Gregor Moder’s Hegel and Spinoza: Substance and Negativity is a lively entry into current debates concerning Hegel, Spinoza, and their relation. Hegel and Spinoza are two of the most influential philosophers of the modern era, and the traditions of thought they inaugurated have been in continuous dialogue and conflict ever since Hegel first criticized Spinoza. Notably, eighteenth- and nineteenth-century German Idealists aimed to overcome the determinism of Spinoza’s system by securing a place for the freedom of the subject within it, (...) and twentieth-century French materialists such as Althusser and Deleuze rallied behind Spinoza as the ultimate champion of anti-Hegelian materialism. This conflict, or mutual rejection, lives on today in recent discussions about materialism. Contemporary thinkers either make a Hegelian case for the productiveness of concepts of the negative, nothingness, and death, or in a way that is inspired by Spinoza they abolish the concepts of the subject and negation and argue for pure affirmation and the vitalistic production of differences. Hegel and Spinoza traces the historical roots of these alternatives and shows how contemporary discussions between Heideggerians and Althusserians, Lacanians and Deleuzians are a variation of the disagreement between Hegel and Spinoza. Throughout, Moder persuasively demonstrates that the best way to read Hegel and Spinoza is not in opposition or contrast but together: as Hegel and Spinoza. (shrink)

Through an original and extraordinarily fruitful reading of the Hegelian conception of negativity, Catherine Malabou developed the concept of plasticity which she keeps working on as one of her cardinal concepts even to this day. Engaging in the problematic of unity in Hegel, the paper takes on the task of trying to answer the question whether plasticity is one or are there several plasticities. The author argues that one must be careful not to reduce the inherent multiple of plasticity to (...) a single plasticity which becomes plasticity par excellence: the plasticity of plastic explosion, of an abrupt and absolute break, to be distinguished from a creative or productive plasticity of habit. Malabou claimed that Hegel was - contrary to what Deleuz read in him - a philosopher of conceptual multitude as a multitude which cannot be reduced to only one image, the image of unity. If this is true, then the concept of plasticity itself with which she grasped the essence of Hegel?s dialectics, should be understood at least as a?unity in conflict?, if not as an inorganic, inhomogeneous, composed unity - and perhaps even as a unity of the pack. nema. (shrink)

Domestic abuse is a common occurrence for women in the Christian Church. Underlying this dark reality is a long history of patriarchal theological interpretations that have depicted God as a dominant male figure that subjects women to male hierarchy as a subordinate. Often based on an understanding of Jesus as subordinate to God the Father in the Trinity, the correlated praxis of the Church has commonly been to subject women to suffering at the hands of men – even at the (...) cost of their lives – thus mimicking the death of Christ. This deeply flawed androcentric theology and subsequent praxis of women’s subordination has been severely challenged by liberal feminists, and rightly so for the sake of women’s survival and flourishing. This article utilizes the Social Trinity to provide a Christian feminist critique of patriarchal atonement models and theology towards the feminist goal of liberating women from male-perpetrated violence. Ultimately a reframing of God will be presented that includes women as full persons and calls them to resist the suffering of domestic abuse and to reclaim their full personhood as the imago Dei. (shrink)

Against the idea that comedy offers us a relief from the horrors of the real world, the German-Jewish-American filmmaker Ernst Lubitsch defended his masterpiece _To Be or Not to Be_, a comedy from 1942 about the concurrent Nazi occupation of Poland, with the claim that he had made up his mind “to make a picture with no attempt to relieve anybody from anything at any time.” The essays included in _The Ethics of Ernst Lubitsch_ consider Lubitsch’s work from his early (...) Berlin years to his Hollywood fame, emphasizing the idea of ‘comedy without relief’ as the fundamental ethical premise of his special cinematic ‘touch.’ In this edited collection, contributors take a closer look at how Lubitsch addresses delicate and controversial topics like sexuality, love, and revolution, and set out a picture of an engaged ethics without moralism. _The Ethics of Ernst Lubitsch_ is a vital contribution to film scholarship and a tribute to an essential filmmaker. (shrink)

