WHO GETS TO DECIDE MY FAITH? HUMAN RIGHTS, RELIGIOUS LIBERTY AND CHILD CIRCUMCISION Jude Chua PhD...
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Transcript of WHO GETS TO DECIDE MY FAITH? HUMAN RIGHTS, RELIGIOUS LIBERTY AND CHILD CIRCUMCISION Jude Chua PhD...
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WHO GETS TO DECIDE MY FAITH?HUMAN RIGHTS, RELIGIOUS LIBERTY AND CHILD CIRCUMCISION
Jude Chua PhD FRHistS FCOT FCollT
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What Are Human Rights?
What do we mean?
Do Human Rights Exist?
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Human Rights:Protection or Promotion of Liberties
Negative Liberties “Free from….”
Positive Liberties “Free to…”
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Human Rights: Liberties + for what? Negative Liberties + Preferences/Wishes/Feelings/Wants/Desires
Positive Liberties + Ethical Account of the Good/Right/Just/Choiceworthy/Desirable
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Child Circumcision: Cologne Ban
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Child Circumcision debate (circa 13/7/2012)
Cologne Courts, Germany
Circumcision – removal of skin at the tip of the male sexual organ, often performed as a religious ritual
A question of liberties, and of human rights
Test both accounts of Human Rights
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Neg Liberties: Human Rights as the Right to Choose One’s Preferences
Values choosing according to one’s preferences (regardless of what is chosen)
Problems: Pits preferences against preferences,
rather than develop a moral claim Liberal premises have theological basis,
and are not persuasive
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Positive Liberties: Human Rights as the Right to Achieve a Good
Not about valuing one’s preferential choices, but about being enabled to enjoy goods
Enjoying the good of religion: knowing truth about God and life’s ultimate meaning, etc
(Human) Right to religious liberty? – yes, I think
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Positive Liberties: Human Rights as the Right to Achieve a Good
Against child circumcision – hmm…. Ability to decide one’s faith requires
relevant capacities Foreskin seems irrelevant as a capacity for
such decisions Unlike female genital mutilation, which is
harmful
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What’s the “problem” for the future?
Taking human rights seriously
Some “human rights” talk true, others maybe untrue?
Human Rights as a muddled discourse, our problem for the future.