Essay on Kierkegaards View on Faith - 1045 Words

Kierkegaards View on Faith Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher in the mid 1800s. He is known to be the father of existentialism and was at least 70 years ahead of his time. Kierkegaard set out to attack Kant’s rational ethics and make attacks on the Christianity of our day. He poses the question, how do we understand faith? He states that faith equals the absurd. In â€Å"Fear and Trembling†, he uses the story of Abraham and his son Isaac to show an example of faith as the absurd. The story of God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac signifies a break in the theory that ethics and religion go hand in hand. He shows how the ethical and the religious can be completely different. â€Å"I by no means conclude that faith is something inferior†¦show more content†¦Abraham is known to be the father of faith. Abraham went beyond infinite resignation and made the leap into faith. â€Å"This is the peak on which Abraham stands. The last stage to pass from his view is the stage of infinite resignation. He actually goes further and comes to faith† (Fear and Trembling, 14). Kierkegaard also revealed that to have faith, you must have passion which is not something we can learn, we must experience it for ourselves. No general or universal rules apply to our choice of what to believe. â€Å"Whether a person has the right to say this must be his own decision; whether he can come to an amicable agreement in this respect is a matter between himself and the eternal being, who is the object of faith†(Fear and Trembling, 21). Only the individual can decide. To him, faith was absurd because you have to step out of your universal, surd self and make the leap into the absurdity of faith. In conclusion, Kierkegaard decides that faith is paradoxical and completely absurd. He also concludes that it has nothing to do with the ethical realm of reason and is actually much higher. â€Å"In order to perceive the prodigious paradox of faith, a paradox that makes a murder into a holy and God-pleasing act, a paradox that gives Isaac back to Abraham again, which no thought can grasp, because faith begins precisely where thought stops...† (Fear and Trembling, 22). Both Immanuel Kant and Soren KierkegaardShow MoreRelatedKierkegaard s Views On Faith912 Words   |  4 PagesKierkegaard: Faith is truly a marvel and no single human being can ever be excluded from it and its greatness. Sartre: How could one describe faith as a marvel? Kierkegaard: Faith is a passion, and passion unites every single one of us. Sartre: Faith is not a passion, it is not something to be striven for or to take pride in; it is something that is restrictive and confining to human life and progress. Kierkegaard: Faith is most certainly a passion; it is inherent and natural, and it has theRead MoreEssay about Soren Kierkegaards Fear And Trembling959 Words   |  4 Pagesadhering to his faith, submitted to what he believed was the will of God. By using his perspective and that of his alternative guise, Johannes de Silentio, Kierkegaard concentrates on the story of Abraham in such a way that his audience must choose between two extremes. Either Abraham is insane or he is justified in saying he will kill Isaac. Is Abrahams decision to sacrifice Isaac faith or murder? According to Kierkegaard, an action is to be judged by the outcome (Kierkegaard, 91). One hasRead MoreKierkegaard and Abraham: A Literary Tool and Belief in the Ideal Christian-Existentialist1619 Words   |  7 Pagesheld up by Kierkegaard as the perfect model for faith in Fear and Trembling. 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Although, he did not use the word ‘existentialism’, but initial ly the concept that no society or religion is the main cause that leads an individual to live a life with sincerity or passionatelyRead MoreKierkegaard And Communism1747 Words   |  7 PagesOn first and second glance, it may appear impossible to draw any concrete connection between the philosophy of Sà ¸ren Kierkegaard, a seventeenth century Danish Philosopher who worked heavily on existential themes, faith, and Christianity, and the Soviet Union. 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