Під час проведення Круглого столу була розгорнута широка дискусія щодо можливостей досягнення миру в Україні, хоча питання ставилося і більш глобально: чи реально відвернути війну, тобто зняти її з порядку денного для людства взагалі. Були проаналізовані концепції західноєвропейських філософів, які підтримували Кантівську тезу щодо можливості «вічного миру». Заторкувалась тема розвитку технологічної цивілізації, яка начебто сприяє поширенню агресії і агресивної поведінки. Обговорювалось питання: чи можлива трансформація агресії, чи є способи каналізувати її в більш прийнятні форми, або через самовдосконалення людини. Пропонувалось звернутися (...) до практик співіснування, притаманні первісним спільнотам. Наголошувалося на нагальності завдання, яке полягає в тому, щоб знайти належні відповіді на виклики, які ставить перед людством війна в Україні. Або в більш ширшому плані: що має здійснити людство, щоб припинити ті війни, які вже розпочалися, або зробити для тих, хто їх розпочинає, дуже дороговартісною авантюрою. (shrink)

Aristotle listed moderation as one of the moral virtues. He also defined virtue as the mean between extremes, implying that moderation plays a vital role in all forms of moral excellence. But moderation's protean character—its vague and ill-defined omnipresence in judgment and action—makes it exceedingly difficult to grasp theoretically. At the same time, moderation seems to be the foundation of many contemporary democratic political regimes, because the competition between parties cannot properly function without compromise and bargaining. (...) The success of representative government and its institutions depends to a great extent on the virtue of moderation, yet the latter persists in being absent from both the conceptual discourse of many political philosophers and the campaign speeches of politicians fearful of losing elections if they are perceived as moderates. Aurelian Craiutu aims to resolve this paradox. Examining the writings of prominent twentieth-century thinkers such as Raymond Aron, Isaiah Berlin, Norberto Bobbio, Michael Oakeshott, and Adam Michnik, he addresses the following questions: What does it mean to be a moderate voice in political and public life? What are the virtues and limits of moderation? Can moderation be the foundation for a successful platform or party? Though critics maintain that moderation is merely a matter of background and personal temperament, Craiutu finds several basic norms that have consistently appeared in different national and political contexts. The authors studied in this book defended pluralism, of ideas, interests, and social forces, and sought to achieve a sound balance between them through political trimming. They shared a preoccupation with political evil and human dignity, but refused to see the world in Manichaean terms that divide it neatly into the forces of light and those of darkness. Faces of Moderation argues that moderation remains crucial for today's encounters with new forms of extremism and fundamentalism across the world. (shrink)

Democracy in Moderation views constitutional liberal democracy as grounded in a principle of avoiding extremes and striking the right balance among its defining principles of liberty, equality, religion, and sustainable order, thus tempering tendencies toward sectarian excess. Such moderation originally informed liberal democracy, but now is neglected. Moderation can guide us intellectually and practically about domestic and foreign policy debates, but also serve the sustainability of the constitutional, liberal republic as a whole. Our recent theory thus doesn't (...) help our practice, given our concerns about polarization and sectarianism in ideas, policy, and politics. A rediscovery of Montesquieu and his legacy in shaping America's complex political order, including influence on Washington's practical moderation and Tocqueville's philosophical moderation, addresses these enduring theoretical and practical problems. Moderation also offers a deeper theory of leadership or statesmanship, particularly regarding religion and politics, and of foreign policy and strategy rooted in liberal democracy's first principles. (shrink)

This paper examines Plato’s underexplored conception of civic moderation in the Republic. I argue that civic moderation is the virtue of civic unity. It centrally involves friendship among all citizens, best understood as a communion (κοινωνία) characterized by shared goods, collaboration, coordination, and the proper acknowledgment of one another’s contributions to the joint enterprise of living together in a city. The resulting unity is not that of a single person, as Aristotle and later critics contend, but that of (...) colleagues jointly engaged in a shared undertaking. Civic justice provides the conditions under which civic moderation arises and persists. Along the way, I challenge prevailing thin interpretations that reduce moderation to a shared belief about rule or to the subordination of desires or to a combination of the two, and I argue that the virtue instead comprises two robust and mutually sustaining dimensions: a cognitive network of interrelated commitments about civic life, and affective dispositions of respect, trust, and concern that correspond to those commitments. This account illuminates Plato’s view of psychic unity and his reflections on inter-polis relations. -/- . (shrink)

