Carceral Christianization as a Religious Problem of Generations: Theorizing Cultural Miseducation from a Gender-Sensitive Study of Oral Life Histories

Abstract

Religion is one of the most influential agents of moral education in both private and public domains, and its educational values and practices vary profoundly from one tradition to another. With that recognition, this empirical-conceptual and “gender-sensitive” (Martin, 1981) qualitative inquiry into the “dark side of Christianity” (Harris and Milam, 1994) utilizes narratives from fourteen oral life histories alongside other textual and cultural data to formulate an original pedagogical theory for religious miseducation. I have named this theory Carceral Christianization (henceforth CC) and have bestowed the identity of Carceralites on its adherents. As an excessively dogmatic and sometimes abusive religious approach to rearing and educating children, CC, however well meaning, metaphorically (Scheffler, 1960) imprisons (Foucault, 1975; Frye, 1983) adherents’ coming of age and what I call coming of conscience. As such, it qualifies as “cultural miseducation” and poses a complex ethical “educational problem of generations” (Martin, 2002) with regard to religious education. The goal of this study is to help people recognize and understand some of the painful and problematic effects of growing up in CC, not only for individuals but also for communities. Given that Christianity is the predominant religious tradition in the U.S. and is influential in many public spheres (Pew Forum, 2014), and in light of recent growing worldwide apprehension over religious extremism (Pew Research Center, 2014), the topic represents a central concern for educational inquiry.