Christian existentialism is a theological and philosophical movement that uses an existentialist approach to Christian theology. The school of thought often goes back to the works of the Danish philosopher and theologian Søren Kierkegaard (1813–1855). [one]
The existential approach to Christian theology has a long and diverse history, including Augustine, Aquinas, Pascal and Maritaine.
Content
Kierkegaard approach
Christian existentialism is based on Kierkegaard's understanding of Christianity . Kierkegaard argued that the universe is basically paradoxical , and that its greatest paradox is the transcendental union of God and people in the person of Jesus Christ . He also claimed that he had a personal relationship with God that supersedes all prescribed morals, social structures, and social norms [2] since he argued that following social conventions was essentially a personal aesthetic choice made by people.
Kierkegaard suggested that each person should make an independent choice, which then makes up his existence. Each person suffers from indecision (consciously or unconsciously) until he makes a certain choice of way of life. Kierkegaard also proposed three methods by which one can understand the conditions arising from different life choices: aesthetic, ethical, and religious.
Representatives
Among authors close to Christian existentialism, the following were named:
- Karl Barth
- Rui Belu
- Nikolay Berdyaev
- Rudolph Bultmann
- Juozas Girnius
- Fedor Dostoevsky
- Gabriel Marcel
- Antanas Maceina
- Emmanuel Mounier
- Rollo May
- Reingold Niebuhr
- Paul Tillich
- Miguel de Unamuno
- Lev Shestov
- Karl Jaspers
See also
- Atheistic existentialism
- Dialectical theology
- Personalism
- Free will in religion
- Christian philosophy
Notes
- ↑ MJ Eliade & CJ Adams (1987). Encyclopedia of Religion (v.5). Macmillan Publishing Company.
- ↑ Seren Kierkegaard (1846). Final Unscientific Postscript , pseudonym author like Johannes Klimak