It is widely assumed that Christianity enjoins its followers to practice universal, unconditional forgiveness. But universal, unconditional forgiveness is regarded by many as morally problematic. Some Christian scholars have denied that Christianity in fact requires universal, unconditional forgiveness, but I believe they are mistaken. In this essay, I show two things: (1) that Christianity does enjoin universal, unconditional forgiveness of a certain sort, and (2) that Christians, and perhaps other theists, are always justified in exercising unconditional forgiveness. Though most philosophers treat forgiveness as grounded in our beliefs about the offender's current state, I argue that we might more fruitfully ground forgiveness in hope for the wrongdoer. Christianity's commitment to the existence of an omnipotent God who is concerned about the moral status of His creatures always justifies such hope and thus always justifies forgiveness.
Much of Barnes’s critique depends on a misunderstanding of my position and, where we do substantively disagree, Barnes’s arguments fail to take into account important distinctions. As a result, his arguments are not persuasive. In my reply, I begin by clarifying my position and then proceed to address specific points of disagreement, identifying those distinctions that Barnes needs to take into account in critiquing my view.
Heidi Chamberlin Giannini attends to a virtue that has been largely neglected in the philosophical and theological literature of the virtues—graciousness. Giannini argues that graciousness is a virtue in its own right, distinct from other related virtues such as generosity, humility, and modesty. She argues that the gracious person notices and responds in ways that undercut indications of relative standing when social cues threaten to cause discomfort by suggesting that someone is inferior to another. While distinct from divine grace, graciousness nevertheless reflects God’s grace and importantly contributes to a life of virtue.
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