Jonathan Patterson

‘Your Research May Lead You Where You Do Not Want to Go: Studying Villainy as a Christian’
Video

Is it ever right to kill a tyrant? What if you think God is telling you to kill the king? Who or what is a terrorist in early seventeenth-century France and how do you punish a regicide? These kinds of questions pose an anthropological conundrum: the problem of containing transgressive behaviour that overflows the limits of human punishment. We will explore these themes and discuss moving beyond anthropology, the satanic dimension of villainy, and towards the theology of containment, feeling the offense, and responding with grace.