Beyond Virtue Ethics
 280 pp., 6 x 9 Hardcover ISBN: 9781647123116 () 280 pp., 6 x 9 Paperback ISBN: 9781647123123 () eBook ISBN: 9781647123130 E-Inspection Request E-Inspection May 2023 Sales Rights: WORLD Moral Traditions series EXPLORE THIS TITLE DescriptionTable of Contents Reviews |
Beyond Virtue Ethics
A Contemporary Ethic of Ancient Spiritual Struggle
A contemporary model of spiritual struggle shifts the emphasis from virtue's acquisition to its pursuit
Beyond Virtue Ethics offers a distinctive approach to virtue ethics, arguing not simply for the importance of "struggle" to virtue ethics, but that "struggle" itself is a manifestation of virtue. In doing this, Stephen M. Meawad offers a way of thinking about virtue not simply as a perfected state, but as a state that is to a greater or lesser degree a manifestation of the ideal itself, which is not attainable. Meawad affirms the concept of the unity of virtues—that is, the idea that a virtue is not a virtue unless united with other perfected virtues—which is found in God. Insofar as humans grow in unity with God, they too participate in the unity of virtues, although always to an imperfect extent. Meawad rejects a division between ethics and spirituality and provides two concrete examples of this suggested model. The first is the application of this model to the body and its implications for contemporary sexual ethics. The second is a reintegration of ethics and Scripture through the contemporary application of an ancient Patristic divine reading. This book establishes for readers a contemporary model of spiritual struggle, defining it as the exertion of effort in all conceivable dimensions—physical, emotional, psychological, and intellectual—with the intent to attain a semblance of, knowledge of, and intimacy with Jesus Christ. Stephen Meawad is an assistant professor of theology in the Department of Theology and Philosophy at Caldwell University. David Cloutier, Darlene Weaver, and Andrea Vicini, SJ
Reviews
"The return of virtue ethics is now six decades in the making, and yet, in all that time, very little has engaged the rich tradition of thinking on virtue in Orthodox Christianity. This book fills that gap. With a grounding in deification and with an emphasis on virtue as struggle rather than achievement, it offers a paradigm shift for understanding the meaning of virtue in the ethical and spiritual life."—Aristotle Papanikolaou, professor of theology, Archbishop Demetrios Chair in Orthodox Theology and Culture, co-founding director, Orthodox Christian Studies Center, Table of Contents PART I: SITUATING THE ETHIC Introduction: Ethics, Anthropology, and Patristics From Ancient to Modern: Creating Space for the Church Fathers Chapter Overview 1. Which Virtue Ethics? Which Problems? An Orthodox Christian Ethic Politeia? Aristotle, Aquinas, and Virtue Ethical Problems The Virtuous Agent and the Unity of the Virtues Perfectionism and (Un)attainability Moral Luck and Moral Effort Self-Centeredness and Self-Effacement Grace and Works Grace and Virtue Works and Antinomianism A Contemporary Consensus Between Grace and Works Conclusion PART II: DEVELOPING THE ETHIC 2. A Case for Spiritual Struggle Why "Spiritual Struggle"? Struggle Against Base Desires: the Self as Co-operator with God's Grace Struggle as Communal Confrontation of External Oppression Struggle as Purgative, Virtuous Struggle with God Conclusion 3. Onward and Upward: The Perpetual Godwardness of Spiritual Struggle Gregory's Theological Integration Epektasis: Immutable and Infinite Perpetuity of Godward Progress Anagogy: Godward Progress as Ascent in Goodness, Virtue, and Perfection The Stages of Godward Spiritual Struggle Conclusion PART III: APPLYING THE ETHIC 4. Asceticism as Godward Spiritual Struggle Applied to the Body First Stage: Controlling Impulses Gone Awry Second Stage: Angelification and Restoration Third Stage: Liturgical Transformation and Divine Indwelling Liturgy as Interiorizer Particular Instantiations of Interiorization Conclusion 5. Sacred Reading as Godward Spiritual Struggle Applied to Scripture First Stage: Vulnerability, Christ, and Community Vulnerability Christo-centricity Communal Exegesis Second Stage: Embodiment, Prayer, and Virtue Prayerful Embodiment of Scripture Virtuous Reading Third Stage: Full Immersion and a New Creation Conclusion 6. Conclusion: Embodied Ethics and Inevitable Tensions Bibliography |