Projects / Programmes
Jewish-Christian Sources and Dimensions of Justice
January 1, 2015
- December 31, 2021
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.11.00 |
Humanities |
Theology |
|
| 6.01.00 |
Humanities |
Historiography |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| H170 |
Humanities |
Bible |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 6.03 |
Humanities |
Philosophy, Ethics and Religion |
Jewish and Christian sources, tradition, the Bible, Mishnah, Talmud, Apocrypha, Septuagint, Vulgate, patristics, Augustine, Tertullian, Jerome, justice, natural law, poetic justice, sacrifice, concept, symbol, dialogue, semantics, stylistics, Church history, application of principles of justice
Researchers (21)
Organisations (1)
Abstract
Jewish and Christian sources include great and influential works of antiquity and of the early Middle Ages. The main source of Judaism is the Old Testament, which was the source of inspiration for other Jewish sources, such as ancient translations of the Bible (the Septuagint, Targums, etc.), Apocrypha, Mishnah, Talmud, midrashim, very rich Hebrew commentaries from the Middle Ages and very rich religious and secular literature from antiquity and the Middle Ages. The main sources of Christianity are in particular the entire Bible (Old and New Testaments) in the original and in numerous influential translations, and the very rich Patristic literature in Greek, Latin and other languages. All these sources reflect in various ways a common ancient Near Eastern, Greek and Latin religious, literary and cultural tradition. The whole ancient culture is an inexhaustible source of motifs and symbols for all later European literature, philosophy and theology. Only careful comparative research can reliably show points of similarities and differences between the ancient civilizations, and how these civilizations influenced the development of European religious and secular culture.
Such research also concerns the question of the role of tradition in European religious and secular culture. Tradition plays a very important role in all civilizations and religions. Tradition is the foundation of culture and a spiritual bond between the present and the past. Behind every type of literature - myths, legends, historical narratives, all sort of popular stories, customs, morals, geographical and cosmological concepts, and law - lies a wealth of oral tradition reflecting local conditions, outer and inner circumstances of human life and historical events. The organization of social and political life, the epic and poetic rules of the human mind and a general orientation to the future accelerate the unification and fixity of traditions, both in terms of content and of form. In all cultural traditions the concept and symbol of justice play an incontestably central role. Justice plays an important role in all life situations and in many subject areas of scholarship in the domain of humanities and social sciences: law, natural law, human rights, moral and political philosophy, ethics, theology, education, the arts, etc.
Any discussion of the nature of justice opens up the prospect of its multiple dimensions. These include the moral sense, inborn rights and moral rightness, cardinal virtues, regulative symbols or principles, all kinds of social contracts and perceptions of the ordering principle of the universe. A society can be just when it allocates to each his own (suum cuique tribuere). An investigation of the dimensions of justice is inspired by the recognition of certain principles that are the same in all or most cultures, even though any particular representation of justice is strongly dependent upon local mythology, religion and shared history. Through our investigation it becomes clear that the most important dimensions of justice are personal justice and unselfish self-sacrifice that transcends justice.
Significance for science
Any evaluation of importance for the development of science in dealing with ancient Jewish-Christian sources and with later applications of beliefs and values to the culture of Judaism and Christianity necessarily begins by defyning the essential elements of these sources. The belief in Creation and in God's Providence manifested in historical events, and the inner moral imperative implanted in human souls and minds, enables a dialogue between God and humans, an interaction between the material and spiritual world and the possibility of using of visible images as symbols or metaphors for expressing spiritual reality. Any one-sided approach in this framework – for instance, the exaggarated and unnecessary contrast between spirituality and legalism, or legal norms and judgements which measure the human act primarily by its external, social relevance – is therefore unscientific.
In this framework, the greatest possible contribution to the development of science may be defined as a methodological persistence in considering the unity of being and the necessary unity of the moral and the legal order. This awareness requires close reading of extant documents in relation to the total reality of the human being. Faith is not irrational, theology does not nullify philosophy, the supranatural law presupposes, includes, and perfects the »natural« order of the world and of every society. Our research is based on the recognition that all genuine law, secular or ecclesiastical, is part of the wider realm of the moral order, perceived on the level of natural reason and intuition. In cases of discrepancy between legality and morality, the limations of every legal order become evident. The authoritative interpretation of moral truth includes the interpretation of Natural Law. Both as a cognitive principle, and as a normative rule and measure, Natural Law refers to the author of the objective order of things and of the living force animated by the rational nature of humans.
A comparative approach promises other contributions to the development of science. Careful scrutiny of similarities and differences between ancient Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek and Hebrew conceptions of the dimensions of justice confirms the unique contribution of Jewish-Christian sources to human civilizations, because they give absolute priority to personal virtues as the natural foundation for decision in relation to formal law and tradition. This recognition presents the greatest challenge for our investigation of the dimensions of justice. The recognition of the limits of judicial and other formal aspects of justice forces us spontaneously to resort to common sense, to natural feelings and to ideals lying beyond formal justice. Cases of »tragic heroism« in breaking unjust laws for the sake of freedom and the defence of human dignity and rights reach beyond jurisdiction, beyond the scope of poetic justice, beyond ethics, and even beyond the aesthetic. The highest motivation is the sense of some higher good, as solidarity beyond price and peace through reconciliation.
Significance for the country
The programme group is composed of scholars from basic theological subject areas: biblical studies, Judaism, patristics, systematic theology, Church history and canon law. All individual projects of the programme group (see point 23) are important for academic and general education in Slovenia. The implementation of research will support the urgent needs of the teaching programme of the Faculty of Theology and of the University as the whole, as well as providing an incentive for the development of other educational institutions and of general culture. Four young scholars are included in the t expanded programme in order to procure sufficient highly qualified specialists for all basic theological subject areas in the future. The most important aim of the programme is, however, to serve the urgent need for high quality theological literature in Slovenian and the development of mutual research cooperation within a larger international academic framework.
Research into Biblical characteristics of justice requires that one deal with this concept at more than a purely cognitive level. Authentic communication through language is not concerned merely with ideas but expresses itself in actual life situations and in their historical settings. Narrative theology can contribute to current work on the philosophy of language, literary theory, and hermeneutics in general. Because the experience of solidarity and love is the guiding principle of any human interaction between cognitive and “intuitive” perception of reality and truth, narrative theology uncovers the basic Biblical understanding of the “Living Word.” Speech as communication in justice and love transcends the ordinary meanings of words.
Because of this, the research programme pays special attention to another important aspect of communication, namely to dialogue inspired by the sense of justice and to dialogues of conflicting speech. The direct contrast to the “Living Word” is the “loveless speech” of “big lies.” The programme members will consider also cases of seduction, propaganda and violence. One of the aims of the programme is to explore ancient and modern ways of the “mystification” of power. However, beyond the evaluation of the reality between “good and evil,” the relevance of the programme lies in the search for real possibilities of a dialogue between individuals, groups, nations, religions, and cultures.
The importance of the project for Slovenia's socio-economic and cultural development may be defined as follows:
1) Acquisition of cognitive skills to reflect upon and critically discuss complex issues in the study of theology and related disciplines.
2) Stimulating international scientific collaboration, efforts for social cohesion, and ethical debate.
3) Opening up processes facilitating better decision-making in policy and stimulating a better understanding of those individual and societal behaviours which shape our daily life.
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2015,
interim report
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2015,
interim report
