Anger and Injustice

Abstract

Individual acts of violence are always situated in the context of a community of relationships with others. Anger, as a passion, can be used for good or ill and this chapter will explore ways in which anger can be expressed. This chapter will address two broad questions on biosocial capacities for anger and two theological questions. In what sense is the human capacity for anger shaped through biological or cultural influences? What specific contexts reduce the likelihood of anger and what are the evolutionary advantages? In what sense might anger become sinful in theological terms? How might God’s anger be perceived in Augustine and contemporary theology? This chapter will begin by exploring evolutionary aspects of aggression and how these are related to social psychological categories. In philosophical terms, Aristotle’s definition of anger and the specific criteria for its presence are important, but so is the difference between anger and hatred. Thomas Aquinas defines anger as one of the moral passions and works out in what circumstances it become sinful. Thomistic discussion is still relevant to contemporary analysis even though Aquinas did not have access to the evolutionary and psychological data that are available in a contemporary context.