Bernardo Bortolin Kerr | University of Nottingham (original) (raw)

Uploads

Papers by Bernardo Bortolin Kerr

Research paper thumbnail of An Overview of Bahá'í Eschatology, In a Tapestry of Five Strands

FILE REMOVED – Published here: https://brill.com/view/title/59710 This paper represents an attem... more FILE REMOVED – Published here: https://brill.com/view/title/59710

This paper represents an attempt to highlight and draw together five main threads in the Bahá'í conception of Apocalypse, or Revelation. It begins with a survey of some of the more notable examples of scholarship brought to my attention on the theme and goes on to introduce a selection of significant references to Apocalypse in the Bahá'í writings. The majority of the essay is then spent identifying and delineating the five strands I consider integral to an understanding of Bahá'í eschatology: the form of Revelation in which God created the potential for all created things, so that He could be known; God's Revelation by means of His reflection, to varying degrees, in all created things; the Apocalypse inherent in the appearance to humanity of Manifestations of God (divine Messengers such as Christ, Muhammad and Bahá'u'lláh); the progressive nature of these appearances in the manner in which each new Revelation marks a Day of Judgement and a Day of Resurrection for those preceding it; the historical manifestation of Apocalypse. I conclude by tying these strands together in an exploration of the process by which God's eternal presence becomes manifested in the world.

Research paper thumbnail of The Humanity of Evil: Bahá'í Reflections on 'The Act of Killing'

This paper is a theological study of evil and the treatment of evil, approaching the subject thro... more This paper is a theological study of evil and the treatment of evil, approaching the subject through an exploration of the 2012 documentary The Act of Killing, directed by Joshua Oppenheimer, and the scriptures of the Bahá’í Faith. Throughout the paper I draw on the already vast quantity of text written in response to the film, including numerous interviews, articles and essays. I also draw on the texts of various key thinkers, such as Paulo Freire, Paul Ricoeur and Stanley Cavell, among others. I begin the paper by looking at the part evil plays in a Bahá’í theological, or spiritual, anthropology, referring also to the theory of evil exposed in Pseudo-Dionysius’ The Divine Names and drawing on the many illuminating comments on evil made by Oppenheimer himself. From this section I move on to a study of the ways in which the human is dehumanised by acts of evil, most of all the perpetrator, who dehumanises himself by the mere intention of harming another. I particularly focus on the ways in which the characters in the film demonstrate a disordered sense of value. In the next section I examine the way in which the very approach of the film, which centres on the perpetrators re-enacting their crimes, leads to them recognising their alienation from their own humanity, from their own selves, reflected in the fantasy of their narratives of justification. I then explore how, as the audience, we must in turn see ourselves reflected in the characters on the screen if we are to overcome, both in ourselves and in others, the dehumanisation, and its perpetuation, that we might suffer in even our most seemingly inconsequential acts of evil. Finally, I conclude with a section on forgiveness, in which I suggest an approach to forgiveness that, using the “mirroring” effect of the film, neither merely forgets nor clings to blame, instead seeking a merciful love that is itself the most just punishment.

Research paper thumbnail of Fantasy, Borges and the Map to the Territory

Research paper thumbnail of The Death of Death: A Study of Self-Annihilation and Suicide in the Light of Sufi Thought and the Early Writings of Bahá'u'lláh

Everyone on earth perishes; all that remains is the Face of your Lord.

Research paper thumbnail of In the Brilliant Darkness of a Hidden Silence: Denial and Affirmation in Pseudo-Dionysius

In this essay I will explore PseudoDionysius' radical approach to theology, focusing on its expos... more In this essay I will explore PseudoDionysius' radical approach to theology, focusing on its exposition in The Divine Names and The Mystical Theology. While drawing primarily from these texts and referencing other comparable texts and approaches I will look at four main themes, beginning with a study of what theology involves in its most crucial role and what it must say of God. From this premise I will move on to an investigation of theology as the completion of language and that which reminds us of what it means to use language. This theme will lead to an exploration of how the fulfilment of the human may be considered as the embodiment of the remembrance of God, beyond all conceptions. Finally, I will look at Dionysius' treatment of the question of evil, taking into account the previous three sections and suggesting the possibility, through a living practise of theology, of a loving perspective on the issue.

