Saida Mirsadri
(University of Bonn)
Abstract
Public reason — an important foundation in many liberal and deliberative theories of
democracy — commonly presents itself as epistemically neutral, yet its categories,
vocabularies, and institutions are historically entangled with European (including
Christian and colonial) formations. This lecture argues that the pretense of neutrality
masks particular epistemic commitments that systematically exclude non-European and
religious ways of knowing, producing testimonial, hermeneutical, and contributory harms
that weaken democratic deliberation. I analyse the mechanisms by which institutions read
and regulate embodied difference and show how these processes narrow the repertoire
of public reasons. Finally, I propose a scholarly response: comparative theology
understood as a reflexive, translational, and co-theoretical method that preserves
epistemic density while making religiously situated reasons intelligible in public discourse
— thereby helping pluralise public reason and strengthen democratic legitimacy.
When: Wed., 19. 11. 2025, 16.45,
Where: Seminarraum VI (Karl-Rahner-Platz 3)
ALLE INTERESSIERTEN SIND HERZLICH WILLKOMMEN!