The Troublemaker as a Non-intentional Social Activist: A Critical Discussion of the Political Relevance of Paul Ricœur’s Philosophical and Theological Thinking

Björn Vikström

doi:10.30664/ar.146428

The Troublemaker as a Non-intentional Social Activist: A Critical Discussion of the Political Relevance of Paul Ricœur’s Philosophical and Theological Thinking

Översatt titel: Problemmakaren som en icke-intentionell samhällelig aktivist: En kritisk diskussion av Paul Ricoeurs filosofiska och teologiska tänkandes politiska relevansen hos

Björn Vikström

Forskningsoutput: Tidskriftsbidrag › Artikel › Vetenskaplig › Peer review

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Sammanfattning

I sin tidiga produktion utvecklar Paul Ricoeur en idé om att problemmakare som ickse-våldsaktivister, fransciskanska fattigbröder, profeter och konstnärer har en viktig subversiv roll i samhället och i kyrkor. I artikeln argumenterar jag för att dessa aktivister skulle kunna bidra till att motverka en tendens i Ricoeurs senare produktion att mera betona vittnets eller profetens passiva funktion att bli ett offer för sanningen och rättvisan.

Översatt titel	Problemmakaren som en icke-intentionell samhällelig aktivist: En kritisk diskussion av Paul Ricoeurs filosofiska och teologiska tänkandes politiska relevansen hos
Originalspråk	Engelska
Sidor (från-till)	119-134
Antal sidor	16
Tidskrift	Approaching Religion
Volym	14
Nummer	3
DOI	https://doi.org/10.30664/ar.146428
Status	Publicerad - 16 dec. 2024
MoE-publikationstyp	A1 Tidskriftsartikel-refererad

Nyckelord

Paul Ricoeur
Political activism
hermeneutics
Fallibility
vulnerability
peace
Non-intentionality

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10.30664/ar.146428Licens: CC BY

Vikström ARSlutlig publicerad version, 252 KBLicens: CC BY

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe20241220105994

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title = "The Troublemaker as a Non-intentional Social Activist: A Critical Discussion of the Political Relevance of Paul Ric{\oe}ur{\textquoteright}s Philosophical and Theological Thinking",

abstract = "There is a tension in Ric{\oe}ur{\textquoteright}s thinking between the undeniable presence of violence and his trust in a primordial goodness of existence. This tension is linked to Ric{\oe}ur{\textquoteright}s understanding of the human being as ambiguous and fragile, torn between freedom and nature, as well as between the voluntary and involuntary dimensions of human action. By analysing articles from the first decades after the Second World War, and especially Ric{\oe}ur{\textquoteright}s discussion of prophetical troublemaking through nonviolence, voluntary poverty, and art, and comparing these to some of Ric{\oe}ur{\textquoteright}s later writings, the essay critically discusses the role Ric{\oe}ur assigns to non-intentional social activism. The author argues that the non-intentional and intentional dimensions of human action need to be kept in a fruitful critical tension with each other, to prevent an understanding of human existence as primarily tragic and passive. The gap separating ideals from the experienced reality, may, in line with Ric{\oe}ur{\textquoteright}s own intentions, be considered a space both for mourning of a lost innocence, and for hopeful visions guiding the struggle for a better and more just world.",

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KW - hermeneutics

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KW - vulnerability

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The Troublemaker as a Non-intentional Social Activist: A Critical Discussion of the Political Relevance of Paul Ricœur’s Philosophical and Theological Thinking

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