Research paper thumbnail of An Overview of Bahá'í Eschatology, In a Tapestry of Five Strands

FILE REMOVED – Published here: https://brill.com/view/title/59710 This paper represents an attem... more FILE REMOVED – Published here: https://brill.com/view/title/59710

This paper represents an attempt to highlight and draw together five main threads in the Bahá'í conception of Apocalypse, or Revelation. It begins with a survey of some of the more notable examples of scholarship brought to my attention on the theme and goes on to introduce a selection of significant references to Apocalypse in the Bahá'í writings. The majority of the essay is then spent identifying and delineating the five strands I consider integral to an understanding of Bahá'í eschatology: the form of Revelation in which God created the potential for all created things, so that He could be known; God's Revelation by means of His reflection, to varying degrees, in all created things; the Apocalypse inherent in the appearance to humanity of Manifestations of God (divine Messengers such as Christ, Muhammad and Bahá'u'lláh); the progressive nature of these appearances in the manner in which each new Revelation marks a Day of Judgement and a Day of Resurrection for those preceding it; the historical manifestation of Apocalypse. I conclude by tying these strands together in an exploration of the process by which God's eternal presence becomes manifested in the world.

Research paper thumbnail of The Humanity of Evil: Bahá'í Reflections on 'The Act of Killing'

This paper is a theological study of evil and the treatment of evil, approaching the subject thro... more This paper is a theological study of evil and the treatment of evil, approaching the subject through an exploration of the 2012 documentary The Act of Killing, directed by Joshua Oppenheimer, and the scriptures of the Bahá’í Faith. Throughout the paper I draw on the already vast quantity of text written in response to the film, including numerous interviews, articles and essays. I also draw on the texts of various key thinkers, such as Paulo Freire, Paul Ricoeur and Stanley Cavell, among others. I begin the paper by looking at the part evil plays in a Bahá’í theological, or spiritual, anthropology, referring also to the theory of evil exposed in Pseudo-Dionysius’ The Divine Names and drawing on the many illuminating comments on evil made by Oppenheimer himself. From this section I move on to a study of the ways in which the human is dehumanised by acts of evil, most of all the perpetrator, who dehumanises himself by the mere intention of harming another. I particularly focus on the ways in which the characters in the film demonstrate a disordered sense of value. In the next section I examine the way in which the very approach of the film, which centres on the perpetrators re-enacting their crimes, leads to them recognising their alienation from their own humanity, from their own selves, reflected in the fantasy of their narratives of justification. I then explore how, as the audience, we must in turn see ourselves reflected in the characters on the screen if we are to overcome, both in ourselves and in others, the dehumanisation, and its perpetuation, that we might suffer in even our most seemingly inconsequential acts of evil. Finally, I conclude with a section on forgiveness, in which I suggest an approach to forgiveness that, using the “mirroring” effect of the film, neither merely forgets nor clings to blame, instead seeking a merciful love that is itself the most just punishment.

Research paper thumbnail of Fantasy, Borges and the Map to the Territory

Research paper thumbnail of The Death of Death: A Study of Self-Annihilation and Suicide in the Light of Sufi Thought and the Early Writings of Bahá'u'lláh

Everyone on earth perishes; all that remains is the Face of your Lord.

Research paper thumbnail of In the Brilliant Darkness of a Hidden Silence: Denial and Affirmation in Pseudo-Dionysius

In this essay I will explore PseudoDionysius' radical approach to theology, focusing on its expos... more In this essay I will explore PseudoDionysius' radical approach to theology, focusing on its exposition in The Divine Names and The Mystical Theology. While drawing primarily from these texts and referencing other comparable texts and approaches I will look at four main themes, beginning with a study of what theology involves in its most crucial role and what it must say of God. From this premise I will move on to an investigation of theology as the completion of language and that which reminds us of what it means to use language. This theme will lead to an exploration of how the fulfilment of the human may be considered as the embodiment of the remembrance of God, beyond all conceptions. Finally, I will look at Dionysius' treatment of the question of evil, taking into account the previous three sections and suggesting the possibility, through a living practise of theology, of a loving perspective on the issue.