Kierkegaard Studies Research Articles

The Evolution of Faith and Ethics in Philosophy History: A Comparative Study of Kierkegaard, Augustine, and Greek Myths

This article explores the evolution of faith and ethics among philosophy history, based on the work of Sren Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling. It argues that Kierkegaard's analysis of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac reveals the paradoxical and existential nature of faith, which challenges the rational and universal claims of ethical theories. Furthermore, it compares the story of Abraham and Isaac with the story of Agamemnon and Iphigenia, who were also asked to sacrifice their children by the gods. The different outcomes of these stories reflect different views of faith, ethics, and divine will would be remarkable. Another Christian philosopher is going to be mentioned, who is Sanctus Aurelius Augustinus. This article explores how both Augustine and Kierkegaard emphasise the role of grace and love in the life of faith, and how they understand faith as a personal and dynamic relationship with God, rather than a static and formal adherence to doctrines or rules. It is suggested that further insights are available by refection upon the question how they both acknowledge the limits and errors of human reason, and the need for humility and repentance in the face of God's mystery and mercy.

Kierkegaard and Religionswissenschaft: A Source- and Reception-Historical Survey (Part 2)

Abstract This second part of a two-part article (the first part of which appeared in the Kierkegaard Studies Yearbook 2022) surveys the varying uses made of Kierkegaard’s writings by four twentieth- and, in two of their cases, also twenty-first-century contributors to Religionswissenschaft: Joachim Wach, Mircea Eliade, Wendy Doniger, and Bruce Lincoln, all four of whom happen to have taught at the University of Chicago Divinity School. Far from being irrelevant or being regarded as a theologically-inclined persona non grata by comparatists of religion, Kierkegaard was embraced in three main capacities by these influential contributors to the field: as a datum (mostly in the history of theology and/or philosophy), as a theorist, and, in one case, as an existential soulmate. In Lincoln’s case, the reduction to memes—the memeification—of certain ideas ascribed to Kierkegaard comes under consideration.

Christian Witness in a World Full of Fascists

Today I will begin to explore with you the question of what Christian witness looks like today, in the context of violent ideological aggression and war. And I must acknowledge right from the start: I am keenly aware of my location – safe and secure in Canada – and of the location of many of you, who are suffering in the midst of a heinous and brutal war, and in constant and imminent danger of its threats (or at least have loved ones caught in the midst of this horrible aggression). So I am aware, then, that in many respects you are my teachers in regard to my principal question here. All I can hope to do is explore with you what I learn from Holy Scripture and from those who have reflected deeply on it (principally from the study of Kierkegaard and Bonhoeffer). I trust that that these meagre reflections will have meaning for you as you seek to be faithful under these incredibly difficult circumstances.

AESTHETIC EXISTENCE AS THE BASIS OF MODERN CULTURE OF EMOTIONS

Purpose. The aim of the study is to determine the features of the historical genesis of aesthetic forms of interaction between individuals in the conditions of modern culture, providing significant characteristics of human existence, implemented in interactive and communicative modes of his emotionally colored interaction with the world.
 Methodology. The methods of textual and content analysis of the material of the primary sources of classical and modern authors, as well as the analysis of some components of the aesthetic matrix of modern culture in terms of parameters that are essential for achieving the stated goal are used. The author turns to the socio-philosophical and sociopsychological analysis of the emotionalization of modern culture. The article uses historical-philosophical and philosophical-anthropological methods for an analytical description of the process of compensatory aestheticization.
 Results. In this article, based on the analysis of program works of the founder of existential philosophy S. Kierkegaard, the subsequent entry into the space of modern communication culture was carried out in order to conduct a further comparative study of Kierkegaard’s main ideas, and their modern embodiment in the form of emotional existence of a communicative-collective nature. Particular attention is paid in this regard to the meaningful development of the ideas of the Danish thinker by the existentialist philosophers of the last century M. Heidegger and J. Habermas, as well as the most influential researchers in the philosophy of modern sociocultural genesis B. Huebner, J. Ransier. In conclusion, a number of the most significant changes in modern communication culture, inspired by the turn of the interest of a person and society in the emotional side of their own being, are examined, and their specific phenomenology is considered in relation to the reasons that caused these changes. The author enters into a discussion with A. Reckwitz about the society of singularities, putting forward the concept of a society of collective, stereotyped experience.
 Practical implications. The results of the study can be applied in the field of cultural studies, philosophy of culture, psychology.

