The Ethics of Nuclear Energy: Technological Advancements and the Need for Revised Theological Guidance

This article explores some ethical implications of nuclear energy from a theological perspective. The key point argued for is that the few texts in the literature that address nuclear energy from a theological perspective do not give adequate weight to the importance of the potential benefits of nuc...

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1. VerfasserIn: Doherty, David (VerfasserIn)
Medienart: Elektronisch Aufsatz
Sprache:Englisch
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Veröffentlicht: 2025
In: New blackfriars
Jahr: 2025, Band: 106, Heft: 3, Seiten: 187-202
weitere Schlagwörter:B Prudence
B intergenerational justice
B ethics of nuclear energy
B Climate Change
B intergenerational solidarity
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Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:This article explores some ethical implications of nuclear energy from a theological perspective. The key point argued for is that the few texts in the literature that address nuclear energy from a theological perspective do not give adequate weight to the importance of the potential benefits of nuclear energy as part of climate change mitigation strategies. The same also applies to the possible role of nuclear energy in providing compensation for future generations in terms of energy resource durability. The texts thus fail to address matters of importance for intergenerational justice. I examine first an article by Jame Schaefer that discusses Aquinas’ conception of prudence in relation to nuclear energy. I then discuss the relevant sections of the papal encyclical, Laudato Si’ and the Japanese Bishops Conference’s document, Abolition of Nuclear Power. All these texts fail to articulate the potential benefits of nuclear energy pertaining to some perspectives on intergenerational justice, because they do not take sufficient note of advances in nuclear technology that would allay some of the concerns expressed within the texts with which I take issue.
ISSN:1741-2005
Enthält:Enthalten in: New blackfriars
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/nbf.2025.11