Should moral commitments be articulated? An introduction

ABSTRACT

This Special Issue questions a basic assumption in thinking about morality: the idea that the explicit articulation of moral commitments that usually remain implicit is the basis par excellence for dialogue and rapprochement between people of opposing views. Nicholas Adams shows in the main article of this Special Issue that there is a paradox behind this assumption concerning ethics itself: articulating moral commitments may end up undermining them. It inherently stands in tension with forms of life as people actually inhabit them. Adams associates this basic paradox of ethics with the problem of forced articulation in particular discursive regimes, such as interreligious dialogue. The practice of Scriptural Reasoning is introduced as an alternative mode of dialogue that is less vulnerable to the distortions of articulation. The five response articles (by Petruschka Schaafsma, Ariën Voogt, Rob Compaijen, Dominique Gosewisch, and Sophia Höff) address aspects of Adams’ challenge to articulation in relation to morality, rather than the setting of interreligious engagement. They point out the value of articulation in spite of its inherent imperfection, or constructively elaborate on how to deal with the paradox of ethics as analyzed by Adams. Finally, Adams responds by addressing the concerns of these replies.

KEYWORDS:

• Paradox of ethics
• articulation
• moral dialogue
• common ground
• interreligious dialogue
• Nicholas Adams

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ariën Voogt

Ariën Voogt is PhD student in Philosophical Theology at the Protestant Theological University in the Netherlands and is part of the Moral Compass Project. He writes his dissertation on the tension between pantheism and personhood in Classical German Philosophy. His broader research interests lie in philosophy of religion and philosophy of secularization, specifically regarding the relation between Christianity and modern (secular) thought, and also philosophy of the person and philosophy of (digital) technology. He is co-founder of non-profit Algorithm Audit, working on the responsible use of AI. His recent publications include ‘Agamben on Secularization as a Signature’ (in this journal) and ‘Hegel on What Cannot Be Said: an Interpretation of the Ineffable in the Phenomenology’s “Sense-Certainty”’ (Hegel Bulletin).

Petruschka Schaafsma

Petruschka Schaafsma is Professor of Theological Ethics at the Protestant Theological University in the Netherlands. She runs a research program in the field of ethics and theology on the meaning of family, with special attention for the aspects of givenness and dependence (Family and Christian Ethics, Cambridge University Press, 2023). She is project leader of the Moral Compass Project which explores the potential of views of divine law for current morality (The Transcendent Character of the Good, Routledge 2022).