Iblis, Abraham, and Teleological Suspensions

Abstract In this essay, I shall scold a Jinn, recommend a position in Islamic theology to my Muslim neighbors, explore a famous dilemma recounted in Genesis, and participate in a debate occasioned by an interpretive puzzle in Kierkegaard studies. I investigate two opposed ways of understanding the phrase, ‘the teleological suspension of the ethical’, offer some critical remarks on the interpretation of that phrase in Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling, and defend a range of considerations that speak in favor of one of the options over the other. Finally, I show how one may invoke my preferred interpretation to confront the puzzle common to Jewish, Christian, and Islamic theology presented by the story of Abraham and the binding of Isaac and also how a related strategy can be invoked to address the story of Iblis and the puzzle peculiar to Islamic theology to which it gives rise.

‘Silence’ as a Language of Faith and Being: A Comparative Study of Kierkegaard’s and Heidegger’s Uses of ‘Silence’

The Heythrop JournalVolume 62, Issue 1 p. 39-52 Article ‘Silence’ as a Language of Faith and Being: A Comparative Study of Kierkegaard’s and Heidegger’s Uses of ‘Silence’ Rojin Mazouji, Rojin Mazouji Imam Khomeini International University, IranSearch for more papers by this authorMohammad Raayat Jahromi, Mohammad Raayat Jahromi Imam Khomeini International University, IranSearch for more papers by this author Rojin Mazouji, Rojin Mazouji Imam Khomeini International University, IranSearch for more papers by this authorMohammad Raayat Jahromi, Mohammad Raayat Jahromi Imam Khomeini International University, IranSearch for more papers by this author First published: 20 August 2019 https://doi.org/10.1111/heyj.13339Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume62, Issue1January 2021Pages 39-52 RelatedInformation

La puissance du don. Le don comme centre de la relation de l’homme avec Dieu, dans les discours édifiants de Kierkegaard, à la lumière de l’herméneutique du don de Jean Paul II

Abstract This paper is an attempt to read Kierkegaard’s upbuilding discourses centred around the theme “Every Good and Perfect Gift is From Above” in the perspective of hermeneutics of the gift presented by John Paul II in his book Man and Woman He Created Them. The authors analyze two completely different biblical themes-the Pope examines the issue of corporeality of the first people on the basis of Genesis, whereas Kierkegaard studies the creative power of God’s word in human existence, focusing on a passage from the Epistle of James. They show that the relationship between human beings and God, despite its individual character, may come into being only through the involvement of another person. The center of this meeting of two people in God is the already mentioned gift, understood here, in the highest sense, as a gift of love in which both parties are giving and receiving at the same time. The convergence of conclusions of both authors shows the anthropological coherence of the message of the Holy Scripture and gives rise to reflections on the essence of humanity.

Kierkegaard and Johannes Tauler on Faith, Love, and Natural Desire for God: A Way beyond a Catholic/Protestant Impasse

For almost a century, an intermittent battle has been waged in Kierkegaard studies concerning the Dane's understanding of the Christian life and salvation. One way of posing the contentious question is this: on the issues of faith and love, justification and sanctification, and nature and grace, was Kierkegaard more Lutheran, or was he more Catholic? This article argues that this ambiguity about Kierkegaard's soteriological predilections is understandable, for his writings do not fall into the neat categories defined by post-Tridentine Catholicism or scholastic Lutheran orthodoxy. Rather than advocating for either of those doctrinal positions, his writings on justification and sanctification, nature and grace, and eros and agape continue a more nuanced trajectory rooted in some of the spiritual writers of the Middle Ages and extended later by the pietists. That trajectory defies the polemical binary classifications typical of the late sixteenth century. To clarify this alternative orientation, we will sketch the basic contours of Kierkegaard's scattered remarks about soteriology, and then explore their similarity to many of themes of Johannes Tauler (1300–1361), one of the most influential spiritual writers of the late medieval period. Tauler used a more metaphysical vocabulary to express a theological vision that exhibited significant formal parallels to Kierkegaard's later subversion of Catholic and Lutheran scholastic dichotomies. For both Tauler and Kierkegaard, the attractive beauty of God's self-giving love serves as the foundation for a theological vision that unites faith and love, justification and sanctification, and nature and grace.

