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The Heart of Justice: an Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility

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The Heart of Justice: an Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility La Salle University La Salle University Digital Commons Th.D. Dissertations Religion, Department of Spring 2016 The eH art of Justice: An Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility Kathleen Bonnette La Salle University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/religion_thd Part of the Catholic Studies Commons, Ethics and Political Philosophy Commons, and the Ethics in Religion Commons Recommended Citation Bonnette, Kathleen, "The eH art of Justice: An Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility" (2016). Th.D. Dissertations. 2. http://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/religion_thd/2 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Religion, Department of at La Salle University Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Th.D. Dissertations by an authorized administrator of La Salle University Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. La Salle University School of Arts and Sciences Graduate Program in Theology and Ministry Dissertation The Heart of Justice: An Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility By Kathleen Bonnette (B.A., Villanova University; M.A., Indiana University) Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Theology 2016 The Heart of Justice: An Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility By Kathleen Bonnette Approved By Mentor: _______________________________________________ John Hymers, La Salle University First Reader: _______________________________________________ Jordan Copeland, La Salle University Second Reader: _______________________________________________ Frederick Van Fleteren, La Salle University Copyright © 2016 by Kathleen Bonnette All rights reserved For my parents, who taught me the joy of wondering; For my kids, with hope that they always find their joy in the Truth; And for Dan, with whom the joys of life are doubled and the hardships halved. Table of Contents Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iv Abstract ............................................................................................................................. vii Introduction ........................................................................................................................ ix Chapter 1: Rawls, Rorty, and the “Schizophrenia of Modern Culture” .............................. 1 1.1 Modern Liberalism à la Rawls .................................................................................. 6 1.1.1 Okin’s Rawlsian Feminism .............................................................................. 17 1.2 Objectivity, Relativism, and Truth – Rorty’s Postmodern Pragmatism .................. 25 1.3 Summary ................................................................................................................. 42 Chapter 2: Augustine on Love and Justice ....................................................................... 47 2.1 Human Nature: Rational, Volitional, Affective, Relational Creatures ................... 49 2.2 The Human Telos .................................................................................................... 54 2.2.1 The Creator/Created Distinction ....................................................................... 55 2.2.2 God’s Love for Us ............................................................................................ 61 2.2.3 A Call to Love .................................................................................................. 62 2.2.4 Grace ................................................................................................................. 66 2.3 What is Love?.......................................................................................................... 68 2.4 Augustine’s Moral Psychology of Love and Justice ............................................... 79 i The Heart of Justice: An Augustinian Ethic of Relational Responsibility 2.5 Summary ................................................................................................................. 85 Chapter 3: Augustinian Justice and Secular Politics – A Defense.................................... 89 3.1 Prevenient Grace ..................................................................................................... 93 3.1.1 Christian and Secular Virtue ........................................................................... 105 3.2 Arendt’s Critique ................................................................................................... 121 3.3 Religious Coercion ................................................................................................ 139 3.4 Summary ............................................................................................................... 153 Chapter 4: Contemporary Augustinian Politics and Catholic Social Teaching .............. 157 4.1 Augustinian Liberalism: Elshtain on Institutional Justice..................................... 159 4.2 Augustinian Liberalism: Gregory on Justice and Moral Psychology ................... 165 4.3 Rightly Ordered Loves in Catholic Social Teaching ............................................ 170 4.4 Summary ............................................................................................................... 184 Chapter 5: Right Relations and an Ethic of Responsibility ............................................ 187 5.1 Augustine’s Responsive Ethics ............................................................................. 189 5.2 Rights and Responsibilities ................................................................................... 199 5.3 Emotional Responsibility ...................................................................................... 216 5.4 Summary ............................................................................................................... 225 Chapter 6: Conclusion – “Hold Fast to the Truth, and Live Justly” ............................... 227 ii Table of Contents 6.1 Summary ............................................................................................................... 229 6.2 Application: Understanding the Fitting Action in Contemporary Political Life ... 240 6.3 Final Thoughts....................................................................................................... 245 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 247 iii Acknowledgements That I completed this dissertation is due in large part to the generous support of faculty, friends and family. First, I would like to thank my mentor, John Hymers, for his unwavering support throughout my doctoral studies, and especially for his careful and copious use of the red pen on previous drafts of this project. I owe much to his insights and critiques, which have informed and improved this work significantly. He has been a friend and advocate from the start, and I am grateful. Many thanks, too, to the members of my dissertation committee: Jordan Copeland, especially for his help in situating my argument within contemporary social ethics discourse; and Frederick Van Fleteren, for broadening the scope of my understanding and appreciation of Augustine. I am grateful for their time and invaluable guidance. There are many teachers deserving of my gratitude, but I would like to thank two, in particular, who have been instrumental in getting me to this point: Mark Wilson, who first saw my potential and nudged me toward this path, and from whom I received my first copy of City of God; and Richard Miller, who believed in my ability and helped me find my voice. They have encouraged and challenged me throughout my studies, and their influence on my academic identity would be difficult to overstate. To my peers in the program – I am grateful to have journeyed this road with all of you; to have learned with you and from you. The loneliness of dissertating was abated thanks to your companionship during the process. iv Acknowledgements I would like to thank my mom, my first teacher, for imparting to me a love of learning and a deep faith; and my dad, for his constant support, and for always believing wholeheartedly that I could do anything. They know my heart and always have been intentional about nurturing in me the virtues of love and justice. Without their encouragement, I would not be where, nor who, I am today. I am lucky, too, to have benefited from the love and wisdom of all of my grandparents; I am proud to be part of their legacy, and I am grateful for their support and encouragement as I follow my dreams – “There’s always room for a good one.” To the rest of my family – thank you for your friendship, for providing respite from the drudgery, and for watching my kids whenever I needed extra time to focus. You are the best support system (and my favorite people). I am grateful to my children, Elena and Caleb, who are my inspiration. They show me every day what it means to love; and they made sure I remembered that dissertating should always come second to dancing! And finally, to my husband, Dan – without your partnership, this dissertation would not have been written. Thank you for your understanding, your support and sacrifice, your laughter, and the many cups of tea you’ve poured me. Most of all, thank you for your love that helps me to be the woman I am meant to be. You have taken up my dreams
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