Fostering healthy online conversations is essential to the integrity of public discourse, yet the norms that guide such conversations remain contested and difficult to enforce. This paper develops and empirically grounds a conceptual and empirical framework for understanding and addressing online toxicity. Building on the distinction between epistemic and civil norms, we argue that norm violations are the proper target of moderation. While this paper is primarily conceptual, it is informed by empirical observations drawn from a collaboration with a (...) platform designer. Drawing on a dataset of user comments and responses to moderation scenarios, we identify eight recurring types of norm violations and analyse patterns of user agreements about whether such content should be removed. Our findings reveal that while civil norm violations prompt relatively consistent responses, epistemic violations elicit wide disagreement, raising challenges for universal moderation standards. We conclude by proposing a set of general, evidence-informed principles for platform designers and moderators. These recommendations emphasise context-sensitive moderation, platform affordances that encourage epistemic responsibility, and the integration of civil and epistemic considerations into online infrastructure. Our work bridges theoretical and practical perspectives, offering both conceptual clarity and actionable insights for scholars, designers, and practitioners engaged in shaping healthier digital discourse. (shrink)

This article explores the trends in the implementation of Islamic moderation through aqidah and sharia in Singkawang, as it is considered the most tolerant city in Indonesia based on a research report published in 2019. Using grounded research analysis, the authors found three structured patterns: implementation strategies, implementation processes and implementation patterns. This study shows that these strategies and methods, implemented through a flexible, straightforward and easy-to-implement model are relevant to the fundamental values of Islamic education and offer a (...) means of forming a complete and comprehensive network. These implementation patterns encourage religious communities to develop and maintain healthy social relationships. Hopefully, such implementation patterns can be imitated and modified by policyholders to realise Islam rahmatanlil ‘alamin [as a blessing for all].Contribution: Scholars in the fields may benefit from the findings of the research as it provides a new perspective of the Islamic educational moderation theory grounded from the field research. It argues that the practice of community tolerance, especially by the Muslims, has been based on the good understanding of the theology of Islamic education moderation. Education matters in the process of community peace building and in generating tolerance through the implementation of Islamic moderation values. (shrink)

The digital public forum has challenged many of our normative intuitions and assumptions. Many scholars have argued against the idea of free speech as a suitable guide for digital platforms’ content policies. This paper has two goals. Firstly, it suggests that there is a version of the free speech principle which is suitable for platforms that have adopted a commitment to free speech to guide their content curation strategies. I call it the Principle of Epistemic Resilience. Secondly, it aims to (...) analyze some of the practical implications of the principle. It argues that upholding this principle in the digital public forum requires a comprehensive strategy, including (1) the automated removal and demotion of contents that threaten to cause serious harm; (2) changes to engagement optimization algorithms; and (3) changes to affordances inside the platform. These changes are necessary to create a fertile environment for deliberation, which is crucial to epistemic resilience. If such a comprehensive strategy is absent, platforms may actively undermine the societal value of speech. (shrink)

A decision theory is fanatical if it says that, for any sure thing of getting some finite amount of value, it would be better to almost certainly get nothing while having some tiny probability (no matter how small) of getting sufficiently more finite value. Fanaticism is extremely counterintuitive; common sense requires a more moderate view. However, a recent slew of arguments purport to vindicate it, claiming that moderate alternatives to fanaticism are sometimes similarly counterintuitive, face a powerful continuum argument, and (...) violate widely accepted synchronic and diachronic consistency conditions. In this paper, I defend moderation. I show that certain arguments for fanaticism raise trouble for some versions of moderation—but not for more plausible moderate approaches. Other arguments raise more general difficulties for moderates—but fanatics face these problems too. There is therefore little reason to doubt our commonsensical commitment to moderation, and we can rest easy not worrying too much about tiny probabilities of enormous value. (shrink)

This study aims to clarify certain ideas regarding Al-Yusriyyah Ash-Shdhiliyyah Siddqiyyah Tariqa and its function in religious moderation. Tareqa can be a new formula in realising harmony in religious diversity, in which the teaching principle of Tariqa is the spirit of improving moral and character. This is very important in living in diversity. By implementing Tariqa, a person understands religion not only from the outward side but also from the inner part of religion, so that it is expected to (...) be able to find the substance, namely, the true truth that is universal. From this point of view, the Sufism paradigm seems to have advantages that the person is more tolerant of differences, both internal and external. A field study was conducted to achieve the objective of this research. Particularly, this study used an interdisciplinary approach, that is, a combination of religious and social approaches. A participatory observation, deep interviews and documentations were employed to collect the data of this study. The subjects of this research were adherents of the Tariqa in Cairo, Egypt and Indonesia. This study reveals that Tariqa has teachings and values in realising religious moderation in a plural society. This Tariqa could be an agency of religious moderation. The significance of this study is to prove the power of Tariqa and Sufism as agents of change in plural societies against extremist and intolerable attitudes both between devotees of particular religions and between adherents of different religions. Accordingly, it can promote a peaceful and tolerant way of life and reduce violence. This study supports earlier research that suggested Sufism as an option for governmental action in a plural society to counteract radicalism and intolerance.Contributions: The results of this study are expected to contribute to providing suggestions to the stakeholders in dealing with the rise of religious intolerance and radicalism both globally and locally. Moreover, the ritual, doctrinal and social interaction of Tareqa Al-Yusriyyah As-Siddiqiyyah Ash-Shadhiliyyah can be a source of reference and inspiration for the policy of stakeholders in deradicalising religion and creating religious moderation. (shrink)

