, and reduce learning related anxiety by forcing the student to concentrate on specific

movements, instead of continuously evaluating their linguistic performance against those of their peers. Several gestures dissipate the speaker’s anxiety while, at the same time, teach new sounds. A Tai Chi inspiration is readily apparent in the gentle, circular motions that often end sentences.

The touches and taps also serve multiple purposes and many are borrowed from sign language. They involve making contact between locations from opposite sides of the body − the left hand taps the right leg, or the right hand crosses into the left eye’s visual field − in order to ensure that both brain hemispheres are active during the process of language learning. That’s the simple part.

The more difficult task was inspired by a counseling technique called One Eye Integration (OEI) therapy, developed by Vancouver psychotherapist Audrey Cook and TWU Counseling Psychology professor Rick Bradshaw.

OEI Therapy employs guided eye movements to emphasize or minimize emotions or memories a patient is experiencing. Its original application was to help patients manage stress and anxiety by teaching the body to dis-integrate and re-integrate the physical

symptoms of anxiety with the memory of the trauma. Through his study of OEI, Acton realized that by re-designing typical pronunciation teaching movements to focus the attention of a language learner in specific zones, the anxiety the learner experiences during speech - a significant impediment to natural use of a second language - is minimized.

Over three years of classroom testing have confirmed the effectiveness of the new system at accent reduction, improving pronunciation and fostering more natural language use. Acton notes, “In my 35 year career in the field I seem to have had only one good idea: that systematic attention to body movement is essential to language learning.” Acton’s ‘one good idea’ has made a huge impact. He continues to work on body-engaged, haptic methodology, making language learning faster, more efficient − and fun.

William Acton, Ph.D., is Trinity

Western University’s Dean of the

School of graduate Studies, as well

as Professor of Applied Linguistics,

and Director of the MA in Teaching

English as a Second Language program.

Other areas of specialization include

Applied Linguistics; Applied Phonology;

Language Acquisition; Language

Assessment; and Research Methods. In

his spare time, he has learned Russian

and japanese, in addition to training

for and running marathons. For more

information on his CHI system,visit

www.ampisys.com.

by focusing the attention of a language learner in specific zones, the anxiety the learner experiences during speech is minimized.

“systematic attention to body movement is essential to language learning.”


expression of the wide range of spiritual and religious beliefs represented within Canadian society, including the position of non-belief.

The general trend in nursing has been to promote a generic spirituality, often presented as preferable to religious or creedal affiliation. Yet, for many newcomers to Canada, religious affiliation is central to their identity. The move to a generic spirituality may inadvertently marginalize those for whom a

ursing professors Sheryl Reimer Kirkham, Ph.D., Heather Meyerhoff, MSN, Rick Sawatzky, Ph.D., and former TWU professor Barb Pesut, Ph.D., are

researching how spiritual and religious pluralism are negotiated in hospitals across the Lower Mainland in southwestern BC. They have found that the challenge facing policy makers and health care professionals is developing a responsible pluralism. Ideally, this would be a system that creates the space for the

the side effects of secularismSpirituality and health care is a sensitive topic in the secularized environment of the Canadian Health Care system. But a team of Trinity Western University researchers warns that sidestepping spiritual and religious beliefs at policy and practice levels can have the opposite effect it is intended to.

LEIgHTON SAWAT zk Y

Sheryl Reimer kirkham, Ph.D., is

part of a team of TWU researchers

that is looking into how policies

intended to preserve a spirit

of tolerance have had unforseen side

effects.


specific religious affiliation is of vital importance.Removing the topic of religion and spirituality from consideration at the policy level

allows latent cultural notions of what religious beliefs can and cannot be to define a paradigm that excludes members of other (primarily non-Western) belief systems. “We cannot assume that our Western constructions will be meaningful cross culturally,” says Reimer Kirkham. “By universalizing a definition [of spirituality and religion] that is implicitly rooted within a particular theological or philosophical understanding, we may

be inadvertently excluding those with diverse viewpoints. We need to ask ourselves,

who might this understanding leave out?” For example, Canadian chaplains have traditionally been educated at theological seminaries. Leaders from other faiths frequently volunteer their service in Canadian hospitals, but would be less likely to be hired into paid chaplaincy positions without theological training in a foreign religious tradition.

