Otherness and the problem of evil: How does that which is other become evil?

Author: Schrag, Calvin¹

Source: International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, Volume 60, Numbers 1-3, December 2006 , pp. 149-156(8)

Publisher: Springer

Key:

- Free Content

- New Content

- Subscribed Content

- Free Trial Content

Abstract:

In seeking to answer the question “How does that which is other become evil?” the author provides a discussion of four entwined aspects of the issue at stake; (1) difficulty in achieving clarity on the grammar of evil; (2) genocide as a striking illustration of otherness becoming evil; (3) the challenge of postnationalism as a resource for dealing with otherness in the socio-political arena; and (4) the ethico-religious dimension as it relates to the wider problem of evil.

Keywords: Genocide; Theodicy; Postnationalism; Alienation; Dialogue; Communication; Friendship; Love; The gift; Rhetoric; Messianicity; Radical evil