The strengthening of intolerance and religious movements of various mass organisations after the 1998 reform in Indonesia caused social friction. The Ministry of Religious offers religious moderation as an essential aspect of the plurality of spiritual life. What is the concept and practice of religious moderation for each mass organisation? This research is qualitatively descriptive, with a sociological approach to religion. The concept of religious moderation of mass organisastions is different; they claim to understand the principle of (...) wasathiyyah so that it becomes a view of life that accepts religious differences outside themselves. Religious moderation is in the form of religious views, attitudes, and behaviours that balance the interests of life, the world and the hereafter, personal with the public, and others. There are four indicators of religious moderation: nationalism, tolerance, non-violence, and local cultural accommodation. MTA understands religious moderation based on two principles: not being self-righteous, and do not blame other groups; FPI departs from its vision, religious moderation over the spirit of ‘amar ma’ruf nahi munkar; LUIS sees religious moderation based on the principles of Islam as a religion of rahmatan lil’alamin, the implications for the balance of the relationship between habl min Allah; habl min an-nass and habl min al-’alam; and MMI understands religious moderation based on three aspects: Islam is a religion that is syumul and rahmatan li’alamin; religious moderation related to sharia enforcement; and religious moderation means that fulfillment of maqashid asy-syariah includes ushul al-khamsah: hifdz al-din, hifdz an-nafs, hifdz al-mal, hifdz al-’aql, and hifdz an-nasb. (shrink)

Montesquieu's respect for moderation is almost universally acknowledged, but not very well understood. In recent scholarship, his moderation has been interpreted as inclusive and pluralistic with a view to the range of regimes that are hospitable to liberty. This paper challenges this currently dominant interpretation of Montesquieu by revisiting his understanding of moderation. On reflection, he does not simply discourage radical change, he even provides advice as to when and how such change is to be enacted. French (...) absolute monarchy requires fundamental change, not least because monarchy as such is not sufficiently accommodating to liberty. While the English commercial republic is better suited to liberty than French monarchy, there is no doubt that monarchy is more attractive than commercial republicanism. Montesquieu offers a profound and perhaps unsettling account of the possible incompatibility of honour, generosity and greatness of spirit, on the one hand, and safety and liberty, on the other. (shrink)

Over recent years, the stakes and complexity of online content moderation have been steadily raised, swelling from concerns about personal conflict in smaller communities to worries about effects on public life and democracy. Because of the massive growth in online expressions, automated tools based on machine learning are increasingly used to moderate speech. While ‘design-based governance’ through complex algorithmic techniques has come under intense scrutiny, critical research covering algorithmic content moderation is still rare. To add to our understanding (...) of concrete instances of machine moderation, this article examines Perspective API, a system for the automated detection of ‘toxicity’ developed and run by the Google unit Jigsaw that can be used by websites to help moderate their forums and comment sections. The article proceeds in four steps. First, we present our methodological strategy and the empirical materials we were able to draw on, including interviews, documentation, and GitHub repositories. We then summarize our findings along five axes to identify the various threads Perspective API brings together to deliver a working product. The third section discusses two conflicting organizational logics within the project, paying attention to both critique and what can be learned from the specific case at hand. We conclude by arguing that the opposition between ‘human’ and ‘machine’ in speech moderation obscures the many ways these two come together in concrete systems, and suggest that the way forward requires proactive engagement with the design of technologies as well as the institutions they are embedded in. (shrink)

Jan-Werner Müller argues convincingly that any talk about institutions (and consequentially of the crisis of democracy today) takes us back to the principles they embody. ‘Return to the first princ...

