Divine sentences : philosophical and literary responses to religious 'enthusiasm'
When asked why he murdered a doctor who performed abortions, Paul Hill, a former Presbyterian minister from Florida, replied, ~what I did was moral, and according to the highest legality ... God's law positively requires us to defend helpless people.~ (N.Y. Times, Sept. 24, 1995). How are the legal institutions of a liberal society to respond to such claims? How are they to pass judgement on those who profess allegiance to a higher law, without falling into the contradiction of merely asserting the authority to do so? My thesis seeks answers to these questions in the works of three philosophers and three Scottish writers, looking specifically at their encounters with that they described as religious 'enthusiasm' - the belief that one has been 'called' by God to enforce divine law over and against the laws of the state. The first three chapters of my dissertation compare the writings of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and David Hume on enthusiasm to their broader inquiries into the meaning of justice. All three philosophers recognize that enthusiasts base their authority on the claim that their words and deeds represent the will of God-a claim that cannot be 'proven' empirically. All three philosophers condemn enthusiasm
Dosanjh, Rajit
Divine sentences : philosophical and literary responses to religious 'enthusiasm'. When asked why he murdered a doctor who performed abortions, Paul Hill, a former Presbyterian minister from Florida, replied, ~what I did was moral, and according to the highest legality ... God's law positively requires us to defend helpless people.~ (N.Y. Times, Sept. 24, 1995). How are the legal institutions of a liberal society to respond to such claims? How are they to pass judgement on those who profess allegiance to a higher law, without falling into the contradiction of merely asserting the authority to do so? My thesis seeks answers to these questions in the works of three philosophers and three Scottish writers, looking specifically at their encounters with that they described as religious 'enthusiasm' - the belief that one has been 'called' by God to enforce divine law over and against the laws of the state. The first three chapters of my dissertation compare the writings of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and David Hume on enthusiasm to their broader inquiries into the meaning of justice. All three philosophers recognize that enthusiasts base their authority on the claim that their words and deeds represent the will of God-a claim that cannot be 'proven' empirically. All three philosophers condemn enthusiasm
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