Language and Reality in Abraham J. Heschel's Philosophy of Religion

Abstract

The relation of inner spiritual life to traditional theological and philosophical categories is the dynamic foundation of Abraham J. Heschel's religious thought. Not systematic in form, nor objectively philosophical in intent, his writings have suffered from lack of scholarly attention in great part because their consistent conceptual framework is not immediately apparent. The beauty of his style, however, has been recognized, though often to the detriment of serious consideration of the intellectual system implicit in his vision. His texts have indeed been appreciated as devotional literature by Christians as well as Jews because of the vitality of their poetry. Close scrutiny reveals that Heschel's use of language follows a coherent and explicit theory which, though dispersed in different works, is rigorous and susceptible to critical understanding. An account of Heschel's linguistic assumptions can clarify his interpretation of religious tradition, with the broader benefit of helping us to participate in the spiritual awareness which his personal witness should convey. Heschel's endeavor is founded upon a logical contradiction which his theory of poetic language seeks to harmonize. On the one hand, he attempts to evoke in his reader authentic religious insights which are, in essence, ineffable by expressing his own experience in passages of great poetic beauty. On the other hand, he presents a conceptualized description of man's relation to God using accepted theological and philosophical categories as points of reference. The very tension which this paradox involves is at the root of religious understanding in Heschel's sys-