National strategies to curb religious intolerance often struggle to engage the complex, lived realities of the communities they aim to regulate. This study analysed the disconnect between official state discourse and the actual practice of interfaith relations at the grassroots level. The research was situated within three Protestant denominations across the culturally distinct and historically pluralistic landscape of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. A phenomenological-hermeneutical framework was employed during the qualitative phase of a mixed-method study, utilising in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, field (...) observations and document analysis grounded in Paul Ricoeur’s narrative identity theory. The findings revealed that while state terminology remained alien to congregants, harmony was organically sustained through local cultural vernaculars such as Siangga’ [mutual respect] and Sipakatau [to humanise humans]. These indigenous values, rather than bureaucratic compliance, provided the resilience needed to navigate historical trauma. It was concluded that authentic moderation was a narrative achievement of the community rather than a product of policy, requiring a theological shift that prioritises indigenous wisdom over prescriptive definitions. Contribution: This article contributes to public theology by proposing a ‘Lived Theology of Moderation’ that challenges state-centric approaches. It demonstrates how indigenous cultural forms function as legitimate theological frameworks for interreligious peace, offering a resilient ecclesiological model for navigating the tension between national ideology and local identity. (shrink)

It is the Right that has inherited the ambitious modernist urge to destroy and innovate in the name of a universal project. Through the war in Iraq through the unrequited desire to dismantle public...

This paper explores the morality of human content moderation. It focuses on content moderation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) as it takes place in commercial digital platforms, broadly understood. I select CSAM for examination because there is a widespread and uncontroversial consensus around the need to remove it, which furnishes the strongest possible argument for human content moderation. The paper makes the case that, even if we grant that social media platforms or chatbots are a valuable—or (...) inevitable— force in current societies, and even if moderation plays an important role in protecting users and society more generally from the detrimental effects of these digital tools, it is far from clear that tasking humans to conduct such moderation is permissible without constraints, given the psychic toll of the practice on moderators. While a blanket prohibition of human moderation would be objectionable, given the benefits of the practice, it behooves us to identify the fundamental interests affected by the harms of human moderation, the obligations that platforms acquire to protect such interests, and the conditions under which their realization is in fact possible. I argue that the failure to comply with certain standards renders human moderation impermissible. (shrink)

Research exploring how students develop their perspectives on religious moderation through reading and understanding the Qur’an is underexplored. This study aims to investigate students’ religious literacy tenet as a process of constructing meaning about religious moderation from the verses of the Qur’an. The participants involved were three students with an excellent ability to read the Qur’an and who had a great interest in the study of the Qur’an. The data were collected through the process of reading the verses (...) of the Qur’an and its textual and contextual translation. The results of this study indicate that students with high translation amendments tend to have more ability to interpret the verses of the Qur’an widely as a form of verbalisation of thoughts.Contribution: This study provides clarification on student interactions, the interpretation process and the construction of the meaning of the verses of the Qur’an. Furthermore, the results of this study encourage lecturers to reconstruct the process of learning to read the Qur’an at the university level. (shrink)

The spread of fake news online has far reaching implications for the lives of people offline. There is increasing pressure for content sharing platforms to intervene and mitigate the spread of fake news, but intervention spawns accusations of biased censorship. The tension between fair moderation and censorship highlights two related problems that arise in flagging online content as fake or legitimate: firstly, what kind of content counts as a problem such that it should be flagged, and secondly, is it (...) practically and theoretically possible to gather and label instances of such content in an unbiased manner? In this paper, I argue that answering either question involves making value judgements that can generate user distrust toward fact checking efforts. (shrink)

The "World Converts Day" narrative represents more than a simple viral hoax—it embodies the complex interplay between digital disinformation ecosystems, institutional religious authority, and Indonesia's ongoing project of maintaining religious harmony within democratic pluralism. While factually baseless, its persistence demonstrates how digital spaces can amplify marginal voices into seemingly legitimate movements that challenge established frameworks of religious moderation. Countering such narratives requires more than fact-checking; it demands rebuilding institutional credibility, strengthening digital literacy across demographic groups, and consistently modeling inclusive (...) religious engagement through concrete policies and practices. Indonesia's experience suggests that sustainable religious harmony in the digital age requires proactive institutional positioning rather than merely reactive corrections. The true measure of success lies not in eliminating controversial narratives entirely—which may be impossible—but in ensuring they remain marginal to mainstream religious discourse where moderation, dialogue, and mutual respect remain the dominant paradigms. (shrink)

