Concepts of Person and Christian Ethics

A wide-ranging discussion defining persons in relation to the community, environment and God, first published in 1997.

Stanley Rudman (Author)

9780521090247, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 20 November 2008

424 pages
21.6 x 14 x 2.4 cm, 0.54 kg

"...this work represents an intriguing and compelling start toward an expansion of the meaning of person and a greater interchange between Christian and secular ethics. ...it has great promise and deserves a close and critical reading."

The concept and definition of personhood is central to current debates over ethics. Should 'personhood', for example, determine the allocation of scarce medical resources, and its perceived absence allow the termination of life? In a wide-ranging discussion notable for its clarity, Stanley Rudman's 1997 book traces the development of modern ideas about personhood. He argues that concepts of person are socially constructed, and that the relational understanding of persons in a number of theological discussions can act as an important corrective to the individualistic notions of person which have been popular in secular philosophy since the Enlightenment. Early Christian views of divine speech, communication and relations between the Trinity can help to define an ethic which understands personhood in relation to other people, to the environment, and to God.

Part I. 'Person' in Contemporary Ethics: 1. 'Une Cátegorie de l'Esprit Humain: La Notion de Personne'
2. Meaning and criteria: person/human being
3. Moral personhood in M. Tooley and P. Singer
4. Personal identity and responsibility in D. Parfit
5. Human subject and human worth
6. Resituating personhood: embodiment and contextuality
Part II. 'Person' in Christian Perspective: 7. The relevance of history and Christology
8. Divine embodiment and temporality: is God a person?
9. Divine and human: relationality and personhood
10. Religion and morality: personhood, revelation and narrative
Part III. Implications for a Christian Ethic: 11. A communicative ethic: Hauerwas and Habermas
12. A community of ethical difference: including the 'other'
13. The logic of superabundence: an ethic of forgiving love
14. The religious ground of human rights
15. The integrity and transformation of creation
Conclusion
Bibliography
Indices.

Subject Areas: Ethics & moral philosophy [HPQ]