Great choice for an introduction to Kierkegaard, much different from The Seducer's Diary. I'd like to hear how silence and obedience leads to joy. Not enough joy around these days. Thanks.
Very nicely presented! It’s about time someone made a video on these discourses! And I like how you approach and dissect what Kierkegaard means by Silence. From what I can tell though, you seem to be missing some pieces to the puzzle that might make the picture clearer-not that big of a deal I assure you, but, these other pieces would help. So yes, there are other edifying discourses that sort of go along with the ones mentioned in this video (Silence, Obedience, and Joy). He still uses the Lilies of the field and the Birds of the air to try to persuade us in these discourses: Be Satisfied With Being Human, The Glory of Being Human, The Blessedness Promised to Being Human, The Anxieties We Invent Ourselves, The Anxieties Caused by Being In Two Minds. You can find these, including the discourses you’ve covered, in a book which which I think includes all of Kierkegaard’s edifying or upbuilding discourses, including an eye opening discourse on the gospel verse in James: “Every good and perfect gift is from above.” Anyway this is the book: Spiritual Writings of Kierkegaard, translation by George Pattison*.
Show I am in a similar stage as you are now. In the past, I was a hardcore atheist, and looking back to it I was stupid. I am now more open to religion than I used to be. Two things holding me back from becoming a Christian is that a lot of times I see religion as a social phenomenon and not as a relation with God. The second one is the idea of the omniscience of God. How I am free if he knows the future? If anyone can answer such questions let me know.
@@johnlemon3809 Thanks I will check him out soon. I have been interested in him but because there are few translations of him in Greek ( I am from Greece) I haven't tried him yet.
I think St. Augustine (who, mind you, was one of the influences on Kierkegaard) can help you, at least to some degree, with your second obstacle-and it is indeed a tough one-one I still struggle with a little myself if I’m being honest. I would try to sum up what he says but I don’t want to botch it and have you get a piece meal explanation (especially with such an important issue), but I will share my take underneath the quote. So here is St Augustine on free will and foreknowledge: “...It does not follow, then, that there is nothing in our will because God foreknew what was going to be in our will; for if he foreknew this, it was nothing that he foreknew. Further, if, in foreknowing what would be in our will, he foreknew something, and not nonentity (or nothing), it follows immediately that there is something in our will, even if God foreknows it. Hence we are in no way compelled either to preserve God’s prescience by abolishing our free will, or to safeguard our free will by denying the divine foreknowledge. We embrace both truths, and acknowledge them in faith and sincerity, the one for a right belief, the other for a right life. And yet a man’s life cannot be right without a right belief about God. Therefore, let us never dream of denying his foreknowledge in the interests of our freedom; for it is with his help that we are, or shall be, free.” Basically, we can have our cake and eat it too. Or more like: If we are to live rightly, we have to have our cake and eat it too. Sort of a bad analogy for this but I think it illustrates the point. And (here’s the difficult part), as he points out, an element of faith is required to accept that this is the case, “we embrace both truths and acknowledge them in faith and sincerity...”, since it is of course beyond human understanding how God’s foreknowledge and our free will interact. Augustine seems to be saying that our very existence is proof that we have free will, even if God foreknew it. Anyway thank you for being patient and reading though all this if you made it this far. I hope this was of some help to you!
There’s lots of discussion on free will, and it’s coexistence with God’s sovereignty. In history, the definition of freedom also changed a lot. Does freedom mean that you can do anything? Or you have the freedom to control your body to not do the thing that your mind doesn’t want to do? Long story short, freedom is relative. Even from the secular perspective (using Foucault’s point) we all live under certain governmentality that limits the way we think and act.
Kierkegaard may possibly be talking not just of physical silence, but also of social silence. Refraining from needless interaction and relationships. I do believe silence must have a greater meaning than just physical speech.
Great to see this obedience and Joy would be great to see. I have just bought this book it arrived today, I will report back but great overview of silence. Thank you.
Kierkegaard is talking about silencing the incessant, mad chatter of humanity in our heads. This silence is the 'empty mind' of Zen Buddhists. The British philosopher John Gray also advocates this state of mind in his book 'The Silence of Animals'. Gray is an atheist, but one sympathetic to religion.
