Homiletical-liturgical perspectives on life in the Anthropocene: the preeminence of peoples cognition

Abstract

The central theme of this article is the matter of church participants’ engagement in liturgy andhow this could enhance their capacity for making moral decisions when it comes to life in theAnthropocene. First, one should acknowledge that liturgists in faith communities have to dealwith the notion of people enclaved in the idea of homeless minds. They are exposed to contra-dictory views on reality. The concept of cognitive dissonance needs to be addressed, and withoutconstructive homiletical-liturgical address of this matter, it will lead to people looking for answerselsewhere. Liturgy inevitably enables participants to see things they do not or may not want to.People want to make sense of life and experiences in daily life, a process well-known as cognition.It should also be acknowledged that without reflection on the functioning of attitudes withinWeltanschauung’s framework, numerous challenges for any debate on life in the Anthropocenewill be experienced. First, this article offers a description of the currently concerning aspectsto be found under this rubric. Second, systemizing perspectives based on the philosophy of reli-gion, anthropology, bioethics, and cognitive psychology are examined as centered on the intimateinterplay with ethical conduct in viewing the world and liturgy. Finally, the following research ques-tion is formulated and briefly discussed: How could a homiletical-liturgical praxeology dealing withthe homeless mind enable its participants to cultivate a Weltanschauung committed to a focusedinterest in the Anthropocene? The methodological approach of Browning has been carefully iden-tified to arrange the research into coherent phases and reflect on the research question