Research

18 pages, 313 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Will, Original Teleology and the Divine Entelechy in Husserl’s Thought

by Yun Zeng

Religions 2023, 14(2), 180; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14020180 - 30 Jan 2023

Viewed by 1519

The central intention of this paper is to explore original teleology and to solve the riddle of matter based on the analysis of the flow of absolute consciousness. The paper unfolds in four steps. Firstly, it analyzes the origin of teleology in terms [...] Read more.

The central intention of this paper is to explore original teleology and to solve the riddle of matter based on the analysis of the flow of absolute consciousness. The paper unfolds in four steps. Firstly, it analyzes the origin of teleology in terms of Husserl’s theory of intentional acts. Since Husserl’s phenomenology itself contains teleological ideas, the creativity and goal-direction of the will reveals the intrinsic connection between will and teleology. Secondly, the relationship between the will and original teleology is discussed around the riddle of matter raised by Husserl, and the reason why teleology originates in the act of will is explained. Thirdly, the paper reinterprets the divine entelechy from the perspective of the creativity of the divine will, and points out that Husserl’s concept of God is not only the idea of the highest good, but also an entelechy that is constantly engaged in creating and becoming. Finally, in order to further argue for the important role of the will in solving the problem of teleology, this paper discusses the intrinsic relationship between transcendental reduction and the will. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

15 pages, 550 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Martin Heidegger on Primordial Christian Life Experience: A Phenomenological Theological Perspective

by Xin Leng

Religions 2022, 13(11), 1082; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13111082 - 10 Nov 2022

Viewed by 1829

Abstract

Through his phenomenological interpretation of Paul’s letters, Martin Heidegger developed the Lutheran idea about Christian life experience as an experience of conversion, and argues that the Christian religiosity is rooted in the temporality of primordial Christian life experience as the expectation towards the [...] Read more.

Through his phenomenological interpretation of Paul’s letters, Martin Heidegger developed the Lutheran idea about Christian life experience as an experience of conversion, and argues that the Christian religiosity is rooted in the temporality of primordial Christian life experience as the expectation towards the Parousia. Heidegger also suggests that the Hellenic metaphysics are alien to primordial Christianity, therefore he is devoted to erasing Hellenic metaphysics from Christianity. Through his phenomenological interpretation of Saint Augustine, Heidegger deconstructs the value system and theology originated from Hellenic metaphysics by illustrating the existence of Dasein. In this article we will inspect Heidegger’s religious phenomenon and propose our own views about the essence of Heidegger’s primordial Christianity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

13 pages, 303 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Unity of the Existence of God and the Knowledge of God in the Phenomenological Ontology of Henry

by Weifeng Cui

Religions 2022, 13(10), 964; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13100964 - 12 Oct 2022

Viewed by 1146

Abstract

This study approaches the question of the unity between the existence of God and the knowledge of God. Henry’s phenomenology of life, as a phenomenological ontology, offers a phenomenological way to rethink the existence of God and our cognition of God by seeking [...] Read more.

This study approaches the question of the unity between the existence of God and the knowledge of God. Henry’s phenomenology of life, as a phenomenological ontology, offers a phenomenological way to rethink the existence of God and our cognition of God by seeking the essence in life’s self-donation. As a phenomenological heritage of Husserl’s intentional phenomenology, Henry’s phenomenology of self-affection (auto-affection) clarifies the essence of God in the dimension of subjective body or in the flesh. This truth, which presents our absolute immanence, is, in its depth, a divine revelation between God and human. When we experience our own existence in the tonality of corporal life, we receive the existence of God and the knowledge of God. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

10 pages, 254 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Call and Response in the French Phenomenology of Religion

by Yanbo Zheng

Religions 2022, 13(9), 858; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13090858 - 14 Sep 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1442

Abstract

Is it legitimate to talk about religion as a phenomenology of modern philosophy? Some French phenomenologists have argued that philosophical discourses can be used in phenomenology to describe religious phenomena, and doing so does not contradict the absolute and irreducible nature of phenomenology [...] Read more.

Is it legitimate to talk about religion as a phenomenology of modern philosophy? Some French phenomenologists have argued that philosophical discourses can be used in phenomenology to describe religious phenomena, and doing so does not contradict the absolute and irreducible nature of phenomenology as a philosophy. Their purpose is to justify the legitimacy of the phenomenological possibilities of religion. This paper aims to describe the progress made by the phenomenon of the call and response as a French phenomenology of religion. Marion talks about l’adonné in the “call and response” structure in the phenomenology of religion. In his third reduction, l’adonné, due to boredom, nihilates the Being, leaving a possibility of the call in a pure form. When the call responds, it hears and then establishes a quasi-subject status, which serves as Marion’s reflection on the metaphysical subject. Focusing on prayer as one of the religious phenomena, Chrétien argues that vocal prayer reconciles the opposition of the soul and body, of spirit and matter. Through the description of such a religious act, Chrétien emphasizes an interactive-subjective relationship with the Absolute Other. Through the study of Marion and Chrétien, we find that when phenomenologists talk about religion, it does not make phenomenology lose its own principles but instead expands new fields for phenomenology. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

13 pages, 260 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Max Scheler and the Objectivity of Goodness: Towards a Phenomenology of Value

by Hanchuan Zhong

Religions 2022, 13(9), 831; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13090831 - 06 Sep 2022

Viewed by 1849

Abstract

An analogy between goodness and color is often drawn since George Edward Moore to demonstrate the objective validity of goodness, and this way has elicited many responses. German philosopher Max Scheler also frequently analogizes goodness to color. However, his theory of the good [...] Read more.

