Ethical Pluralism (a new Mathilde Ludendorff) and process theology

   Table of Contents

Ethical Pluralism and Process Theology: Comparing Static Multiplicity and Dynamic Becoming in Metaphysics, Ethics, and RealityIntroduction: Processual Divinity and Plural Essences in Philosophical DialogueIn the evolving discourse of theology and philosophy, process theology and Ethical Pluralism represent innovative frameworks that grapple with change, relationality, and the human place in a dynamic cosmos. Process theology, emerging in the 20th century from the works of Alfred North Whitehead (Process and Reality, 1929) and Charles Hartshorne, reimagines God not as an unchanging, omnipotent being but as a dipolar entity: An eternal, primordial pole of potentialities and a consequent pole that evolves with the universe. Rooted in panentheism, it views reality as a creative process of becoming, where entities (actual occasions) self-create through prehension (feeling/relating to past events), with God as the lure toward novelty, beauty, and harmony. Ethics derive from participating in this divine creativity, emphasizing persuasion over coercion, relational responsibility, and alleviating suffering in an open, evolving world.Ethical Pluralism, a contemporary system, contrasts yet resonates by affirming reality as irreducible plural essences—independent modes like persistence (continuity), finitude (termination), transformation (change), consciousness (awareness), aspiration (value strivings), transcendence (beyond constraints), moral discernment (evaluation), and relational fulfillment (bonds)—coexisting without unity or hierarchy. Grounded in quantum indeterminacy and evolutionary contingency, it derives ethics from experiential affirmation via "God-Cognisance," fostering fulfillment amid diversity without dogma or teleology.This essay compares them, highlighting convergences in relational dynamism and ethical creativity, while noting divergences in unity (dipolar God vs. absolute separation), change (teleological becoming vs. contingent interaction), and purpose (divine lure vs. purpose-free affirmation). Through metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and modern implications, we see Pluralism as a secular, pluralistic counterpart to process theology's theistic process, complementing its unity with irreducible diversity.Metaphysical Relations: Dipolar Unity in Process Versus Absolute Plural IndependenceProcess theology's metaphysics is panentheistic and relational: Reality is a flux of actual occasions—momentary events that "become" by prehending (incorporating) past data, aiming at satisfaction (self-completion). God is the chief exemplification: Primordial (eternal potentials luring toward value) and consequent (evolving with creation's decisions). Multiplicity is real—occasions are plural—but unified in God's inclusive experience; impermanence is creative becoming, not mere flux.Ethical Pluralism echoes processual dynamism through essences like transformation (contingent change) and relational fulfillment (bonds akin to prehension)—quantum events (indeterminate becoming) parallel actual occasions. Both affirm real multiplicity: Process' plural events vs. Pluralism's independent essences; impermanence aligns—finitude-transformation as becoming without stasis.Convergences: Both critique static being—process' becoming parallels Pluralism's contingent interactions; relationality unites (God's prehension vs. essence interplay). Divergences: Process unifies multiplicity in dipolar God; Pluralism rejects any whole, critiquing as imposition (e.g., luring potentials as false teleology on independent essences). Process' evolving God contrasts Pluralism's static plurality without purpose.This metaphysical relation reveals Pluralism as process theology's pluralistic critique: Both dynamize reality, but Pluralism separates for diversity's autonomy.Epistemological Relations: Creative Synthesis Versus Experiential DiscernmentProcess theology's epistemology is empirical-rational: Knowledge derives from feeling/prehending the world, with reason synthesizing data into novel possibilities—God's primordial nature provides conceptual lures for understanding. Insight is participatory, evolving with process; mysticism (e.g., Hartshorne's divine empathy) transcends pure empiricism.Ethical Pluralism echoes participatory insight: Reason limits to visible essences (phenomena); invisible demand intuition/transcendence—God-Cognisance as apprehension of plurality. Discernment synthesizes experientially, akin to prehension.Convergences: Both emphasize experiential knowledge—process' prehension mirrors intuition's transcendent grasp; critique of static reason (limited to data vs. visible). Divergences: Process' insight synthesizes in divine unity; Pluralism affirms multiplicity, integrating science (quantum discernment) where process' pre-quantum rationalism focuses creative synthesis.Pluralism complements process epistemology: Both seek dynamic insight, but Pluralism grounds it in scientific plurality, pluralizing synthesis into affirmation.Ethical Relations: Creative Persuasion Versus Intrinsic AffirmationProcess ethics derive from divine lure: Goodness as contributing to creativity, beauty, and intensity—ethics emphasize persuasion, love, and responsibility in an open universe, alleviating suffering through relational choices.Ethical Pluralism derives ethics from essence-affirmation: Intrinsic goodness affirms plurality without purpose—discernment evaluates actions (e.g., relational as discerning bonds). Like process, affirmation fosters relationality; ethics as participatory.Convergences: Both intrinsic/pragmatic—process' creativity parallels affirming aspiration; love echoes relational fulfillment. Rejection of coercion: Process' persuasion vs. no purpose. Divergences: Process' ethics lure toward divine values; Pluralism affirm independence—critiquing lure as imposing teleology. Process' teleological good contrasts Pluralism's purpose-free.Pluralism critiques process ethics: Lure risks immoral direction (e.g., reducing freedom to divine becoming); affirming plurality enables discerning ethics without unity.Modern and Scientific Context: Pluralism's Complement to Process DynamismProcess theology integrates science (e.g., evolution as divine creativity, quantum events as occasions) but faces challenges—dipolar unity aligns with holism, but process clashes with quantum discreteness. Ethical Pluralism complements by pluralizing process: Quantum essences (multiple without occasions) echo becoming but affirm independence; evolution's contingency as creative without teleology.Relationally, Pluralism updates process—affirmation as discerning participation in dynamic multiplicity—while process enriches with creative ethics. Yet, Pluralism critiques process' unity: Affirming multiplicity integrates science's separations.Conclusion: A Pluralistic Process for Ethical BecomingEthical Pluralism and process theology relate as dynamic allies: Both processualize reality for ethical creativity, but where process unifies in dipolar God, Pluralism pluralizes for affirmation. This relation fosters synergy—Pluralism grounding process scientifically, process deepening Pluralism's becoming. In an evolving cosmos, their fusion might yield "plural process": Affirming essences in creative lure, guiding ethics toward harmonious fulfillment amid multiplicity.