"The loquacity of thanksgiving falls silent in to fear of God", would suggest that silence involves abandoning any sense of ritualised gratitude and opening ourselves up to a sense of awe. It reminds me of something Jung said about religion being the box we place around the divine in order to make it more palatable, and I wonder if Kierkegaard is speaking something similar with regards to silence being about an openness to experience? Given the further reflections re: listening and nature, I wonder if Kierkegaard is cogitating on the Tao here...
Dont worry. There are many, including myself, who share agnosticism with you. Remind yourself this: Even when you're by-yourself, you're never truly alone.
It's in Matthew 6:25-34. I haven't read the Kierkegaard book you're referencing in this video. But I'm wondering if this Parable adds anything to your reading of it :-)
Religion is a very simple concept. To understand Religion or theology you have to understand its beginning in the evolutionary tree. Theology started with the beginning of human consciousness or self awareness. What theology is base on is the unknown or not understood which is what first humans with consciousness did by conceptually identifying the unknown or not understood or missing information with a mystical entity or out of their realm of understanding or out of their realm of there consciousness to represent reality. By putting in a storyline of a mystical entity your consciousness can define the unknown and close the loop so they can continue doing there functions as humans. TM
Anyone can find God.... especially at 1am, at a bus stop. Evil? Standing outside of a broken phone booth with a pocket full of change. We all have a destiny; but fate is in our own hands. If I bang my elbow I "naturally" yell out "OH GOD". What's in your wallet. Kind regards.
Great choice for an introduction to Kierkegaard, much different from The Seducer's Diary. I'd like to hear how silence and obedience leads to joy. Not enough joy around these days. Thanks.
Loved this! Never heard about this book, you definitely peeked my interest.
It's pretty dope
Very nicely presented! It’s about time someone made a video on these discourses! And I like how you approach and dissect what Kierkegaard means by Silence. From what I can tell though, you seem to be missing some pieces to the puzzle that might make the picture clearer-not that big of a deal I assure you, but, these other pieces would help. So yes, there are other edifying discourses that sort of go along with the ones mentioned in this video (Silence, Obedience, and Joy). He still uses the Lilies of the field and the Birds of the air to try to persuade us in these discourses: Be Satisfied With Being Human, The Glory of Being Human, The Blessedness Promised to Being Human, The Anxieties We Invent Ourselves, The Anxieties Caused by Being In Two Minds. You can find these, including the discourses you’ve covered, in a book which which I think includes all of Kierkegaard’s edifying or upbuilding discourses, including an eye opening discourse on the gospel verse in James: “Every good and perfect gift is from above.” Anyway this is the book: Spiritual Writings of Kierkegaard, translation by George Pattison*.
Awesome content, I’d love to see a video on the third discourse!
I'll keep that in mind, thanks!
Show I am in a similar stage as you are now. In the past, I was a hardcore atheist, and looking back to it I was stupid. I am now more open to religion than I used to be. Two things holding me back from becoming a Christian is that a lot of times I see religion as a social phenomenon and not as a relation with God. The second one is the idea of the omniscience of God. How I am free if he knows the future? If anyone can answer such questions let me know.
Kierkegaard may help with your first qualm. He absolutely detested the organized modern Danish State Church, for about the same reasons.
@@johnlemon3809 Thanks I will check him out soon. I have been interested in him but because there are few translations of him in Greek ( I am from Greece) I haven't tried him yet.
I think St. Augustine (who, mind you, was one of the influences on Kierkegaard) can help you, at least to some degree, with your second obstacle-and it is indeed a tough one-one I still struggle with a little myself if I’m being honest.
I would try to sum up what he says but I don’t want to botch it and have you get a piece meal explanation (especially with such an important issue), but I will share my take underneath the quote. So here is St Augustine on free will and foreknowledge:
“...It does not follow, then, that there is nothing in our will because God foreknew what was going to be in our will; for if he foreknew this, it was nothing that he foreknew. Further, if, in foreknowing what would be in our will, he foreknew something, and not nonentity (or nothing), it follows immediately that there is something in our will, even if God foreknows it. Hence we are in no way compelled either to preserve God’s prescience by abolishing our free will, or to safeguard our free will by denying the divine foreknowledge. We embrace both truths, and acknowledge them in faith and sincerity, the one for a right belief, the other for a right life. And yet a man’s life cannot be right without a right belief about God. Therefore, let us never dream of denying his foreknowledge in the interests of our freedom; for it is with his help that we are, or shall be, free.”
