Conversion, the self, and the victim: East Timor and Girard's Mimetic theory in dialogue

Journal article

Hodge, Joel. (2011). Conversion, the self, and the victim: East Timor and Girard's Mimetic theory in dialogue. Australian Ejournal of Theology. 18(2), pp. 141 - 156.

Authors	Hodge, Joel
Abstract	This essay explores how repentance and conversion are connected to a changing sense of self through the relation to what René Girard identifies as the innocence and forgiveness of the victim. It shows how the operations of conscience through Christian faith have anthropological elements that help us to understand repentance, and more broadly, offer paths for approaching the study of complex human phenomenon. This exploration will be undertaken with reference to the story of an East Timorese man, Alexandro, who was an Indonesian soldier during the Indonesian occupation of East Timor (a halfisland nation located in southeast Asia) and was ordered to shoot some of his own people during the violence after the 1999 referendum. After this experience, Alexandro went through a process of repentance which will be examined in dialogue with the insights of Girard.
Keywords	René Girard; Mimetic theory; East Timor; Timor-Leste; victim; repentance; conscience; conversion; self; forgiveness
Year	2011
Journal	Australian Ejournal of Theology
Journal citation	18 (2), pp. 141 - 156
Publisher	School of Theology, Australian Catholic University
ISSN	1448-6326
Web address (URL)	http://aejt.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/374476/AEJT11.08_Formatted_Hodge_Conversion_the_Self_and_the_Victim.pdf
Open access	Open access
Page range	141 - 156
Research Group	School of Theology
Publisher's version	Hodge_2011_Conversion_the_self_and_the_victim.pdf
Place of publication	Australia

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