W. Schweiker – The Blackwell Companion to Religious Ethics

Автор: W. Schweiker
Название книги: The Blackwell Companion to Religious Ethics
Формат: PDF
Жанр: Философия
Страницы: 635
Качество: Изначально компьютерное, E-book

The Blackwell Companion to Religious Ethics provides a comprehensive account of issues
and themes in current religious ethics as well as substantive treatments of the moral
outlook and practices of the world’s religions. With the dawning of present global realities,
the religions are, for good and ill, some of the most dominant forces on this planet.
Increasing cultural and religious interaction makes it imperative that scholars working
within “religious ethics” understand the impact of traditions and communities on each
other. For those theorists and community leaders undertaking constructive and normative
moral reflection within their own traditions, critical awareness of the interactions
among the world’s religions seems extremely important as well. This volume,
then, is meant for anyone interested in the moral beliefs and practices of the world’s
religions and their meaning and significance for current life. It aims to provide for scholars,
teachers, religious leaders, and students at all levels needed resources and tools for
the study of the world’s religions.
The volume is structured into three parts, each of which has subdivisions. Part I:
Moral Inquiry provides an account of basic conceptual issues in religious ethics. The
chapters explore (1) the elements of moral reflection, (2) the mechanisms of transmission
and innovation in traditions, and (3) questions about how to carry out comparison
among traditions. Part II: Moral Traditions is the largest section of the volume,
realizing that the very idea of a “tradition” is perhaps too ambiguous to capture the
complexities of these religious realities. Major moral traditions are explored under four
interlocking rubrics. The treatment of each tradition begins with the question of the
appropriateness of the idea of “ethics” for exploring its moral teaching. This enables
scholars of religion to clarify the form of thinking found in a specific moral community
or tradition. This initial treatment is followed by chapters that explore the origin, historical
differentiations, and present trajectories of a tradition. To be sure, no volume
can capture the entire scope of any religion; no single volume can address every religious
form found in history or present life. Limitations noted, the hope is that a fairly comprehensive vision of a religious tradition will be presented, a vision that specifies
its historical complexity. Finally, Part III: Moral Issues turns directly to contemporary
questions of worldwide import. In each of these chapters, the author draws comparatively
on the resources of traditions to address present challenges. These are roughly
divided between moral problems arising within social and natural “systems” and those
that bear more directly on the lives of “persons,” again realizing the ambiguities of
these ideas. Between the covers of this book, the reader will find superb accounts of the
moral beliefs and practices of the world’s religions, inquiry into the structure of religious
ethics, and comparative treatments of some of the most pressing issues confronting
peoples around the world.
Several concerns have guided the development of this volume. First, the terminology
and conceptuality of “religion” and “ethics” is admittedly Western. More than once
the editor and authors have been warned about the problem of presenting a companion
to “ethics” with respect to the “religions.” Scholars interested in the “moral” life of
communities and traditions must address questions about basic categories. Mindful of
this challenge, we have included essays in Part I of the volume to address this issue.
Additionally, each of the “moral traditions” sections starts with an essay that addresses
the problem (e.g., “Buddhist Ethics?”). This matter is also addressed in an introductory
chapter.
Another concern that has guided the development of this Companion is found
within current academic debates but may in fact be rather longstanding. One might
put it like this: how deep does morality go? Some authors argue that morality is free
from claims about “reality” and thus conceptions, beliefs, and practices for guiding life
develop with respect to distinctive social purposes, languages, and communities. Other
scholars argue from within a tradition or on strictly conceptual grounds that the good
and the real are intertwined. This debate has taken various forms: anti-realism and
realism in moral theory; questions in hermeneutical theory; ideas about social constructivism
and identity formation, and the like. If the first concern that has structured
the development of this book was about concepts, at issue here are matters of
validity and religious diversity. The purpose of the volume is not to resolve these
debates. Mindful of the importance of this many-sided debate, we have tried to
conceive the volume and select authors who provide a range of answers within the
discussion.
Final scholarly concerns can be noted. It seems clear that questions about sexuality
and gender as well as issues of race, ethnicity, and class are being debated around the
world and within each tradition. The worldwide women’s movement has offered profound
insights into traditions and beliefs. Attention to race and class provides new
means to understand and analyze traditional beliefs, social structures, and questions
of human rights. Likewise, there are debates about identity formation within the
dynamics of global cultural flows, economic forces, and political realities. While not
dominating any one specific essay, these matters are in fact addressed throughout the
volume. Again, the purpose of the book is not to propose one answer to these matters.
It is to see how and why they arise naturally within reflection on the moral thought
and practices of the religions. Lastly, given the diversity of languages used in this
volume, we have followed standard scholarly conventions for the transliteration of terms (e.g. Kr.s.
n.
a; Qur’a¯ n). A list of the most commonly used terms and their standardized
English forms is appended to the volume.
Mindful of these concerns now found in scholarly work and, more importantly,
among peoples around the world, The Blackwell Companion to Religious Ethics seeks most
basically to aid in understanding and assessing the moral beliefs, values, and practices
of the world’s religions. As the work of renowned scholars, it is our deepest intention
that this work will help to define the tasks and purposes of the developing field of “religious
ethics.”
William Schweiker