The team will be presenting their findings and recommendations to health care leaders and professionals at many of the hospitals in the Lower Mainland in a series of short seminars. By doing so, they hope to encourage them to attempt to find ways to incorporate spiritual and religious sensitivity into the methods they use to care for their patients. Research by the team indicates that such efforts can and have been successful between caregivers and patients of widely differing spiritual beliefs. The most important factor in such successes is being aware of the religious or spiritual setting of the patient.

The research team began working together in 2001, around a shared interest in how nurses provide intercultural and interfaith care – largely out of an interest in what to teach the undergraduate students in their nursing program. The postcolonial character

of their work constantly reminds them that they, too, are thinkers situated in their own cultural and religious contexts. In order to ensure

they interpret the data they gather objectively, they have frequently consulted with researchers from other universities such as the University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria. These consultants have received their work positively, and the team will be making presentations at conferences in New Zealand and Wales later this spring.

The team’s research, which is supported by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Coalition of Christian Colleges and Universities, incorporates each of the TWU Nursing program’s core values in seeking to bring about a change in the culture of Canadian health care. They pursue a social justice agenda as they work to minimize causes of division and facilitate equitable health care. By bringing spirituality and religion in health care back into discussion, they believe they will inspire the development and implementation of more effective methods of providing patient-focused care.

“we cannot assume that our western constructions will be meaningful cross culturally.”

without a seminary education, leaders from from non-judeo-christian traditions are less likely to be hired as chaplains. The core vAlues of the TWU Nursing

program are displayed on banners hung

above each bed in the campus nursing lab.

sociAl JusTice - a moral mandate to

attend to marginalization and inequities.

covenAnTAl cAring - a sacred

commitment to the inestimable value of

human beings and response to human

suffering.

holism - integrating physical,

psychological, spiritual, social, and

environmental dimensions.

TrAnsformATion - fostering change in

character and impacting culture.

Dr. Reimer kirkham consults with

chaplains at Laurel Place Hospice on the development

of patient focused care sensitive to

patients’ spiritual and religious

contexts.

In biology laboratories around the world, the common fruit fly is regarded, not as a pest, but as an integral part of the process of education and research.

the utility of the common fruit fly L AUR A R ALPH

“[Fruit f lies] have a long history as a research and teaching organism,” explains Trinity Western University Biology Department Chair Dennis Venema, Ph.D. “The first genetic map ever constructed was in fruit f lies in the early 1900s, and today they continue to be an organism used for cutting-edge developmental biology and genetics research.”

Commonly used as a genetic model for neurodegenerative

disorders like Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, Venema has been using the Drosophila melanogaster fruit f ly to investigate how cells regulate growth, division, and their relationships to other cells. These studies in insulin signaling in fruit f lies are closely related to research on diabetes in human populations, as the proteins employed by both species are nearly identical. In fact, about 75 per cent of genes known to cause disease in human

The Drosophila melanogaster fruit fly has a variety of uses in a research and instructional setting.

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populations have a recognizable counterpart in fruit f ly genes. This similarity makes findings in the fruit f ly research easily translatable to application in medicine, and their 30 day life cycle makes them ideal for tracing developments through many generations.

Their short life cycle also makes them an ideal instructional tool. Venema, who teaches cell biology and genetics courses at TWU, developed a curriculum that makes teaching with fruit f lies much easier. His system allows instructors to greatly reduce

the time and effort required to set up breeding experiments. Using his program, high school and university students in science labs across the continent can follow the effects of their experimentation

through dozens of generations a year. In 2006, his research appeared in print and has since been widely adopted in Canada, the US, and Europe.

This year, the National Association of Biology Teachers recognized Venema’s work with an award for excellence in university biology instruction. Venema is quick to mention how his research benefits students, giving them a much needed “hands-on” approach to the sciences. “Research clearly shows that hands-on laboratory experience has huge benefits for students in the sciences,” he says.