Centuries after his death, al-Ghazali remains one of the most influential figures of the Islamic intellectual tradition. Although he is best known for his _Incoherence of the Philosophers_, _Moderation in Belief_ is his most profound work of philosophical theology. In it_,_ he offers what scholars consider to be the best defense of the Ash'arite school of Islamic theology that gained acceptance within orthodox Sunni theology in the twelfth century, though he also diverges from Ash'arism with his more rationalist approach to (...) the _Quran_. Together with _The Incoherence of the Philosophers_, _Moderation in Belief_ informs many subsequent theological debates, and its influence extends beyond the Islamic tradition, informing broader questions within Western philosophical and theological thought. The first complete English-language edition of _Moderation in Belief_, this new annotated translation by Aladdin M. Yaqub draws on the most esteemed critical editions of the Arabic texts and offers detailed commentary that analyzes and reconstructs the arguments found in the work’s four treatises. Explanations of the historical and intellectual background of the texts also enable readers with a limited knowledge of classical Arabic to fully explore al-Ghazali and this foundational text for the first time. With the recent resurgence of interest in Islamic philosophy and the conflict between philosophy and religion, this new translation will be a welcome addition to the scholarship. (shrink)

Ιn this paper I aim to analyze Aristotle’s account of political justice (to politikon dikaion) in both the Nicomachean Ethics and the Politics, since it is these accounts that are most relevant to his advocacy of moderation and mixed constitution, and I aim to show how justice and equality are crucial for the promotion of the common interest of the polis. In addition, I explore the connection made between justice, equality, democracy, liberty, and friendship, and attempt to further excavate (...) Aristotle’s conception of political justice and moderation in the polis. We will see how this bears on questions in contemporary political philosophy concerning the role of justice as the most fundamental virtue for society, and as an institution that serves to fix the limits of human conduct and to settle the principles specifying the just distribution of benefits and burdens in a democratic society of equals. (shrink)

Despite assuming lead roles during the critical constitution making stage of power transitions, Islamist parties in Turkey, Tunisia, and Egypt adopted very different strategies in the process, which produced very different outcomes. Using insights from regime transition literature, this article undertakes an empirical analysis of the observed behavior of Islamist political parties in these countries to address the question of Islam, human rights, and constitution-making. In doing so, the article treats constitution-making as a key stage of democratization and challenges the (...) commonly held assumption that conflict is undesirable for democratization in general and constitution-making in particular. The article demonstrates that consensus is not a prerequisite of democracy, as is commonly believed, but rather a by-product of the democratization process. Moreover, it argues that a serious conflict during the high-stake process of constitution-making may even be necessary. The findings suggest that the outcome of constitution-making does not depend upon the presence or absence of cleavages and entrenched conflict, but rather the approach of the key political actors to conflict in terms of its elimination, management or avoidance. The article utilizes process-tracing methods to compare and analyze the strategies of Islamist political parties within the Tunisian, Turkish, and Egyptian political contexts. Specifically, this article advances a two-pronged thesis. First, the outcome of constitutional processes in these three countries is closely related to the different strategies of conflict management practiced by Islamist political parties: Turkey’s Islamists employed a strategy of delaying constitution-making to ensure they had maximum leverage over the process – what I call a politics of hegemony. Egyptian Islamists, feeling in a “use it or lose it” type of moment for shaping the future of the country’s politics, played a game of chicken vis-a-vis the army and secular civil society activists – an approach that can be called a politics of confrontation. The Tunisian Islamists demonstrated pragmatism and moderation in the constitutional process to survive the increasingly unified opposition from the civil society and other political parties, which can be called a politics of compromise. Such divergence of Islamist politics raises the question of how Islamists form their strategies. The second prong of this article’s thesis is that the specific distribution of power among the actors constrains or enables Islamist actors to act in hegemonic, confrontational, and pragmatic ways. Political contexts with a stable balance of power among the state, political society, and civil society are more likely to produce politics of compromise, whereas unstable power distribution leads to a politics of confrontation, and uneven power distribution leads to a politics of hegemony. By treating constitution-making as a stage of regime transition, this study offers insights that bridge the literature on democratization and constitutionalism, and by examining variation in Islamist politics it contributes to the debate on human rights promotion in the Muslim world. The lessons from this earlier period of power transitions also shed light on the reasons for the fragility of gains in democratization and dynamics behind authoritarian backsliding during the following decade. (shrink)

