Reasoning from Faith

Justin Sands

Description

Merold Westphal is considered to be one of the preeminent Continental philosophers of religion. His articulation of faith as the task of a lifetime has become a touchstone in contemporary debates concerning faith's relationship to reason. As Justin Sands explores his philosophy, he illuminates how Westphal's concept of faith reveals the pastoral, theological intent behind his thinking. Sands sees Westphal's philosophy as a powerful articulation of Protestant theology, but one that is in ecumenical dialogue with questions concerning apologetics and faith's relationship to ethics and responsibility, a more Catholic point of view. By bringing out these features in Westphal's philosophy, Sands intends to find core philosophical methodologies as well as a passable bridge for philosophers to cross over into theological discourses.

Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
1. Of Hermeneutics and Style: How to Read Westphal
2. Recontextualization: A Westphalian Aufhebung?
3. Westphal and Hegel: Judging Religion Through Politics
4. Hegelians in Heaven, but on Earth . . .: An "Unfounding," Kierkegaardian Faith
5. Religiousness: The Expression of Faith
6. Faith Seeking Understanding: Westphal's Postmodernism
7. Intermediary Conclusions: The Believing Soul's Self-Transcendence
8. Radical Eschatology: Westphal, Caputo, and Onto-Theology
9. Comparative Eschatology: Westphal's Theology, Kearney's Philosophy, and Ricoeurian Detours
Conclusion: Westphal as a Theologian and Why it Matters Merold Westphal's Bibliography
Index

Sujets

• Philosophie
• Philosophie de la religion
• Religious
• PHILOSOPHY
• Philosophie et théologie
• Philosophy of religion

Informations

• Publié par: Indiana University Press
• Date de parution: 16 janvier 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780253031952
• Langue: English

Extrait

REASONING FROM FAITH
INDIANA SERIES IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION Merold Westphal, editor
REASONING from Faith
Fundamental Theology in Merold Westphal s Philosophy of Religion