Although Venema is honoured to be recognized by his peers, he feels that the award is really more of “a ref lection of the excellence of teaching at TWU as a whole,” citing TWU’s “culture of teaching excellence” as an important stimulus for his work. “In a time when many universities cut costs by reducing or eliminating laboratory experience, TWU retains a strong commitment to providing excellent laboratory instruction in the sciences at all year levels.”

Dr. Venema has developed a fruit fly

lab package that is distributed widely

by Carolina biological Supply. besides

TWU, other universities using this

program include:

Montana State University

University of Vermont

University of British Columbia

University of the Fraser Valley

Langara College

Douglas College

Harvey Mudd College

LaGrange College

the next generationNSERC AWARD kICk-STARTS TWU STUDENT’S SCIENTIFIC CAREER

TWU senior Jessica Vanderploeg was granted one of TWU’s NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards for the summer of 2008 to fund her research under Dr. Venema. The award allowed her to undertake a 16 week research program working to identify proteins that interact with Gliotactin, a protein in the Drosophila melanogaster fruit f ly that helps form extracellular structures link-ing neighboring cells together. It also allowed her to put the skills she has learned into practice. She expects that the experience gained through the research will be a major factor in her success in a graduate setting. Vanderploeg also noted the excellent lab access and per-sonal attention from professors that TWU students receive due to TWU’s smaller class sizes. She is currently writing her senior thesis and has applied to several graduate schools for the upcoming fall semester.

75% of genes known to cause disease in human populations have a recognizable counterpart in fruit fly genes

Dennis venema, Ph. D., is an Assistant Professor of biology,

and Department Chair. besides his specializations in genetics

and pedagogical research, he is also an expert on developmen-

tal biology, cell and molecular biology, creationism, intelligent

design, and evolution. He is currently investigating the role of

cell to cell junction components in tissue patterning, in addition

to examining the insulin signaling pathway in fruit flies.

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The Qumran caves protected the ancient Dead Sea Scrolls from the elements until their discovery in 1947.

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The leningrAD coDeX, a 12th

century Hebrew text, is the standard

Hebrew bible from which current

translations are made. When it was

compared to passages contained in

the Dead Sea Scrolls, it was shown

to have a higher than 99% correspon-

dence. Further, a significant number of

those discrepancies occur where the

Leningrad Codex was incomplete or

problematic, and the missing text was

provided by the older version contained

in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

pieces of historyThe greatest archaeological discovery of the 20th century began in 1947, with a Bedouin shepherd named Mohammed the Wolf tossing stones into caves near Qumran, Israel, hoping to scare a lost goat out of hiding.

LEIgHTON SAWAT zk Y

hen he heard the sound of a shattering pot instead of a bleating goat, he began a search of the caves that would unearth the cornerstone of an

entirely new branch of religious studies. The scrolls contained in those pots would become known as the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of 900 documents written before 70 AD, containing the oldest copies of the Hebrew Scriptures ever discovered.

For decades after their discovery, the scrolls were highly protected. Access to most of them was severely restricted, until a reconstructed text of one of the scrolls was published in 1991. Peter Flint, then a Ph.D. student at the University of Notre Dame, decided to write his thesis in this newly opening field, and has spent his entire career examining the texts and their impact on the interpretation and criticism of

Hebrew Scripture. Since he took

a professorship at Trinity Western University in 1995, Flint has helped to establish both a

flint is negotiating with the israel antiquities authority to have the dead sea scrolls displayed in vancouver.

Pictured above is the entrance to

Qumran Cave 4, where approximately

500 manuscripts were discovered by

bedouins in 1952.