An analogy between goodness and color is often drawn since George Edward Moore to demonstrate the objective validity of goodness, and this way has elicited many responses. German philosopher Max Scheler also frequently analogizes goodness to color. However, his theory of the good distinguishes two approaches to claim for objective validity under the framework of fact and value, and is thus based on value theory: the goods are based on the qualities of values, while what is morally good is based on material value. From the perspective of phenomenology of value, Scheler traces the former approach back to the latter. This paper analytically exposes the reasons, progress, and problems of Scheler’s grounding of the objective validity of goodness in value theory, and endeavors to clarify some misunderstandings of Scheler’s conception of value in contemporary phenomenological research, as well as to highlight the intrinsic correlation of his phenomenology of value with the good life. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

16 pages, 314 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Levinas on the Relationship between Pleasure and the Good

by Guangyao Wang and Longxiang Jiang

Religions 2022, 13(8), 765; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13080765 - 22 Aug 2022

Viewed by 1555

Abstract

The article discusses the relationship between pleasure and the Good in Levinas’s ethics. Firstly, the paper points out that, for Levinas, pleasure and the Good are both essentially related to sensibility, except that pleasure is concerned with the self-affection of sensibility, and the [...] Read more.

The article discusses the relationship between pleasure and the Good in Levinas’s ethics. Firstly, the paper points out that, for Levinas, pleasure and the Good are both essentially related to sensibility, except that pleasure is concerned with the self-affection of sensibility, and the Good is concerned with the hetero-affection of sensibility. The self-affection of pleasure and enjoyment enables the subject to locate and contract itself, and thus to establish an inner and separated self. Meanwhile, the Good is originated from the hetero-affection of the call of the transcendent Other, and is embodied in an involuntary suffering for the other’s suffering, weakness, and needs. Secondly, the paper argues that the relationship between pleasure and the Good is highly tensional. On the one hand, the Good does interrupt the egoism of life and its pleasure. On the other hand, pleasure actually constitutes a necessary condition for the Good, rather than something that must be rejected. The intersection of pleasure and the Good constitutes an insurmountable and irreducible tension within subjectivity. Finally, the paper places Levinas’s ethics in a dialogue with hedonism, virtue ethics, asceticism, and deontology, and regards Levinas’s ethics as a new paradigm for understanding the relationship between pleasure and the Good in the history of Western ethics. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

11 pages, 302 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Heidegger’s Way to “The Last God”

by Zhenhua Zhang

Religions 2022, 13(8), 762; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13080762 - 21 Aug 2022

Viewed by 1549

Abstract

After Being and Time, “the last god” is born ex nihilo in Contributions to Philosophy. This has aroused extensive interest and discussion in the academic world. This paper focuses on the manifestation of “the last god” in Contributions to Philosophy. [...] Read more.

After Being and Time, “the last god” is born ex nihilo in Contributions to Philosophy. This has aroused extensive interest and discussion in the academic world. This paper focuses on the manifestation of “the last god” in Contributions to Philosophy. I will show that Contributions to Philosophy conveys Heidegger’s “deep experience”. This “deep experience” contains several key moments: solitude, stillness, silence and restraint. Solitude is the essential state of philosophers and poets. In solitude, one can enter a still place, which comes from the “stillness of Being”. Silence corresponds to this stillness. Silence has an original depth. These experiences finally point to the grounding attunement of “restraint”, which contains a relationship with powerful things. “The last god” appears in such deep experience, and its mode of manifestation is called “passing by”. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

15 pages, 280 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Is Michel Henry’s Radical Phenomenology of Life a Christian Philosophy?

by Changchi Hao

Religions 2022, 13(8), 761; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13080761 - 19 Aug 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2240

Abstract

This paper examines two fundamental claims by Michel Henry on his philosophy’s relationship with classical phenomenology (Husserl and Heidegger) and Christianity. It shows in what way Henry’s phenomenology is the radicalization and absolutization of classical phenomenology: pure phenomenological truth is the identification of [...] Read more.

This paper examines two fundamental claims by Michel Henry on his philosophy’s relationship with classical phenomenology (Husserl and Heidegger) and Christianity. It shows in what way Henry’s phenomenology is the radicalization and absolutization of classical phenomenology: pure phenomenological truth is the identification of appearing and what appears rather than the separation of the two. According to Henry, his notions of life and truth is fully in accordance with Christianity’s Revelation of God. In the last part, the paper challenges Henry’s claim that his phenomenology is a Christian philosophy from a Kierkegaardian point of view and argues that Henry’s phenomenology is, as a matter of fact, a philosophy without Christ. Contrary to a popular viewpoint that Michel Henry is a Christian thinker of our age, I would argue that Henry’s concept of God and Christ is essentially a scholarly philosophical invention. If Henry’s philosophy is an absolute and ultimate form of phenomenology, then it is reasonable to draw a conclusion that Christ as the Truth of Christianity is outside the boundary of phenomenology. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanity and Divinity in the Perspective of Phenomenology of Religions)

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