Basically, we can have our cake and eat it too.
Or more like: If we are to live rightly, we have to have our cake and eat it too. Sort of a bad analogy for this but I think it illustrates the point.
And (here’s the difficult part), as he points out, an element of faith is required to accept that this is the case, “we embrace both truths and acknowledge them in faith and sincerity...”, since it is of course beyond human understanding how God’s foreknowledge and our free will interact. Augustine seems to be saying that our very existence is proof that we have free will, even if God foreknew it.
Anyway thank you for being patient and reading though all this if you made it this far. I hope this was of some help to you!
There’s lots of discussion on free will, and it’s coexistence with God’s sovereignty. In history, the definition of freedom also changed a lot. Does freedom mean that you can do anything? Or you have the freedom to control your body to not do the thing that your mind doesn’t want to do? Long story short, freedom is relative. Even from the secular perspective (using Foucault’s point) we all live under certain governmentality that limits the way we think and act.
Great Video. Perfect timing for a lazy saturday :)
Kierkegaard may possibly be talking not just of physical silence, but also of social silence. Refraining from needless interaction and relationships. I do believe silence must have a greater meaning than just physical speech.
As a Universalist Christian I do hope there are quite a few pros to belief in God. Good video!
For as the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, so is silence the beginning of the fear of God. - Søren Kierkegaard
Great to see this obedience and Joy would be great to see. I have just bought this book it arrived today, I will report back but great overview of silence. Thank you.
Kierkegaard is talking about silencing the incessant, mad chatter of humanity in our heads. This silence is the 'empty mind' of Zen Buddhists. The British philosopher John Gray also advocates this state of mind in his book 'The Silence of Animals'. Gray is an atheist, but one sympathetic to religion.
"The loquacity of thanksgiving falls silent in to fear of God", would suggest that silence involves abandoning any sense of ritualised gratitude and opening ourselves up to a sense of awe. It reminds me of something Jung said about religion being the box we place around the divine in order to make it more palatable, and I wonder if Kierkegaard is speaking something similar with regards to silence being about an openness to experience? Given the further reflections re: listening and nature, I wonder if Kierkegaard is cogitating on the Tao here...
Dont worry. There are many, including myself, who share agnosticism with you. Remind yourself this: Even when you're by-yourself, you're never truly alone.
Good stuff Amy. Did you happen to come across the parable Kierkegaard is referencing in these thoughts?
Not yet personally.
It's in Matthew 6:25-34. I haven't read the Kierkegaard book you're referencing in this video. But I'm wondering if this Parable adds anything to your reading of it :-)
@@jeffemerican Oh yeah the Sermon on the mount right?
Religion is a very simple concept. To understand Religion or theology you have to understand its beginning in the evolutionary tree. Theology started with the beginning of human consciousness or self awareness. What theology is base on is the unknown or not understood which is what first humans with consciousness did by conceptually identifying the unknown or not understood or missing information with a mystical entity or out of their realm of understanding or out of their realm of there consciousness to represent reality. By putting in a storyline of a mystical entity your consciousness can define the unknown and close the loop so they can continue doing there functions as humans. TM
Beautiful!
A lot like Eastern thought
One of my favorite books from Kierkegaard is Present Age. Short and sweet and still applicable to our Western liberal democracy.
Seems to me like the silence for Kirkegaard is very similar to what Leopardi describes in his poem "the infinite"
Think about it, what do you have to lose from believing?
An interpretation of Kierkegaard's aspect of being nothing could be that you need to rid off all of your learned beliefs of god and begin anew.
To all fairness humans do have some of the highest decibel noises
90% silence
5% God
Kierkegaard didn't know that dolphins have their own language and are sentient did he?
he came from a nation that still kills dolphins to this day.
Anyone can find God.... especially at 1am, at a bus stop. Evil? Standing outside of a broken phone booth with a pocket full of change. We all have a destiny; but fate is in our own hands. If I bang my elbow I "naturally" yell out "OH GOD". What's in your wallet. Kind regards.
Get to the point please