Reward and Punishment: The Idea of Judgement

Abstract

Western Judeo-Christian culture recognizes a God who devises laws, judgements, and punishments. This approach holds that man’s actions are evaluated by an external judge according to the doctrine of retribution, and in this culture, it is one of the sources of the drive to succeed, of fear of failure, of guilt and shame, and more. Humans fear the results of this judgement, especially if it involves punishment. The present research assumes that the idea of judgement remains a deeply embedded construct in Western culture and that its religious roots lie in the culture’s Jewish and Christian origins. Although religious ideas of retribution are undergoing secularization in the West, the worldviews that underlie and are embedded in the religious experience, as described by Jung (1987), are covertly preserved in the secular experience. This study will examine judgement using the genealogical method. Genealogy studies the past but its objective is to understand and assess the present. Genealogy will facilitate a comparative examination of Judaic judgement, as depicted in the biblical doctrine of retribution, Catholic judgement, and judgement in Calvinism.

Presenters

Bina Nir
Lecturer, Multidisciplinary Studies, The Max Stern Yezreel Valley College, Israel

Details

Presentation Type

Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

Theme

Religious Foundations

KEYWORDS

Law, Culture, Judgement, Bible, Doctrine