In this paper, we describe the potential role laypersons on ethics committees can play in ensuring community concerns are addressed in the design and implementation of genomic research. We draw inferences from the outcome of an empirical study of the impact of training of laypersons to address community engagement issues in ethics review of research protocol. While this paper does not advocate a particular solution, it describes the importance of community engagement in genomic research, the current limitations there are in (...) engaging communities in the design of these research projects and how communities can be indirectly engaged in the design and implementation of genomic research through the engagement of laypersons on ethics committees. However, to ensure that these laypersons can play this role, their capacity needs to be built to play this role appropriately. There is evidence to show that where resources are invested in building the capacity of laypersons to play their role as community ‘watchdogs’ in research, they play this role aptly. Community engagement is important in genomic research as genomic researchers will increasingly require community perspectives in critical ethics decision making. (shrink)

This article studies Augustine’s Eucharistic Spirituality as it emerges primarily from his preaching, in his catechesis during the Easter Season. It investigates how the bishop of Hippo explains to the neophytes the transformation that makes bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ in order to ignite their awareness about what it is that they receive at the Altar. It further considers what Augustine indicates as the spiritual disposition necessary for the reception of the sacrament and its effects (...) in the life of those who worthily share in it. Finally, the article explores the link Augustine establishes between the Eucharist and the Church to demonstrate the importance of Unity among those who approach the Altar of the Lord and the need to continuously become what we receive even today as we perpetuate the memorial of the Lord in our Eucharistic celebrations. (shrink)

Augustine’s teaching on wealth and poverty, on the relations between the poor and the rich has been extensively studied in the past few decades. However, much attention has not been given to his considerations on the prosperity of the wicked and the tendency of the faithful to serve God for an immediate material reward. In this paper, I examine the bishop of Hippo’s preaching on this question. Predominantly, in his Sermones ad populum and Enarrationes in Psalmos, Augustine constantly calls his (...) flock to acknowledge the author of prosperity and of all good things as the Supreme Good, and to prefer him to all the ephemerous possessions they may have in this world. Above all, he encourages the faithful to despise the prosperity of the wicked which is only apparent and to hope for God himself their reward for serving him. (shrink)

Sommaire : Augustin est connu pour son esprit de service qui le porte à produire des écrits en réponse aux requêtes d’amis, de connaissances ou même de personnes étrangères qui sollicitent son aide. En 410, il reçoit une lettre (ep. 117) de Carthage, de la part de Dioscorus, jeune homme d’origine grecque, qui lui envoie de nombreuses questions sur les dialogues de Cicéron. Sa recherche est motivée par la crainte de paraître ignorant devant ceux qui lui poseraient des questions sur (...) ces sujets de retour dans sa patrie. Augustin saisit l’occasion pour le détourner des ambitions de la vaine gloire et lui montre, en exposant sa connaissance des écoles philosophiques antiques, qu’il ne sert à rien de s’imbiber des opinions des philosophes quand on ne recherche pas dans l’humilité la vérité elle-même. Cet article présente et analyse l’exposé d’Augustin des théories et des contradictions de ces philosophies antiques, et montre les recours aux références bibliques presque inaperçues présentes dans la lettre. (shrink)

This paper investigates Augustine’s Letter 111 to expose the Bishop of Hippo’s stand on the problem of violent sexual abuse perpetrated on Catholic nuns and its consequence on their integrity. Having presented the general historical and sociopolitical context in which the letter was written, it surveys the question of violence in Augustine’s epistolary in general. The analysis of the final section of the Letter 111 shows that according to Augustine, despite the defloration of their virginity, raped holy women do not (...) lose their chastity so long as in their mind, they did not consent to lust. (shrink)

This paper is about the contribution of Saint Augustine to the reform of the Catholic Church in North Africa, through his ministry of preaching. When he was still a priest at Hippo, Augustine waged a forceful and successful war against some pagan practices which had gradually crept into the Church. The common practice of celebrating the dead in the Roman world was being applied to the Saints of the Church and Christians were celebrating their memory by getting drunk. The prohibition (...) of such practices by the authority of the Church met with the resistance of the faithful, so Augustine decided to act precisely through the power of the Word he proclaimed to his flock. In his Letter 29 addressed to Alypius the Bishop of Thagaste, he narrates how he convinced the faithful to stop the celebration of the feast called Laetitia on the feast day of Saint Leontius. After sketching the background of the devotion to the Saints in North Africa, our study examines the line of Augustine’s argumentation that led to the success of this preaching, and hence shows how he contributed to the reform of the Church of his day. (shrink)