Kierkegaard and political theory: religion, aesthetics, politics and the intervention of the single individual

Soren Kierkegaards radical protestant philosophy of the individual -- in which a persons leap of faith is favoured over general ethics -- has become a model for many contemporary political theorists. Thinkers such as Slavoj Zizek and Alain Badiou have drawn on its revolutionary spirit to position truth above the constraints of political systems. In Kierkegaard and Political Theory, contributors from a wide range of disciplines -- including theology, sociology, philosophy, and aesthetics -- examine just how crucial Kierkegaards anti-institutional thinking has been to such efforts and to modernity as a whole. The contributors convincingly position Kierkegaards radical philosophy as the starting point for contemporary political theory. They show how he pioneered a modernity defined as an argument -- an experience -- of the impossibility of rationally comprehending a system of thinking. They show how religious and aesthetic experiences function as a response to this impossibility, how their coherence in politics must always be questioned, especially in historys extreme example: totalitarianism. Engaging this and many other subjects, they provide a compelling new line in Kierkegaard studies that illuminates new contours of our political thought.

Eros, Agape, and Neighbour-Love as Ontological Gift

Abstract: In Eros and Self-Emptying, Lee Barrett suggests a reading of Augustine and Kierkegaard that interprets the believer's love for God as eros for God's agape-nature. While Barrett's analysis suggests how one might mediate between the teleological necessity of eros and the gratuitous movement of agape in the love between God and the believer, it does not answer the question of how this same mediation can be accomplished in the case of neighbour-love. As a result, it leaves unaddressed certain lingering worries in Augustine and Kierkegaard studies about how the neighbour can be the proper object of love rather than an indirect recipient of the believer's love for God. This article suggests that the problem of neighbour-love can be addressed by extending Barrett's account of God's love as ontological gift in light of Augustine's assertion in De Trinitate that God “loves us in order that we might become.” The resultant picture grounds love for the neighbour in her particular individuality as she is being called into fellowship with God, rather than in the application of a universal ethical law or as a by-product of the believer's obligation to Christ.

Is Either/Or a Religious Work or Not?

AbstractIn this article I raise the question of whether or not Kierkegaard’s earliest pseudonymous work, Either/Or, is a “religious” work, as he later claims in The Point of View for My Work as an Author. Contra Henning Fenger, Joakim Garff, and Alastair Hannay, I argue with Charles Bellinger, David Law, Robert Perkins and Joel Rasmussen that Either/Or is in fact a religious work. After giving a definition of the term “religious,” I carry this out primarily by paying close attention to the text and secondarily by an examination of what kind of vocational approach to writing Either/Or evinces, a question which Law notes has not yet been adequately addressed in Kierkegaard studies

Toward a ‘Catholic’ Reading of Kierkegaard

AbstractHistorically, some Catholic readers have been suspicious of Kierkegaard's writings; viewing him as an irrational Protestant irreconcilably at odds with Catholic thought. Nevertheless, the unexpected yet favorable mention of Kierkegaard in John Paul II's Fides et Ratio is an indication that Kierkegaard's writings are not so easily dismissed. One may be justified in asking: what account can be given to explain such a shift in how the Catholic reception of Kierkegaard changes from a polemical rejection to a papal endorsement during the 20th century? In this review essay, I will explore some recent Kierkegaard research that provides – or at least, provides some of the groundwork for – a positive ‘Catholic’ reading of Kierkegaard. Space does not permit an exhaustive exposition of each book, so I will highlight the salient features of each to underscore a new trend that is emerging in Kierkegaard studies.

Kierkegaard in Nature: The Fragility of Existing with Naturalism

Abstract This article argues that in order to evidence the importance of Kierkegaard outside of Kierkegaard studies, we need to acknowledge that we live in a naturalized world. This acknowledgment brings out the necessity of reformulating Kierkegaard’s thinking in ways that make his arguments intelligible against the background of naturalism that dominates contemporary culture. After having explained what is meant by a naturalized world and by naturalism, the article attempts a reformulation of Kierkegaard’s notion of existence as one way to articulate the importance of Kierkegaard’s thinking about human beings in a naturalized world