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a brief history of the dead sea scrolls. Dating from between 150 bc and 70 ad, they are the only known surviving copies of Hebrew Scripture from before 100 ad.. Originally discovered by a shepherd in 1947 near the ruins of Khirbet Qumran, one mile from the northwest shore of the Dead Sea

in Israel.. Due to unrest in the country, 2 years passed before the caves could be further searched.. 7 more years were spent searching caves in the area before all of the documents were found.. Almost 900 documents were found in total, in 25,000 pieces. Only a few, like the Great Isaiah scroll from Qumran Cave 1, are

relatively intact.. A rule of secrecy prevented even photographs of many of the scrolls from being circulated or published until the 1990’s.. The Israel Antiques Authority will soon begin digitizing the scrolls, which will be made available on the Internet.

PeTer flinT, Ph.D., (pictured at centre) was awarded the

Canada Research Chair in Dead Seas Scrolls Studies in August

2004. Since then, Flint has prepared several critical edi-

tions, commentaries, and studies of key biblical texts of the

Dead Sea Scrolls. Current Canada Research Chair projects

include The Official Edition of the Isaiah Scrolls from Cave One

at Qumran to be published by the Oxford University Press, and

the book of Psalms for The Oxford Hebrew Bible. besides the

projects mentioned above, Flint is also a general editor of the

series Studies in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature.

His research contributes significantly to the scholarly under-

standing of the evolution of judaism and Christianity.

world-class undergraduate and graduate biblical studies program, and the only Dead Sea Scrolls Institute in North America. In 2004, he was the first person to receive a Canada Research Chair in the field of Religious Studies. Flint says that as the host of the only Dead Sea Scrolls Institute in North America, TWU’s Biblical Studies Graduate Program is highly respected. Its students, who are schooled in Greek, Aramaic, and Syriac,

in addition to Hebrew, are in high demand by Ph.D. programs around the world.

With his team of graduate students and an international team of scholars, Flint is currently producing the Book of Psalms in the first Hebrew Bible that includes rediscovered passages found in the Scrolls. The Oxford Hebrew Bible, which will be published by Oxford University Press, will include at least 100 passages or

twu,s biblical studies program hosts the only dead sea scrolls institute in north america.

readings previously lost to the Hebrew Scriptures. Together with Dr. Eugene Ulrich of the University of Notre Dame, Flint and his team are also hard at work on a scholarly edition of what are known as the Great Isaiah Scroll and the Smaller Isaiah Scroll for Oxford’s series Discoveries in the Judean Desert. This will be the first Dead Sea Scrolls publication to feature full colour, digitally remastered photographs of the scrolls with Hebrew text on opposing pages. Along with these publications, he is also producing a translation of the Great Isaiah Scroll for general English readers.

The scrolls are currently visiting a series of North American museums, where turnout is breaking public attendance records. The scrolls will be on display at the Royal Ontario Museum of Toronto from June until January of the coming year. Flint will be travelling to Toronto to participate. Together with his colleague, Martin Abegg, Ph.D., who holds the TWU Ben Zion Wacholder Professorship in Dead Sea Scrolls, Flint is negotiating with the Israel Antiquities Authority, the guardians of the scrolls, to have them displayed in Vancouver. This will give West Coast biblical scholars and the public a chance to see these fragments of history in person.


hat she found was a historian’s gold mine: a virtually untouched archive of 200 years of Upper Canadian

Quaker history. That chance discovery changed the course of her career.

Healey identifies herself as a social and intellectual historian who has a preoccupation with tracing how high-level concepts and philosophies come to be applied in the day-to-day activities of life. “How people live,” she says, “reveals how they understand the philosophies they have inherited, the way their worldview interacts with the ideologies and circumstances of their historical

context.” She has focused her study of this process on the Yonge Street Quaker community, a group of settlers of the town of Newmarket, 30 kilometres north of Toronto.

But the details of that day-to-day living aren’t easy to find, or understand. The Newmarket archives contain everything from purchase receipts to personal diaries to tidbits of gossip. “It’s like walking into a conversation,” she says. The framework of relationships and history in place between the members of the community is not immediately clear, and must be gleaned from off hand remarks, family trees, and records of positions held by

robynne healey is an Associate

Professor of History at TWU, and

Chair of the Department of geography,

History, International and Political

Studies. besides her work on the Yonge

Street Quakers, she also specializes in

gender studies, Canadian history, the

Atlantic world, and war and peace, and

is co-director of TWU’s gender Studies Institute. Dr. Healey

has recieved a SSHRC Institutional grant for her research

project entitled “Faith and Family in 19th Century Ontario”,

and has authored the book From Quaker to Upper Canadian:

Faith and Community Among Yonge Street Friends, 1801-1850.

