Book Review: The Global Face of Public Faith. Politics, Human Rights, and Christian Ethics

Abstract

But unlike secular humanism, theological humanism understands human well-being to include the ability to establish a relationship with "the divine or sacred as the source and scope of goodness" (202) and insists on the role of conscience as intrinsic to human flourishing. S. argues that conscience and responsibility are essential to theological humanism (chaps. 7-9). For him, conscience is neither simple self-authenticity, nor "the psychic tribunal where one stands nakedly before a divine judge" ( 147), but the capacity to discern responsibility in complex situations.Theological humanism, like secular humanism, accepts the claim that as social animals, we form our identity through relationships. But unlike secular humanism, it rejects mere "lateral transcendence" (i.e., merely being in relation with other humans), in favor of a more expansive understanding of human identity as being in relation with others and with God. For S., secular humanism actually contributes to the process of overhumanization precisely because it denies the ultimate ground of human existence and reduces human value to the purely anthropocentric realm.Like so many explorations of global ethics, S. writes from a First World perspective and for an academic audience. Although he shows deep sympathy for the plight of the Two-Thirds World , the voice and insight of the world's poor is missing from his analysis. Adding their voice, narratives, and metaphors could only enrich this significant contribution to the ethics of globalization. S. has advanced this field beyond the prescriptive and proscriptive level. He models a methodology for a thoroughly religious global ethic that can function in a pluralistic setting. While the method is not yet fully formed, S. provides a sorely needed theoretical foundation.