A Totality of Ruins: Adorno on Kierkegaard

A Totality of Ruins:Adorno on Kierkegaard Roland Boer (bio) Mythical dialectic consumes Kierkegaard's god, as did Kronos his children. —Theodor W. Adorno, Kierkegaard: Construction of the Aesthetic Adorno's first work in philosophy, the book on Kierkegaard (Adorno 1989, 2003b), is rarely, if ever, given the attention it deserves. This is partly due to its nature as one of the most precocious and impenetrable works from a writer who is a challenge at the best of times. But it is also due to the fact that its real subject is theology. Adorno may have subtitled it Construction of the Aesthetic, but a close reading soon reveals that this study of one of the greatest Protestant philosophical theologians has theology as its main target.1 One may identify both an underlying theoretical basis and the de tailed structure of Adorno's critique. The basis is what I have elsewhere called "theological suspicion": intimately connected with and in many ways reliant upon Marxist ideological suspicion, Adorno reshapes that practice with an eye on theology (Boer 2007, 394). That suspicion operates by means of critical discernment, in which one is constantly on the watch both for the subtle effects of theological modes of thought and for the possible genuine contributions theology may make. The study of the Kierkegaard book is clearly a case of the former exercise of theological suspicion, for Adorno seeks to uncover the theological underlay of Kierkegaard's philosophical system with a view to demolishing it. For Adorno, Kierkegaard's effort suffers from two problems. First, it attempts to conceal its theological basis; second, it thereby sublates and dangerously redirects the patterns of power and authority characteristic of theology. Apart from this theoretical basis in theological suspicion, the detailed structure of Adorno's critique follows a two-fold strategy, a [End Page 1] pincer movement if you will: the first locates the myth that lies concealed behind the explicit theological material, while the second identifies the impossible paradoxes that disable Kierkegaard's every effort at dialectics. Having removed the layers beneath which myth has been carefully obscured in Kierkegaard's work, Adorno moves to pull apart the paradoxes of that system. Throughout, the bulk of Adorno's argument stays with theology, particularly in the way theology forms the ground of Kierkegaard's system. But theology turns out to be a treacherous backer, dissolving into mythology at almost every turn. It is then rendered nonsensical by internal paradoxes that fail to respond to the dialectic. As if to complicate the doubled pattern we already have, Adorno makes this move twice, once in the treatment of the spheres and then again with sacrifice. I have structured my assessment accordingly, critically assessing this doppelganger argument in detail. Setting the Scene Given the relative neglect of Adorno's study of Kierkegaard, I would like to make three preliminary points that set the scene for the following analysis. To begin with, what are the stakes involved in engaging with this text? The questions Adorno raises are pertinent to the ongoing recourse to theology among a significant number of thinkers on the Left, such as Slavoj Žižek, Alan Badiou, Terry Eagleton, Giorgio Agamben, Antonio Negri, and Clayton Crockett. The proposals keep multiplying, whether it is the Apostle Paul or Pascal as thinkers of the event (Badiou 2003, 2006, 213-22; see Karlsen), Paul as the source for rethinking the revolutionary seizure of kairós as a moment of potentiality (Agamben), Christ's death as the moment of God's impotence (Žižek 2000, 2001, 2003, 2008, 2009; Žižek and Milbank; see Kotsko; Karlsen), an argument for the simple, disinterested virtues of theology as a way of reconstructing a metaphysics to answer the challenges of our age (Eagleton 2003b, 2005, 2007, 2009a, 2009b), the biblical Job as a source for the creative force of suffering that bends transcendence to immanence (Negri), or even an argument for a humble and limited God as an answer to imperial arrogance (Crockett). In each case, we witness an effort to revitalize what is perceived to be a moribund politics by means of untapped resources in the Bible and theology. Almost [End Page 2] in every case, theology...

Kierkegaard in Romania before WWII: Reception or Rejection?

❦The reason for choosing this particular topic was twofold: first, the information about the penetration of Kierkegaard in Eastern Europe in general and in Romania in particular is very scarce (to put it mildly). Second, I believe that observing the ways in which an oeuvre is transferred from a given cultural realm into another is very informative, as it has the potential of casting a new light on the original work. As in the case of a prism which diffracts “white” light and decomposes it in the specific colors which compose it, the reception of Soren Kierkegaard’s works in the cultural environment of the “greater” Romania born after WWI, illuminates novel aspects of his work and uncovers new shades, thus at the same time adding “hermeneutical value” to the existing body of Kierkegaard studies. Furthermore, observing this process of transfer informs in a meaningful way about the receiving intellectual-cultural system. It would be impossible to make an exhaustive presentation of such an extensive topic in the narrow framework of an article: the above proposed study could represent the content of a full-fledged book. Instead, I shall try to concentrate upon the reception part, and even that mostly within the literary-philosophical circles, while the rejection aspect, at work within the religious-theological realm, will be discussed here only briefly. A quick inspection of the review by Nicolae Irina included in one of the volumes presenting Kierkegaard’s reception in the various parts of the world edited by Jon Stewart, reveals very limited information about the reception of the works of the Danish thinker in Romania

Neither Irrationalist Nor Apologist: Revisiting Faith and Reason in Kierkegaard

AbstractOne of the most hotly contested debates in Kierkegaard studies concerns his sense of the relationship between faith and reason. Often caricatured as a proponent of irrational fideism, scholarship in recent decades has tried to present a more nuanced account of Kierkegaard’s position. Two likely interpretive options have emerged: supra‐rationalism and anti‐rationalism. On the former view, Kierkegaard believes that while the achievement of faith is beyond the capabilities of reason, there are still ways that reason can aid the maintenance of faith once reason’s limits are recognized. On the latter view, faith is a constant struggle against rationalizing justification, and thus, any attempt to use reason to assist in the maintenance of faith is a mistake. Interestingly, a comparison with Pascal can help one arbitrate between these two responses to the dubious irrationalist reading of Kierkegaard.

