Attacks on Christendom in a World Come of Age: Kierkegaard, Bonhoeffer, and the Question of "Religionless Christianity" (Princeton Theological Monograph) - Softcover

Matthew D. Kirkpatrick

Softcover

ISBN 10: 160899550X ISBN 13: 9781608995509

Publisher: Pickwick Publications, 2011

Synopsis

Though Soren Kierkegaard and Dietrich Bonhoeffer both made considerable contributions to twentieth-century thought, they are rarely considered together. Against Kierkegaard's melancholic individual, Bonhoeffer stands as the champion of the church and community. In Attacks on Christendom, Matthew D. Kirkpatrick challenges these stereotypical readings of these two vital thinkers. Through an analysis of such concepts as epistemology, ethics, Christology, and ecclesiology, Kirkpatrick reveals Kierkegaard's significant influence on Bonhoeffer throughout his work. Kirkpatrick shows that Kierkegaard underlies not only Bonhoeffer's spirituality but also his concepts of knowledge, being, and community. So important is this relationship that it was through Kierkegaard's powerful representation of Abraham and Isaac that Bonhoeffer came to adhere to an ethic that led to his involvement in the assassination attempts against Hitler. However, this relationship is by no means one-sided. Attacks on Christendom argues for the importance of Bonhoeffer as an interpreter of Kierkegaard, drawing Kierkegaard's thought into his own unique context, forcing Kierkegaard to answer very different questions. Bonhoeffer helps in converting the obscure, obdurate Dane into a thinker for his own, unique age. Both Kierkegaard and Bonhoeffer have been criticized and misunderstood for their final works that lay bare the religious climates of their nations. In the final analysis, Attacks on Christendom argues that these works are not unfortunate endings to their careers, but rather their fulfilment, drawing together the themes that had been brewing throughout their work.

About this title

About the Author:

Matthew D. Kirkpatrick is tutor in Theology and Ethics at Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford.

Review:

"Kierkegaard and Bonhoeffer are undoubtedly two of the greatest figures of modern theology, and there has been much speculation and suggestion as to the influence of the one on the other. However, Kirkpatrick is the first to have documented the scope of Bonhoeffer's reading of Kierkegaard and laid the foundations for a proper scholarly assessment of their relationship, including recognition of their differences. But he does more than this, since he goes on to explore the interweaving of shared themes in their two bodies of work and to show how they combine to offer both a powerful critique of conventional Christianity and a vision for the renewal of Christian discipleship. Kirkpatrick's work is an excellent example of how to combine Christian commitment and scholarly rigor and may be strongly commended to all contemporary Christians who are seriously concerned about the church's uncertain, intellectual response to modernity."
--George Pattison
Christ Church, Oxford

"Finally we have a book on Kierkegaard and Bonhoeffer that reflects a comprehensive study of both men, thereby providing a solid basis for future research in the area as well as identifying in the two a powerful, shared voice for speaking to today's world."
--Andrew J. Burgess
Professor of Philosophy Emeritus
The University of New Mexico --Wipf and Stock Publishers

Matthew Kirkpatrick's comprehensive study of the amazing spiritual connectedness of these two giants in religious literature stands out as one of the most important contributions to Bonhoeffer scholarship to appear in recent years ... Kirkpatrick's book is the most comprehensive study of these two inspirational writers, offering a comprehensive analysis of their authorships, and demonstrating the profound influence Kierkegaard could exert on the hero of German resistance. Matthew Kirkpatrick has achieved an original and substantial contribution not only to scholarship on the writings of these two seminal thinkers but also to the history of Christian thought in both the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. --Geffrey B. Kelly - from the Foreword

About this edition

• Publisher: Pickwick Publications
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 160899550X
• ISBN 13: 9781608995509
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 258