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Lie

(732 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] The term “lie” refers to a deliberate false claim or a denial of the truth. In the Old Testament, it is used, for example, in the context of malicious gossip (Ps 4:3, etc.). In the New Testament, “lie” (ψεῦδος/ pseúdos) refers predominantly to the culpable negation of salvation interpreted as truth (John 14:6). Accordingly, the lie has satanic origins (John 8:44) and belongs to the sphere of the unredeemed (Rom 1:25; 3:5; cf. Ps 116:11). Already in the NT the term “lie” also occurs in polemic against heresy (e.g. 2 The…

Conflict

(1,082 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] I. Existential Conflicts – II. Social Conflicts – III. Theological Interpretation of Social Conflicts The issue of conflict is relevant to theology from two perspectives, namely as an existential and as social conflict. The Christian interpretation of conflict attempts to elucidate both aspects. I. Existential Conflicts Paul describes existence as a conflict between the will to do good and the incapacity to accomplish it (Rom 7:7–25), but also as a conflict between one's old life and the new one attained thro…

Fatalism

(359 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] For modern fatalism, because all actions are determined in a way that can be demonstrated scientifically, alleged freedom thus merely represents “false consciousness.” Causal determinism differentiates modern fatalism from earlier assumptions of blind fate and destiny ( moíra). G.W.…

Slave Morality

(144 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] This expression, common since F. Nietzsche, refers to an ethos t…

Individual Ethics

(1,644 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] I. Definition of Terms – II. History – III. Reflections on the Present …

Catharsis,

(288 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] the Greek term for “purification,” was employed systematically in Aristotle's poetics ( Poet. 6): by producing pity ( éleos) and fear (   phóbos) in the observer, the action portrayed leads to purification ( kátharsis) from these affects. This assertion reflects the notion that the objectification of besetting emotions makes them manageable, as it were. Similar ideas lie behind the theology and practice of confession, although in the Middle Ages (and in Catholicism still today) they have been…

Value Ethics

(585 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] is an ethics grounded on predefined values (Value/Values). The term gained acceptance in Neo-Kantian and phenomenological practical philosophy during the early 20th century (M. Scheler, N. Hartmann), but as a substantial category it can clearly be extended to earlier approaches.…

Schütz, Alfred

(159 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] (Apr 13, 1899, Vienna – May 20, 1959, NY), a lawyer, initially explored sociological and economic topics as a sideline. His principal work,

Master Morality

(511 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] exemplifies the opposite of any kind of egalitarian ethos. The latter binds all members to the observance of the same general norms, while master morality recognizes the right or duty to follow special norms determined by status. This is founded on the superior mode of being of some members of society over against the rest, that may have arisen in various ways: by tradition (aristocracy), socially (class standpoint), biologically (master race), or through a certain superiority of …

Utopia

(363 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] The word utopia was coined by T. More in 1516, though utopias were already discussed in substance in antiquity. The term means a theoretical or belletristic conception of an ideal configuration or improvement of human life based on rational or religious principles, often with the presumption of advancing technology (positive utopias). Negative utopias, common since the 20th century (e.g. George Orwell and Aldous Huxley), caution against the unforeseeable consequences of such experiments. A utopia claims a conceptual wealh that transcends reality. Cont…

Rigorism

(735 words)

Author(s): Dehn, Ulrich | Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] I. Religious Studies Rigorism is an ethical category used mostly in connection with perfectionist communities. It means unbending and rigid adherence to principles of conduct (and thought) and is in opposition to laxity as a carefree and casual moral attitude. When this approach is applied ¶ not only to oneself and one’s own community but also to others, it can lead to intolerance (Tolerance and intolerance), but it sees itself as providing impetus for reform in the face of an unresisting secularized religiosity that conforms to society. As component of a “counter-society,” it is often accompanied by a view of the world with sharp “inner/outer” demarcations. It is associated with striving for perfection and anticipation of an ideal society; it occurs both in Christianity and in non-…

Masses, The

(951 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias | Daiber, Karl-Fritz
[German Version] I. Social Sciences and Ethics – II. Practical Theology…

Utopians

(1,343 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias | Pierard, Richard V.
[German Version] I. Terminology and History Utopians aspire to achieve fundamental improvement of human life from a rational, religious, or technological perspective – often in combination. To present their ideas, they frequently make use of a form somewhere between a philosophical or theological treatise and a narrative account, called a utopia after the eponymous Utopia of T. More (1516). But the theme is much earlier, going back to Plato’s Politicus: society should correlate with the three division…

Interaction

(1,248 words)

Author(s): Stoellger, Philipp | Heesch, Matthias | Mette, Norbert
[German Version] I. Philosophy of Religion – II. Ethics – III. Practical Theology I. Philosophy of Religion To begin the interpretation of society and religion with the notion of interaction means to assume a basis of action. Fundamental forms of interaction are, for example, cooperation, exchange, conflict and competition, or, according to F.D.E. Schleiermacher, identical and individual symbolization and organization. Problems of interaction occur when the rules of interaction are questionable. A monadic the…

Value/Values

(5,528 words)

Author(s): Großheim, Michael | Heesch, Matthias | Evers, Dirk | Mokrosch, Reinhold | Würtenberger, Thomas
[German Version] I. Philosophy The philosophical value concept is the result of a hypostatization of value predicates that are assigned to objects or circumstances as signs of human esteem. By way of inference, the evaluative assessment gives rise to a value, which is in turn meant to serve as a source of norms. R.H. Lotze developed the value concept in the mid-19th century, at a time when the upcoming natural sciences were increasingly challenging its claim to world interpretation. While Lotze relinquished the topics of “being,” of the indifferent, and of the merely factual to the natural sciences, he reserved “validness” (Validity) for philosophy. The non-existing but valid value is characterized by its initial detachment from objects and human beings, but on the other hand also by its very significan…

Inner Person

(1,567 words)

Author(s): Markschies, Christoph | Burkert, Walter | Betz, Hans Dieter | Heesch, Matthias
[German Version] I. Concept – II. Antiquity – III. New Testament – IV. Early Church – V. Systematic Theology I. Concept The notion of a “real person” residing within the outer human being is widely attested in ancient literature and became part of a comprehensive system of metaphors by the time of Hellenism at the latest. However, this notion is conveyed through very different terms, corresponding also to conceptions of rather differing nature. The single English concept “inner person,” which cannot adequately …

Slavery

(4,377 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias | Kessler, Rainer | Harrill, J. Albert | Luker, Ralph E. | Ludwig, Frieder
[German Version] I. General The word slavery denotes a social structure (including its normative legal and ethical standards) in which certain individuals are considered and treated as objects. A slave owner has the right to decide what the slaves do, as well as where and how they live; the owner also has an absolute right of disposition over their bodies and lives and the right to sell them like any other property. The far-reaching implications of this definition distinguish slavery from other forms of unfreedom such as debt servitude, serfdom, and bondage. Slavery was widespread in a…

Vocation

(5,411 words)

Author(s): Heesch, Matthias | Klöcker, Michael | Ulrich, Hans G. | Sprondel, Walter M. | Drehsen, Volker | Et al.
[German Version] I. Terminology No term equivalent to vocation is found in classical Greek and Latin. An officium was exercised by virtue of a preexisting status, usually by birth. Trades (including medicine) fulfilled the conditions of a regular vocation (τέχνη/ téchnē), but had no self-awareness reflected in terminology. In the New Testament, κλῆσις/ klḗsis mostly refers to the “calling” of a Christian (1 Cor 7:20); in the national church of Late Antiquity, it referred primarily to the call to the religious life ( vocatio) in contrast to lay status. In Middle High German mys…