Controversy 7283 224344780 2008-07-08T13:06:20Z Wafulz 1091232 point to summary article {{otheruses}} {{redirect|Disagree|the Malaysian band|Disagree (band)}} {{selfref|For Wikipedia's dispute resolution guidelines, see [[Wikipedia:Dispute resolution]].}} {{Wiktionary}} A '''controversy''' or '''dispute''' occurs when parties actively disagree, [[argument|argue]] about, or [[debate]], a matter of [[opinion]]. Controversies can range in size from [[Privacy|private]] disputes between two [[person|individuals]] to large-scale disagreements between [[societies]]. Perennial areas of controversy include [[religion]], [[philosophy]] and [[politics]]. Controversy in matters of [[theology]] has traditionally been particularly heated, giving rise to the phrase ''[[odium theologicum]]''. Controversial issues are held as potentially divisive in a given society, because they can lead to tension and ill will. Some controversies are considered [[taboo]] to many people, unless a society can find a common ground to share and discuss its people's [[feelings]] on a certain controversial issue. [[Benford's law of controversy]], as expressed by [[science-fiction]] author [[Gregory Benford]] in 1980, states "[[Passion]] is [[inversely proportional]] to the amount of real [[information]] available." ==In law== {{main|Controversy (law)}} In [[jurisprudence|the theory of law]], a controversy differs from a [[legal case]]; while the latter includes all suits, [[Crime|criminal]] as well as [[Civil law (private law)|civil]], a controversy is a purely civil proceeding. For example, the [[Case or Controversy Clause]] of [[Article Three of the United States Constitution]] ([[Article Three of the United States Constitution#Section 2: Federal jurisdiction and trial by jury|Section 2]], Clause 1) states that "the judicial Power shall extend ... to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party". This clause has been deemed to impose a requirement that United States federal courts are not permitted to hear cases that do not pose an actual controversy—that is, an actual dispute between adverse parties which is capable of being resolved by the [[court]]. In addition to setting out the scope of the jurisdiction of the federal judiciary, it also prohibits courts from issuing [[advisory opinion]]s, or from hearing cases that are either [[ripeness|unripe]], meaning that the controversy has not arisen yet, or [[mootness|moot]], meaning that the controversy has already been resolved. [[Amount in controversy]] is a term in United States [[civil procedure]] to denote a requirement that persons seeking to bring a [[lawsuit]] in a particular court must be [[wikt:sue|suing]] for a certain minimum amount before that court may hear the case. ==In early Christianity== Many of the early [[Christianity|Christian]] writers, among them [[Irenaeus]], [[Athanasius]], and [[Jerome]], were famed as "controversialists"; they wrote works against perceived [[Christian heresy|heresy]] or heretical individuals, works whose titles begin "Adversus..." such as Irenaeus' ''[[On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis|Adversus haereses]].'' The Christian writers inherited from the classical [[rhetor]]s the conviction that controversial confrontations, even over trivial matters, were a demonstration of intellectual superiority. See [[Christian theological controversy]]. ==See also== *[[List of controversial issues]] [[Category:Controversies| ]] [[Category:Conflict]] [[Category:Crises]] [[Category:Interpersonal relationships]] [[Category:Legal terms]] [[bg:Спор]] [[de:Kontroverse]] [[et:Vaidlus]] [[es:Controversia]] [[fr:Controverse]] [[he:מחלוקת]] [[pt:Controvérsia]] [[simple:Controversy]] [[yi:מחלוקת]]