Dr. Robynne Healey’s research on the the Yonge Street Quakers has given her a bottom-up understanding of their place both in their community, and in early Canadian history.

reconstructing the yonge street quakersWhen Robynne Healey was invited to visit a Newmarket, Ontario archive for research in Intellectual History, she wasn’t sure what to expect.

LEIgHTON SAWAT zk Y

members of the community. Because of the convoluted nature of how the documents are stored, she says that “an archivist can be the most important person in a historian’s career.” Without their personal knowledge of when and where the documents come from, most of the information they contain would be almost impossible to decipher.

But with the help of a competent archivist, these little museums and archives can change history, as hidden facts are revealed, and their impact on the field, Upper Canadian history in this case, is felt. “Everybody’s story counts, and deserves to be considered, as we study history. The past doesn't change,” Healey observes, “but history changes all the time.” “how people live reveals how

they understand the philosophies they have inherited.”

T R I N I T Y W E S T E R N U N I V E R S I T Y PB

upcoming events

Off ice of Research & Facul t y Development

TRiniTy WesTeRn univeRsiTy 7600 glover Road, Langley bC V2Y 1Y1

may 26, 2009 - laurentian leadership centre

CANADIAN CHRISTIAN POLITICAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATION SYMPOSIUMWith elections in Canada and the U.S. in recent months, now is a good time to evaluate/re-evaluate politics in both countries. Religious leaders have expressed disappointment with the outcomes of both elections, but for different reasons. CCPS will hold a half-day seminar prior to the CPSA conference in Ottawa on May 26, 2009 hosted by the Laurentian Leadership Centre of TWU, in Ottawa, Ontario.

Contact [email protected] for more information.

september 23-24

jEAN bETHkE ELSTHAIN LECTURES AT TWUEthicist Jean Bethke Elsthain will be visiting TWU to speak on the themes of medical ethics, religion, secularization, and multiculturalism.

Contact Jens Zimmermann at [email protected] for more details.

Canada Research ChairsFOR MORE INFORMATION ON THESE & OTHER CANADA RESEARCH CHAIRS, SEE WWW.chaiRs.gc.ca

Jens ZimmeRmann, Ph.D., holds the Canada

Research Chair in Interpretation, Religion, and

Culture. zimmermann’s Canada Research Chair

was awarded to address the spiritual problem

of finding a concept of human nature in which

both differing religious and secular beliefs can find common

ground. zimmermann’s research analyzes religion’s ability

to provide two essential traits toward a common humanity:

interpretation and world-connectedness. First, a religion

must be critically self-reflective and must accept that even

eternal truths must find culturally relevant expressions.

Second, a religion’s central doctrines must express respect

for all human beings, including non-believers. To supplement

this study, Professor zimmermann has organized inter-faith

meetings, and explores Western Christian thinkers such as

jacques Maritain and Dietrich bonhoeffer.

eve sTRingham, Ph.D., holds the Tier Two

Canada Research Chair for Developmental

genetics and Disease, and is involved in two

major research projects that aim to improve the

understanding of the body at a molecular and

cellular level. Her goal is to gain a greater understanding

of cell migration and shape change in order to better

understand cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and to

promote healing after neural injury. This research is also

supported by a Discovery grant from the Natural Sciences

and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).

Aided by the TWU Diabetes Research Fund, Stringham

also analyzes the role of insulin in growth, stress resistance,

lifespan regulation, and aging with the intent to aid in the

treatment of cancer, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.

Stringham has also received equipment grants from

NSERC and the Canada Foundation for Innovation for a high

resolution microscopy laboratory to support research in cell

and developmental biology.

conscientia 2009

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