Public Lecture
"FORGIVENESS" Symposium & Workshop
Prof. Glen Pettigrove, University of Glasgow
McDonald Distinguished Lecture Series
UNFORGIVABLE? Modelling Radical Forgiveness
Prof. Glen Pettigrove, University of Glasgow
Date: 13 March 2025 (Thur)
Time: 6:00pm – 7:30pm
Venue: Social Sciences Chamber, 11/F, Jockey Club Tower, HK
Abstract
When is it admirable to forgive? In the 1950s and 60s when Martin Luther King Jr and others considered this question, they turned to the Christian gospels for inspiration. The answer they found there was that forgiveness is admirable when it is an expression of love for the one forgiven, even if they are an enemy who is persecuting you. Dr King’s answer has struck many as naïve, at best, or unjust, at worst. Some of these critics have proposed an alternative: It is admirable to forgive when doing so is just. Which of these answers should we prefer? Or is there a way to honour the insights of both?
About the Speaker
Glen Pettigrove is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Glasgow. He specializes in virtue ethics, moral theology, and 18th century sentimentalism. He has a particular interest in the role of emotions in our personal and collective lives and has written extensively on anger, forgiveness, guilt, love, and shame.