An All-Consuming Faith Kierkegaard and Religious Existence

Date of Award

2003

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Langston, Douglas

Keywords

Kierkegaard, Faith, Spheres of Existance

Area of Concentration

Philosophy

Abstract

There is truly no greater problem in the work of Soren Kierkegaard than the problem of understanding Christian faith. Faith is postulated as the end result of one's advancement through the spheres of existence, and thus is the highest form of existence that an individual human being can attain. All of his writing is essentially either a direct or indirect attempt to illuminate something about faith, be it a specific aspect of faith itself or a discussion of one of the steps on the path towards faith. This being the case, the central problem this thesis deals with is how Kierkegaard believes one can attain Cluistian faith and what this faith means for the existing individual. These problems are examined through a synthesis of exegetical efforts with several of Kierkegaard's major works. We will come to see how one advances through the various spheres of existence, why faith is the pinnacle of this endeavor, and what bearing this faith has upon the nature of existence and the existing individual. Finally, some thought is given to Kierkegaard's relation to other theories of faith that we find in modem and recent scholarship.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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