The quality of mercy: how religion and ethno-nationalism influence attitudes towards amnesty in Northern Ireland
Brewer, J. D. & Hayes, B. C.
(24 November 2016)
The quality of mercy: how religion and ethno-nationalism influence attitudes towards amnesty in Northern Ireland.
Democratic Audit Blog.
The Good Friday Agreement gave political resonance to concepts like amnesty, forgiveness and mercy – all of them familiar from the lexicon of religion. John D Brewer and Bernadette C Hayes found that religious and ethno-national identity in Northern Ireland both influence public attitudes towards amnesty. In particular, belief in the Bible as the literal word of God is a significant predictor of people’s support for retribution.