In the opening chapter of his Essay Concerning Human Understanding, John Locke explains that the self-understanding or self-measure of the human mind includes an account of the mind’s limits, and so the mind’s self-understanding can provide adequate grounds for intellectual self-moderation or self-control: “If we can find out, how far the Understanding can extend its view; how far it has Faculties to attain Certainty; and in what Cases it can only judge and guess, we may learn to content our (...) selves with what is attainable by us in this State.” Furthermore: “If we can find out those Measures, whereby a rational Creature put in that State, which Man is in, in this World, may, and ought to govern his Opinions, and Actions depending thereon, we need not be troubled, that some other things escape our Knowledge.” Compared to Locke’s Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Fichte’s Wissenschaftslehre may appear to exemplify the very opposite of intellectual modesty and self-control. Unlike Locke, Fichte argues that a true system of knowledge should not seek to limit or moderate itself by reference to what is allegedly unknowable outside of it. A true system of knowledge, writes Fichte, “... only has to agree with itself. It can be explained only by itself, and it can be proven - or refuted - only on its own terms.” Furthermore, Fichte suggests that an appreciation of his system of knowledge requires not modesty in his readers, but rather an implicit sense of superiority: “I wish to have nothing to do with those who, as a result of protracted spiritual servitude, have lost their own selves and, along with this loss of themselves, have lost any feeling for their own conviction...” In this essay, I shall seek to show that, contrary to initial impressions, it is Fichtean idealism, and not Lockean (or any similar) realism, that is truly modest. According to my account, Locke’s explicit declarations concerning the modesty and limitedness of his own project exhibit a certain ignorance concerning the genuine problems at issue. In his claim to be modest, the realist Locke professes to know more than he actually does, and thus manifests his own immodesty. By contrast, the idealist Fichte must refrain from such direct claims to modesty and must appear to be immodest, precisely because he has a greater understanding of how radically limited human knowledge always is. Like Plato’s Charmides, Fichte realizes that any explicit claim to self-limitation and self-moderation would actually give lie to itself. (shrink)

In Indonesia, violence in the name of religion has occurred many times since the reformation began. The trigger is religious fundamentalism and radicalism that increases and affects intolerant actions, inter-religious conflicts and even terrorism. The Indonesian government has initiated religious moderation through the Ministry of Religion to minimise the negative impacts of excessive religious fanaticism. Christians, who are often victims of many acts of violence, should evaluate the religious practices that have been carried out so far. The mission of (...) Christian evangelism has been a scourge that triggered anti-Christian sentiments, thus giving rise to the stigma of Christianisation. One of the most energetic Christian groups with an evangelistic mission is the Pentecostal group. This article aims to propose constructing the Pentecostal mission, which is rooted in the religious life of the early church as a mission model, through the discourse of their hospitality. The thesis is that hospitality, especially embodied by the early church, expresses a moderate religious way. Therefore, this mission is very suitable to be implemented by Pentecostal groups in Indonesia, which takes a theological locus on the Pentecost narratives in Acts 2.Contribution: This article addresses early church hospitality as a discourse of Pentecostal mission, especially in Indonesia. This article considers that hospitality can be a model for doing church missions in the frame of religious moderation in Indonesia. (shrink)

Religious moderation is an important element for the church in facing the challenges of Indonesia’s multicultural society. As a strategy, religious moderation emphasises tolerance and interfaith dialogue, allowing the church to carry out an inclusive evangelistic mission without sacrificing its doctrinal identity. This approach is relevant in the era of globalisation, where differences are often a source of conflict. With the integration of local values, the use of technology and interfaith dialogue, the church can be an agent of (...) harmony widely accepted by society. Based on the mission theology of Orlando E. Costas and Kosuke Koyama, this study proposes a contextual and transformative mission model that emphasises Christ’s love. Constructive qualitative analysis develops theological concepts relevant to religious moderation in a pluralistic society. The study results indicate that the religious moderation approach effectively reduces conflict and strengthens the church’s role as a facilitator of dialogue and social transformation. This study offers strategic guidance for the church in carrying out a peaceful, relevant and contextual evangelistic mission amidst cultural and religious diversity.Contribution: This study bridges mission theology with multiculturalism and digital technology studies, providing a strategic perspective for the church in conducting contextual missions. This study also contributes to the discourse of inter-religious peace through inter-religious dialogue and inclusive social approaches. (shrink)

In communities of user-generated content, systems for the management of content and/or their contributors are usually accepted without much protest. Not so, however, in the case of Wikipedia, in which the proposal to introduce a system of review for new edits (in order to counter vandalism) led to heated discussions. This debate is analysed, and arguments of both supporters and opponents (of English, German and French tongue) are extracted from Wikipedian archives. In order to better understand this division of the (...) minds, an analogy is drawn with theories of bureaucracy as developed for real-life organizations. From these it transpires that bureaucratic rules may be perceived as springing from either a control logic or an enabling logic. In Wikipedia, then, both perceptions were at work, depending on the underlying views of participants. Wikipedians either rejected the proposed scheme (because it is antithetical to their conception of Wikipedia as a community) or endorsed it (because it is consonant with their conception of Wikipedia as an organization with clearly defined boundaries). Are other open-content communities susceptible to the same kind of ‘essential contestation’? (shrink)

