Second PTSD Test Terms

Salaam

Arabic word meaning ‘peace’; considered one of the holy names of God/Allah

Ahimsa

principle of nonharm in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism

Satyagraha

Gandhian concept of active nonviolent resistance to violence and oppression  through collective mass action

the Kantian Triad of Peace

the three foundational principles of international peace according to Immanuel Kant…

1. “The civil constitution of each state shall be republican.”

2. “The law of nations shall be founded on a federation of free states.”

3. “The rights of men, as citizens of the world, shall be limited to the conditions of universal hospitality.”

Pacifism

the rejection of violence in an absolute or nearly absolute way, including the rejection of the use of force in order to prevent or stop conflict and/or violations of human rights

Conscientious Objection

the principled refusal to perform some legally required obligation, especially including military service or other forms of participation in armed conflict on behalf of the state

Just War Theories

theories of international justice that reject pacifism and endorse the use of at least some types or instances of armed force as means to prevent or stop conflict and/or violations of human rights

International Criminal Court

the first and only independent international criminal court established through a global treaty, with jurisdiction over international crimes of war and/or human rights violations

Socialism

any form of social-political organization in which substantial elements of the economy are controlled directly by the state

Anarchism

social-political perspective that denies the legitimacy of any form of ‘non- voluntary association’ and effectively requires that all socially constructed agreements be temporary in nature; anarchists are especially against the existence or imposition of any power structures or regulations made by one generation but taken to be binding on others

Rationalism

perspective that emphasizes logic and empirical inquiry and denies the validity of fideistic claims; strongly associated with scientific naturalism

Fideism

belief in the possibility of knowledge that is gained through the intercession of supernatural beings, causes, or forces; belief in ‘revelation’

Latin American Liberation Theology

a theological perspective that developed among some Catholic priests, bishops, and lay-theologians during the 1960s, following the Second Vatican Council; liberation theology insists on the Church’s responsibility to work for the alleviation of oppression, with a special focus on the oppressive impact of economic inequality; it’s moto is ‘a preferential option for the poor’

Fascism

an ultranationalistic perspective associated with far-right social and political movements that typically involves an embrace of autocratic rule, with highly centralized power, governmental control over all major social and economic structures, subordination of individual interests and freedoms, and often some ethnically and/or religiously framed conception of communal identity that involves a self-perception of superiority

‘Negative’ Liberalism

form of Enlightenment liberalism associated with thinkers like Locke, which emphasizes individual autonomy over the determinations of collective reason and defines freedom or liberty as the absence of constraints on individuals’ autonomy; associated with the “Harm Principle”

‘Positive’ Liberalism

form of Enlightenment liberalism associated with thinkers like Rousseau and Kant, which defines freedom in terms of rational action and emphasizes the determinations of collective reason – produced through appropriate procedures of debate and decision-making – over the autonomy of the individual agent

Immanuel Kant

a Prussian late-Enlightenment thinker associated with the further development of classic liberalism in its ‘positive’ form, the development of cosmopolitan thought, and the formulation of the first systematic modern theory of global peace

Cosmopolitanism

perspective or ideology that emphasizes the moral commonalities among human beings across geographic and political boundaries and that tends toward a view of humanity as properly or ideally forming a single global political community

International or Global Federalism

form of cosmopolitan politics in which there is a supranational authority that coordinates and/or can intercede in at least some aspects of the external affairs of nation-states, while preserving the internal autonomy of those nation-states with regard to their own domestic affairs

Virtue

a desirable quality, especially as related to human character and conduct

Virtue Theory

an alternative to liberal individualism, in which emphasis is placed on the social collective as a whole and individuals are seen primarily in terms of their social roles; unlike liberalism, virtue theory places primary importance on the cultivation of certain qualities and characteristics among members of society, rather than on the development of particular political rules or procedures

Revelation

a claim to knowledge based on an authority that is taken to be supernatural in origin, e.g., prophecies, miraculous events, or holy scriptures

Naturalism

the denial of the existence of supernatural beings, causes, or forces

Supernaturalism

belief in the existence of beings, causes, or forces that transcend or lie  outside of the normal “laws of nature”

Universalism

claim that a particular religious, philosophical, or ideological worldview is true  and all alternative views are false

Pluralism

belief that multiple religious, philosophical, or ideological worldviews can be equally  true and/or directed toward the same fundamental truth, aim, or goal

Relativism

belief that there is no such thing as objective truth, only different perspectives