The purpose of this book is to formulate a way of thinking about issues of power, moral identity, and ethical norms by developing a theory of responsibility from a specifically theological viewpoint; the author thereby makes clear the significance for Christian commitment of current reflection on moral responsibility. The concept of responsibility is relatively new in ethics, but the drastic extension of human power through various technological developments has lately thrown into question the way human beings conceive of themselves as morally accountable agents. It is this radical extension of power in our time which poses the need for a new paradigm of responsibility in ethics. Schweiker engages in an informed way with what is therefore a highly topical discussion. By developing a coherent theory of responsibility, and inquiring as to its source, the author demonstrates the unique contribution of Christian faith to ethics in our time.
William Schweiker is the Edward L. Ryerson Distinguished Service Professor of Theological Ethics at the University of Chicago. Born in Des Moines, Iowa (1953) he holds degrees from Simpson College, Duke University and also the University of Chicago. Besides teaching at Chicago, he has also been guest professor at Uppsala University and the University of Heidelberg. Schweiker´s writings engage theological and ethical questions attentive to global dynamics, comparative religious ethics, the history of ethics, and hermeneutical philosophy. Schweiker has published five books, numerous articles and award-winning essays, as well as edited and contributed to six volumes, including A Companion to Religious Ethics (2004), a comprehensive and innovative work in the field of comparative religious ethics. He has a forthcoming book on Christian faith and new humanisms and is also currently working on a volume Religious Ethics: An Introduction. On-going research is for a book on theological ethics and the integrity of life.
