Expressions of Preference and Other Morally Problematic Instances of Prayer
When considering the role of prayer in the lives of believers, most theists agree that one important effect is the psychological impact on the person who is praying. Nevertheless, the way many of us pray, by primarily or solely focusing on our welfare and the welfare of our loved ones, agitates the...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
[2019]
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| In: |
Journal of religious ethics
Year: 2019, Volume: 47, Issue: 4, Pages: 679-695 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Kierkegaard, Søren 1813-1855, Kjerlighedens gjerninger
/ Prayer
/ Agape
/ Moral act
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| IxTheo Classification: | CB Christian life; spirituality NCB Personal ethics NCC Social ethics VA Philosophy |
| Further subjects: | B
Ethics
B Agape B Søren Kierkegaard B Works of Love B Prayer |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Resolving-System) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | When considering the role of prayer in the lives of believers, most theists agree that one important effect is the psychological impact on the person who is praying. Nevertheless, the way many of us pray, by primarily or solely focusing on our welfare and the welfare of our loved ones, agitates the human tendency towards exclusion. If we take seriously God's commandment to love the neighbor as the self, we should use prayer, instead, as a prime opportunity to help cultivate a moral character that embraces more inclusion. In this paper, I use Søren Kierkegaard's Works of Love as a framework for working towards this more inclusive view of prayer—one that widens our moral circle and awareness to include all human beings, and not just the select ones we have chosen to prefer above all others. It does not follow that we are prohibited from praying for our own welfare or the welfare of our loved ones, but it does mean that using prayer in a way that only (or primarily) shows concern for those whom we prefer is morally problematic. |
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| ISSN: | 1467-9795 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of religious ethics
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1111/jore.12286 |