Doing Psychology as a Christian: A Plea for Wholeness

Although trained as a philosopher, I have always had a great interest and appreciation for the field of psychology. Part of that interest stems From a concern for philosophical issues that overlap psychology: the mind-body problem and the nature of consciousness, the philosophy of action and problems concerning freedom and determinism, for example. Theological concerns have also motivated an interest in psychology, since it is difficult to see how one can make sense of things like the doctrine of sin, or the idea that Christians are one with Christ without putting such ideas into a psychological framework. Part of my interest in simply stems from fascination the field in all its breadth, covering such diverse areas as neurophysiological study of the brain, clinical and its understanding of mental illness, social psychology, developmental psychology, and many other sub-disciplines. At one time my interest in was strong enough that I seriously considered pursuing a Ph.D. in in addition to the doctorate in philosophy I had already earned. Even without much fOrmal training in psychology, early in my career I tried to learn all that I could about psychology, reading books and handbooks and journal articles, and even taking a few graduate courses in psychology. I hung around psychologists of various kinds (both from different fields of and from different theoretical orientations within the field of clinical psychology) and I certainly learned a lot. From the beginning I had a special interest in the challenges faced by Christians in psychology. It seemed to me that, although psychologists raced many of the issues that Christians in other disciplines faced, there were also some special challenges, involving both tensions and opportunities, chat stemmed from the unique character and history of psychology. Most of what I learned in this period was distilled in three books: Preserving the Person: A Look at the Human Sciences (1977), Wisdom and Humanness in Psychology: Prospects lb r a Approach (1989), and Soren Kierkegaard's Christi an Psychology: Insight for counseling and Pastoral Can' (1990). As those dates make evident, most of my work on and its relation to faith was done in the 1970s and 80s. Since 1990, though my interest in has remained, my scholarly focus has been directed to issues in the philosophy of religion, philosophical theology, and Kierkegaard studies. With some exceptions (for example, Evans 2005), I have not had the time to keep up either the field of itself, or the many interesting debates and discussions about how Christians should think about and relate to psychology. I therefore must begin this essay a disclaimer: I am nor capable of giving any kind of scholarly overview of the contributions of others to these issues. What I have to offer is mostly personal reflection. The main focus of my reflection will be on the much-discussed and much-debated concept of integration. Although I have thought of myself as a scholar who is committed to the idea of integrating faith and learning, there are some scholars who have been influenced by my work who see themselves as challenging the ideal of of and Christianity and instead working to develop what they call Christian psychology (Johnson, 2007, 2010). I am sympathetic both to the concerns these scholars have what we might call the paradigm and to the positive goals of as they present it. Nevertheless, I want to argue that we should not think of as an alternative to the integration of and Christianity. Rather, is the outcome of that integration when it is done well. As I see it, everything turns on how we understand the ideal of integration. What exactly is being integrated, and how is that activity to be understood? …

Inexactness? Yes, but yet Masterfully Defined: The Role of the Humorous Comic in Concluding Unscientific Postscript

Article Inexactness? Yes, but yet Masterfully Defined: The Role of the Humorous Comic in Concluding Unscientific Postscript was published on July 1, 2012 in the journal Kierkegaard Studies Yearbook (volume 2012, issue 1).

Contemplative History vs. Speculative History: Kierkegaard and Hegel on History in On the Concept of Irony

Article Contemplative History vs. Speculative History: Kierkegaard and Hegel on History in On the Concept of Irony was published on July 1, 2012 in the journal Kierkegaard Studies Yearbook (volume 2012, issue 1).

“The Philosopher as a Physician of Culture”: Kierkegaard, Nietzsche and their Diagnosis of Modern Culture

Article “The Philosopher as a Physician of Culture”: Kierkegaard, Nietzsche and their Diagnosis of Modern Culture was published on July 1, 2012 in the journal Kierkegaard Studies Yearbook (volume 2012, issue 1).