Is the Ability to Have Faith Universal? On the Possibility of Religious Practices of People with Strong Cognitive Impairments by Birth

拥有信仰的能力是普遍的吗？

• 批准号: 412761087
• 负责人: Professorin Dr. Saskia Wendel
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Lehrstuhl für Fundamentaltheologie
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2018-12-31 至 2023-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/412761087?language=en
• 关键词: Ability; Faith; Universal; Possibility; Religious

The structure of religious convictions shows a distinction between faith (fides qua creditur) and belief (fides quae creditur), which has virtually become common ground in religious epistemology. Based on this constitutive analytic differentiation, contemporary fundamental theology and philosophy of religion focus mainly on the conditions of the possibility of the justification of religious convictions and the legitimacy of religious beliefs. Such an emphasis on the rationalization of religious beliefs, however, diminishes questions regarding the affective dimension of religious faith and neglects questions regarding the conditions of the possibility of religious convictions beyond their justification. The fundamental importance and necessity of a reflection on the relevance of the faith-dimension becomes evident when focusing on people with strong cognitive impairments by birth. Hence, approaches which stress the rational justification of beliefs and attempt to conceptualize religious convictions as a rational performance of religious existence might lead to an exclusion of people without the capabilities of such rationalized ways of thinking. This diminishes finally, yet importantly the universal claim of religious convictions to be, in principle, equally accessible and acceptable for everyone. Additionally, people with strong cognitive impairments by birth might be denied the status of having a comprehensive religious view of the world as well as the status as autonomous and self-determined subjects of faith. They thereby would be reduced to be just objects of religious practices in its different fields of diaconia, (religious) education, pastoral work and last but not least sacramental practices. Beyond these fields, this brings along anthropological problems with regard to the equal dignity of all human beings despite their cognitive abilities. Hence, the research project aims to address two neglected research question: on the one hand, it focusses on the reflection of the relevance of the faith-dimension within the analysis fidei. On the other hand, it deals with the question in how far people with strong cognitive impairments by birth have the capability to have religious beliefs and thus to be subjects of faith. This reflection on the conditions of the possibility of religious convictions despite strong cognitive impairments by birth cannot be seen as marginal, as it leads right into the heart of fundamental theological questions with theoretical and practical implications. In addition, this research project not only follows scientific aims, but addresses also a social and political dimension by stressing questions regarding the discrimination and exclusion of people with strong cognitive impairments by birth. It aims at depicting possibilities to overcome such practices of discrimination and exclusion within religious communities and to set the ground for possibilities of participation and comprehensive inclusion.

宗教信仰的结构显示了信仰(Fides As A Reditur)和信仰(Fides Quae Reditur)之间的区别，这实际上已经成为宗教认识论的共同点。在这种构成分析分化的基础上，当代基本神学和宗教哲学主要关注宗教信仰正当性的可能性条件和宗教信仰的合法性。然而，这种强调宗教信仰合理化的做法，减少了有关宗教信仰情感层面的问题，忽视了宗教信仰超越其正当性的可能性条件问题。当关注出生时有严重认知障碍的人时，反思信仰维度的相关性的根本重要性和必要性就变得显而易见。因此，强调信仰的理性辩护并试图将宗教信仰概念化为宗教存在的理性表现的方法，可能会导致对没有这种合理化思维方式能力的人的排斥。最后，但重要的是，这削弱了宗教信仰的普遍主张，即原则上人人都平等地接受和接受宗教信仰。此外，出生时有严重认知障碍的人可能被剥夺具有全面宗教世界观的地位，以及作为自主和自主的信仰主体的地位。因此，他们将沦为宗教实践的对象，在其不同的领域，变音，(宗教)教育，牧民工作，以及最后但同样重要的圣礼实践。在这些领域之外，这带来了人类学方面的问题，即所有人的平等尊严，尽管他们的认知能力。因此，本研究项目旨在解决两个被忽视的研究问题：一方面，它侧重于信仰维度在分析理想中的关联性的反映。另一方面，它涉及的问题是，出生时有严重认知障碍的人在多大程度上有能力拥有宗教信仰，从而成为信仰的主体。尽管先天就有严重的认知障碍，但这种对宗教信仰可能性条件的思考不能被视为边缘问题，因为它直接进入了具有理论和实践意义的基本神学问题的核心。此外，这项研究项目不仅遵循科学目标，而且通过强调关于歧视和排斥出生时有严重认知障碍的人的问题，解决了社会和政治层面的问题。它的目的是描述在宗教社区内克服这种歧视和排斥做法的可能性，并为参与和全面包容的可能性奠定基础。