Introduction Gabriel Vahanian: From the Death of God to Wording and Worlding

Abstract

To understand and engage with the theology of Gabriel Vahanian we should begin by considering the four quotes that sit as signposts at the start of The Death of God, the book that brought him to international acclaim. They are worth reproducing (in fact it is necessary to reproduce them as a reminder) because these themes will regularly reappear throughout the next 50 years in Vahanian’s writing. This is because in using such quotes Vahanian is locating himself in a particular legacy, a particular European legacy that came, paradoxically, to be most fully expressed in America. The quotes are: When Zarathustra was alone he said to his heart: “Could it be possible! This old saint in the forest hath not heard of it, that God is dead!” Thus Spake Zarathustra Friederich Nietzsche To kill God is to become god oneself; it is to realize already on this earth the eternal life of which the Gospel speaks. The Myth of Sisyphus Albert Camus The god that can be pointed out is an idol, and the religiosity that makes an outward show is an imperfect form of religiosity. Concluding Unscientific Postscript Soren Kierkegaard The most dreadful sort of blasphemy is that of which “Christendom” is guilty: transforming the God of Spirit into… ludicrous twaddle. And the stupidest divine worship, more stupid than anything that is or was to be found in paganism, more stupid than worshipping a stone, an ox, an insect, more stupid that all that is—to worship under the name of God … a twaddler. Attack Upon Christendom Soren Kierkegaard