This paper attempts to critique the existential philosophy of Martin Buber’s theory of the “I-Thou” using the Yoruba concept of okun omo iya. The need for the realization of a sustainable environment has been a point of focus for researchers, scholars, and government policy makers. The reason for this realization is not far-fetched. According to a record from World Health Organisation (WHO), one-quarter of all deaths worldwide are attributed to over-exploitation and reckless usage of the environment. This undoubtedly has caused (...) several human-induced disasters such as floods. The reckless usage and abuse of the environment is predicated on the domineering tendency of humans towards the environment. Martin Buber, in his existentialist philosophy, argues that humans should treat their relations as “I-Thou” (as subjects) and not as “I-It” (as objects). It follows that humans must be considerate in relating with each other such that fellow humans should not be treated as a means to an end, rather as ends in themselves. Simply put, fellow humans should not be seen as objects that others can either control, dominate, or subdue. However, Buber’s existentialist philosophy is human-centered, as it excludes the non-human entities and as well, failed to explain the relationship that should exist between humans and non-human entities. Hence, the Yoruba concept of okun omo iya will be used as a paradigm to remodel and re-configure the existentialist philosophy of Buber in a way that is environmentally inclusive. (shrink)

This paper describes a three-year project designed to build the capacity of members of research ethics committes to perform their roles and responsibilities efficiently and effectively. The project participants were made up of a cross-section of the membership of 13 Research Ethics Committees (RECs) functioning in Nigeria. They received training to develop their capacity to evaluate research protocols, monitor trial implementation, provide constructive input to trial staff, and assess the trial's success in promoting community engagement in the research. Following the (...) training, technical assistance was provided to participants on an ongoing basis and the project's impacts were assessed quantitatively and qualitatively. Results indicate that sustained investment in capacity building efforts (including training, ongoing technical assistance, and the provision of multiple tools) improved the participants’ knowledge of both the ethical principles relevant to biomedical research and how effective REC should function. Such investment was also shown to have a positive impact on the knowledge levels of other RECs members (those who did not receive training) and the overall operations of the RECs to which the participants belonged. Building the capacity of REC members to fulfill their roles effectively requires sustained effort and investment and pays off by enabling RECs to fulfill their essential mission of ensuring that trials are conducted safely and ethically. (shrink)

This paper gives an ethical argument for temporarily waiving intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines. It examines two proposals under discussion at the World Trade Organization : the India/South Africa proposal and the WTO Director General proposal. Section I explains the background leading up to the WTO debate. Section II rebuts ethical arguments for retaining current IP protections, which appeal to benefiting society by spurring innovation and protecting rightful ownership. It sets forth positive ethical arguments for a temporary waiver that (...) appeal to standing in solidarity and holding companies accountable. After examining built-in exceptions to existing agreements and finding them inadequate, the paper replies to objections to a temporary waiver and concludes, in section III, that the ethical argument for temporarily waiving IP protection for COVID-19 vaccines is strong. There are no data in this work. (shrink)

This book aims to give a coherent interpretation of the whole dialogue, paying particular attention to these etymologies.The book discusses the rival theories ...

It is Frege's third contribution that makes the point of departure for the present paper. Not merely did Frege show how to manipulate symbols more exactly; he also gave a searching account of what these symbols mean. Consider a philosophical problem that arises out of the simplest arithmetic. When we say that 5 = 2 + 3, what do we mean? Do we mean that 5 is identical with 2 + 3? But in some ways 5 and 2 + 3 (...) are obviously different. Or do we mean that 5 and 2 + 3 are equal but not identical, equality being a relation that falls short of complete identity? But in that case, some ordinary ways of speaking in mathematics must be false. Suppose a pupil is asked for the positive square root of 25. The phrasing of the question implies that there is one and only one. No doubt he may answer, '5'. But then it follows that the answer '2 + 3' is not allowable, since ex hypothesi 5 and 2 + 3, though equal, are not identical. Yet ordinarily the answer '2 + 3' would be regarded as strange but not as wrong. (shrink)

Lectures based on the commentaries on Brahmasūtra of Bādarāyaṇa.

Study on the contributions of Śaṅkarācārya to Hindu philosophy.

Comprehensive analysis of fundaentals of Sankhya philosophy with reference to Vedic literature and Śaṅkarācārya.