This introduction to the Global Media Journal – German Edition’s Special Section on content moderation critically examines the governance challenges of regulating online content in the digital age. It argues that the removal of content deemed illicit, detrimental or otherwise unacceptable by established standards is often framed as neutral gatekeeping even though it operates within contested power dynamics that lack rigorous and sound frameworks to assess its real-world impacts on freedom of expression, safety, and social justice. The authors highlight (...) historical parallels to pre-modern censorship struggles following the invention of the printing press, emphasising that digital public spheres require forms of robust civility, not mere technical fixes. Current practices of content moderation reveal deep tensions: platforms increasingly employ automated systems for this endeavour, yet this risks amplifying harmful content and creating ethical dilemmas, while low-wage, high-stress labour conditions for human moderators (“clickworkers”) expose systemic exploitation. The Special Section addresses these gaps through four case studies. (shrink)

Harmony between religious communities has become a best practice in the lives of Muslims and Hindus in Indonesia. This study aims to prove the existence of a space of moderation created by two religious groups that live side by side, and religious differences can create social harmonization. This study used a qualitative descriptive method with a field approach. This study was conducted in Sunda Kelapa village, Central Bengkulu Regency, Bengkulu, Indonesia. Research data was obtained using interviews, observation, and documentation. (...) The data analysis of this research was carried out in three stages, namely data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion. The results show that the moderation space is built on social interaction awareness to build a peaceful life together in social harmonization. A moderation model based on religious and cultural wisdom can be developed as a collective foundation in building a harmonious community life. (shrink)

The erroneous interpretations of religious teachings in societies are leading to extremism and liberalism, fostering animosity among religious adherents. This underscores the pressing need for religious moderation. Therefore, this study aimed to map and analyse the reception and responses of the local church to the government’s call for religious moderation, particularly in local church in Maluku and North Maluku, Indonesia. It also explored the understanding of how religious moderation was implemented in church programmes and practices. Using qualitative (...) methods, this study examined religious moderation in the context of the Maluku Protestant Church (GPM). Data were collected through church document analysis, interviews and reviews of news in print and electronic media. The results showed that GPM had long championed religious moderation, specifically in addressing the 1999–2002 communal conflict in Maluku and North Maluku with terminologies distinct from those promoted by the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Furthermore, various programmes and initiatives have been undertaken by GPM at the synodal, classis and congregational levels, which correlated with efforts to promote religious moderation. These included innovative methods customised to support interfaith harmony and social cohesion. This study implies that locally rooted religious moderation models, such as that of GPM, can serve as valuable alternatives or complements to state-driven narratives in promoting interfaith harmony. Contribution: This study contributed to developing religious moderation from the ‘grassroots’ side. Therefore, the analysis was part of the government’s socialisation and further driven by the local church, which played a crucial role as an agent of peace in Maluku and North Maluku. (shrink)

Political moderation is the touchstone of democracy, which could not function without compromise and bargaining, yet it is one of the most understudied concepts in political theory. How can we explain this striking paradox? Why do we often underestimate the virtue of moderation? Seeking to answer these questions, A Virtue for Courageous Minds examines moderation in modern French political thought and sheds light on the French Revolution and its legacy. Aurelian Craiutu begins with classical thinkers who extolled (...) the virtues of a moderate approach to politics, such as Aristotle and Cicero. He then shows how Montesquieu inaugurated the modern rebirth of this tradition by laying the intellectual foundations for moderate government. Craiutu looks at important figures such as Jacques Necker, Madame de Staël, and Benjamin Constant, not only in the context of revolutionary France but throughout Europe. He traces how moderation evolves from an individual moral virtue into a set of institutional arrangements calculated to protect individual liberty, and he explores the deep affinity between political moderation and constitutional complexity. Craiutu demonstrates how moderation navigates between political extremes, and he challenges the common notion that moderation is an essentially conservative virtue, stressing instead its eclectic nature. Drawing on a broad range of writings in political theory, the history of political thought, philosophy, and law, A Virtue for Courageous Minds reveals how the virtue of political moderation can address the profound complexities of the world today. (shrink)