This episode of Godsplaining dives into the thought of Søren Kierkegaard—one of the most influential Christian philosophers of the modern era and often called the “father of existentialism.”
Fr. Bonaventure and Fr. Joseph-Anthony explore how Kierkegaard pushed back against overly rational approaches to Christianity, especially those influenced by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (checkout our episode on Hegel, if you haven't already). While Hegel emphasized reason as the key to understanding reality and faith, Kierkegaard insisted that faith cannot be reduced to logic alone.
The episode unpacks Kierkegaard’s famous framework of the three stages of life:
- The Aesthetic Stage: a life driven by pleasure, beauty, and experience
- The Ethical Stage: a life grounded in moral duty and universal truths
- The Religious Stage: a life of radical faith, where one responds personally to God
Through works like Either/Or and Fear and Trembling, Kierkegaard shows that true faith goes beyond rules and reason. Using the story of Abraham, he introduces the idea of a “teleological suspension of the ethical”—that God’s call can transcend human logic, requiring trust even when we don’t fully understand.
Join us at the 2026 All Comers' Retreat in June: https://godsplaining.org/all-comers-retreat-june-2026/
For the St. Dominic Rosary and more from the Catholic Woodworker: https://catholicwoodworker.com/products/st-dominic-rosary?utm_source=godsplaining&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=stdominic
Send your questions for the friars to: [email protected]
Subscribe to our channel https://www.youtube.com/c/Godsplaining
Support the Podcast Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/godsplaining
Shop our merch store: https://godsplaining.org/store/
Shop Books Written by the Friars
Training the Tongue: https://stpaulcenter.com/store/training-the-tongue-and-growing-beyond-sins-of-speech
Your Eucharistic Identity: https://ignatius.com/your-eucharistic-identity-yeip/
St. Dominic's Way of Life: https://www.amazon.com/Saint-Dominics-Way-Life-Knowing/dp/1681929392
Prudence: Choose Confidently, Live Boldly: https://www.amazon.com/Prudence-Choose-Confidently-Live-Boldly/dp/1681927322/
Connect on Social Media
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/godsplaining/
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/godsplaining/
Follow us on X: https://x.com/godsplaining
To learn more about the Province of St. Joseph visit: www.opeast.org
To support the Province of St. Joseph visit: www.dominicanfriars.org
Więcej odcinków z kanału "Godsplaining"
Nie przegap odcinka z kanału “Godsplaining”! Subskrybuj bezpłatnie w aplikacji GetPodcast.
