Can There Be Justice Without Forgiveness?

Following another lively and thought-provoking Socrates Café Dublin, we’re delighted to invite you to our third gathering on Sunday, 8 November.
Last time despite a clash with the Dublin City Marathon, nine people joined us for a wonderfully engaging discussion exploring what courage really means, whether courage is always a good thing, and how it relates to justice.
Many interesting ideas emerged, and for our next Café we’ll continue our exploration of justice, this time asking:

Can there be justice without forgiveness?
What is the relationship between justice and forgiveness? Does justice require that wrongs be punished, or can forgiveness sometimes lead us towards a deeper understanding of justice? Is forgiveness always a virtue, or are there times when it might undermine justice?

As always, the aim is not to debate to win or to arrive at a single right answer. We’ll explore the question together – examining our assumptions, listening to different perspectives and seeing where the conversation leads us.

You don’t need to have attended our previous Cafés to join in. Our gatherings are informal and open to everyone – no knowledge of Socrates or philosophy is needed, just curiosity and a willingness to explore ideas together.

We’ll be meeting upstairs in The Loft at Fumbally Stables – a relaxed and intimate space for conversation.

The event is hosted by members of the Foundation for Platonic Studies.
Donation: €5 per session, including tea/coffee.