JUSTIN SANDS
INDIANA UNIVERSITY PRESS
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1 2 3 4 5 23 22 21 20 19 18
To Terry and Debbie Cave
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Introduction
1 Of Hermeneutics and Style: How to Read Westphal
2 Recontextualization: A Westphalian Aufhebung ?
3 Westphal and Hegel: Judging Religion through Politics
4 Hegelians in Heaven, but on Earth : An Unfounding, Kierkegaardian Faith
5 Religiousness: The Expression of Faith
6 Faith Seeking Understanding: Westphal s Postmodernism
7 Intermediary Conclusions: The Believing Soul s Self-Transcendence
8 Radical Eschatology: Westphal, Caputo, and Onto-theology
9 Comparative Eschatology: Westphal s Theology, Kearney s Philosophy, and Ricoeurian Detours
Conclusion: Westphal as a Theologian and Why It Matters
Bibliography
Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Portions of chapter 2 appeared as The Concept of Aufhebung in the Thought of Merold Westphal: Appropriation and Recontextualization, in International Journal in Philosophy and Theology , June 25, 2015 (doi: 10.1080/21692327.2015.1057197). Portions of chapter 3 appeared as Hegelians in Heaven but on Earth? Westphal s Kierkegaardian Faith, in Journal for the History of Modern Theology 26, no. 1 (2016): 1-26 (doi: 10.1515/znth-2016-0018). Portions of chapter 7 appeared as Radical Eschatology: Westphal, Caputo, and Onto-Theology, in Louvain Studies 38 (2014): 246-268 (doi: 10.2143/LS.38.3.3105907). I thank these journals for their permission to include these texts in this monograph.
I thank Lieven Boeve and William Desmond for their help with this project and for guiding my research. I am especially grateful to Joeri Schrijvers for his friendship, critique, and advice. Patrick Eldridge was an essential reader for this project and his fingerprints are all over this text. I am also indebted to KU Leuven and the research group Theology in a Postmodern Context, and to the School for Philosophy at North-West University-Potchefstroom. The people at both institutions were instrumental in the creation of this work. I am particularly obliged to Marijn de Jong and Ann Verhoef for their friendship, good humor, and critical eyes.
Importantly, I am indebted to my family and loved ones. I thank my mother and father, Debbie and Terry Cave; my sister, Oshen Wallin; and my grandparents, Margaret and Thomas Butcher. Last, I warmly thank all my friends and colleagues in the United States, Belgium, and South Africa. I am truly blessed with my network of love and support, and I thank you all.
ABBREVIATIONS
IPG
Westphal, Merold, Thomas Ludwig, Robin Klay, and David Myers. Inflation, Poortalk, and the Gospel . Valley Forge: Judson Press, 1981.
GDD
Westphal, Merold. God, Guilt, and Death . Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1984.
KCRS
Westphal, Merold. Kierkegaard s Critique of Reason and Society . Macon: Mercer University Press, 1987.
HFM
Westphal, Merold. Hegel, Freedom, and Modernity . Albany: SUNY Press, 1992.
BS
Westphal, Merold. Becoming a Self . West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 1996.
HT
Westphal, Merold. History and Truth in Hegel s Phenomenology . 3rd ed. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1998.
SF
Westphal, Merold. Suspicion and Faith . Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1998.
OCOT
Westphal, Merold. Overcoming Onto-Theology . New York: Fordham University Press, 2001.
TST
Westphal, Merold. Transcendence and Self-Transcendence . Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2004.
LKD
Westphal, Merold. Levinas and Kierkegaard in Dialogue . Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2008.
GTPD
Putt, B. Keith, ed. Gazing through a Prism Darkly: Reflections on Merold Westphal s Hermeneutical Epistemology . New York: Fordham University Press, 2009.
WCWI
Westphal, Merold. Whose Community? Which Interpretation? Philosophical Hermeneutics for the Church . Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2009.
KCF
Westphal, Merold. Kierkegaard s Concept of Faith . Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2014.
REASONING FROM FAITH
INTRODUCTION
S ITUATING W ESTPHAL
Merold Westphal stands as one of the preeminent thinkers in North America concerning Continental philosophy of religion. Moreover, together with John Caputo and Richard Kearney, Westphal can be thought of as one of the main philosophers who popularized postmodern thought on religion in North America. The present work reviews Westphal s contributions to philosophy, what possible offerings those may have for theology, and how his work might best be understood within these discourses.
Although Westphal often fashions himself as a Christian philosopher-and hence it may seem simple to situate him between philosophy and theology-this is not so easily the case. What I will show is that his Christian philosophy, while being thoroughly Christian and heavily founded in philosophical thinking, is better understood as a theology proper. This is because Westphal s thought functions less as a philosophical reflection on the Christian faith and more as an active engagement of philosophy that begins from within the Christian faith. At first, this may sound as if I am splitting hairs concerning what a philosophy (or theology, for that matter) can and cannot do, yet this distinction is essential for best understanding the faith that Westphal wishes to pronounce and the ways in which that faith is enacted. Westphal, these chapters will show, does not seek a rational or apologetical justification of faith. Rather, he begins from a faith solely initiated by an acceptance of God s revelation, which thereby resists any rational foundation. From this anti-apologetical faith, Westphal then proceeds to rationally develop its implications. Faith is always the first act of the believing soul, Westphal argues; it begins as unreasonable, and reason only aids in one s understanding of faith. Finally, Westphal finds that this understanding, as commanded by God s revelation, is always oriented as a loving task toward the concern of those at the margins of society.
I argue that it may be better to understand his Christian philosophy as theology because Westphal rejects an apologetical defense of faith and that his understanding of faith is an active response to revelation with the above command for praxis. Furthermore, by aligning it with theology, one situates Westphal s work in a discourse that can better appropriate, adapt, and further his thought. This is especially so since Westphal is often confessional in his work, which is reflected in his thoughts on the praxis of faith. In this regard, he often addresses Christian believers by correcting and directing this praxis in the process of faith seeking understanding.
Our Course of Action
If one were to read Merold Westphal as a scholar of philosophical texts, one would see that his career follows three acts: first, he establishes himself as one of the premier American readers of Hegel; he then embraces Kierkegaard s critique of Hegel and Christendom; and finally, he completes his career by moving toward Continental philosophy of religion. Where at first one sees a Hegelian in ascension, one eventually finds Westphal pivoting toward a philosophy that heavily critiques Hegel, and this critique continues through a postmodern philosophy of religion. However, while Westphal s career evolved, the most interesting facet of this evolution is that nothing is ever abandoned or completely discarded. He never just leaves Hegel. In fact, with everything he reads, Hegel is always peering over Westphal s shoulder-with Kierkegaard always right by Westphal s side. More precisely, we can see in Westphal s work a continual process of recontextualization: he continually takes up the thought of those he critiques and uses that thought to find solutions to those criticisms.
This process of recontextualization is especially evident in his reading of Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard is at the core of Westphal s work, but Kierkegaard is always read through a Hegelian lens. Westphal s own critique of philosophy-be it Hegelianism, onto-theology, or what stands as modernity -often involves a Hegelian reading of Kierkegaard. Like Kierkegaard himself, Westphal always assumes Hegel as a starting point. This is especially true regarding how Westphal understands the concept of Aufhebung , which he argues is an operation not just in Hegel s thought but also in Kierkegaard s. What we shall see is that Westphal appropriates Hegel s Aufhebung to understand Kierkegaard, and he later recontextualizes it in his own philosophy of religion. Even if one were to dispute whether his use of Aufhebung is faithful to Hegel s own conception-and Westphal is explicit that his use of Aufhebung is Hegelian-it is quite clear that understanding Westphal s own philosophy requires thoughtful consideration of his scholarly work on Hegel and Kierkegaard.
Somewhat surprisingly, there has been little attention paid to the importance of his early schola