Desire, Decreation and Unknowing in the God-relationship: Mystical Theology and its Transformation in Kierkegaard, Simone Weil and Dostoevsky
Publication Type |
Book Chapter |
Year of Publication |
2007 |
Author |
|
Editor |
Grøn, Arne Damgaard, Iben Overgaard, Søren |
Book |
Subjectivity and Transcendence |
Series Volume |
25 |
Pages |
193-211 |
Publisher |
Mohr Siebeck |
Place Published |
Tübingen |
Language |
English |
Chapter |
10 |
Series Title |
Religion in philosophy and theology |
Keywords |
affliction (malheur) |
Annotation |
Pattison looks at the relationship between the self and God in mystical theology and as the title says “its transformation in Kierkegaard, Simone Weil and Dostoevsky”. He begins with a brief discussion of this relationship in Augustine before turning to a more extensive reflection on Pseudo-Dionysisus’ mystical theology, noting the distinction he makes between love and knowledge with the former being upheld as the only path to ‘knowing God’. He then moves to a consideration of Kierkegaard’s work, arguing that for him, it is in only in the annihilation of the self, one enters into relationship with God. He then turns to look at these ideas in Weil, paying particular attention to her notions of decreation, attention, beauty and affliction as found in Gravity and Grace and “Reflections on the Right Use of School Studies with a View to the Love of God”. The chapter ends with a brief discussion of Dostoyevsky, noting he too, suggests mystical experience lies outside or beyond consciousness and the ‘mystical selves’ who have such experiences inevitably challenge philosophical and modern conceptions of the self, causing them to be frequently characterized as mad or ill. Pattison concludes with the intriguing suggestion that the texts he analyzes can contribute much to an understanding of the relationship between selves, others and the world even for those who would reject the idea of a God. |