Paul Ricœur, the ‘Cycle of Myths’ at the Heart of the Reflective Public Square

Abstract

Paul Ricœur taught Philosophical Theology for many years at the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. In this article we would like to recall some of his contributions that matured during those years: in the first part we will focus on his ideas of justice in the university, as a form of ethical community and as a responsible political institution; in the second part we will propose his reinterpretation of justice through a careful reading of the cycle of religious myths and the symbolism underlying religious language.