Introduction to Religion Humanities 215.02 February 15, 2013 Review of Wednesday Existentialism & Postmodernism Small Groups: I Am A Spiritual Seeker

Zoroastrianism Rooted in Nomadic, Indo-Europeans, 3000 BCE 1st & 2nd Wave of Traveling Tribes 600 or 1200 BCE ~ Zarathushtra Dualism: Good & Evil; Light & Dark

“God, Zarathushtra taught, was the wholly Good Creator of all things “God, Zarathushtra taught, was the wholly Good Creator of all things... of the spiritual and material worlds... He is in no way responsible for evil in the world; this comes from the Destructive Spirit (Angra Mainyu) whose nature is violent and destructive.” ~p. 244

The Baha’i Faith “Since God is infinite and our minds can only conceptualize the finite, humanity has no access to knowledge of the supreme reality... The only certain knowledge that human beings can gain... is that brought by certain intermediaries who arise from time to time and found the great religions of the world.” ~p. 425

Baha’ullaah writes... “that humanity is reaching maturity and much that was previously part of religion -- concepts such as Satan, heaven and hell as literal physical entities and practices such as confession and priestly forgiveness of sins -- can be dispensed with.” ~p. 426

Existentialism Modernity Enlightenment Antiquity Post- Modernity Medieval

Existentialism Is What Happens When Religiosity Collides With Secularism

Soren Kierkegaard Born May 5, 1813 to Michael & Ane (The Maid, Michael’s 2nd Wife) Michael cursed God; felt “cursed” -- depressed Engagement to Regine Olson; Broken Off Writes Fear & Trembling in 1843

Adam In Garden? Abraham & Isaac?

Cannot Get Outside Of Existence Of Categories of History Of This Weird Reflection On Self Phenomenology: First Person Rules!

Infinitude Abraham Here I Am Joy Again in Isaac Finitude

It is quite true what Philosophy says: that Life must be understood backwards. But that makes one forget the other saying: that it must be lived—forwards. The more one ponders this, the more it comes to mean that life in the temporal existence never becomes quite intelligible, precisely because at no moment can I find complete quiet to take the backward-looking position. - The Diary of Soren Kierkegaard; Kierkegaard, pt. 5, sct. 4, no. 136

Jean-Paul Sartre 1905--1980 Existentialism’s a Humanism Man is nothing else but what he makes of himself Being and Nothingness Consciousness is a being, the nature of which is to be conscious of the nothingness of its being.

Atheism or Theism “Whoever lives in daily and festive communion with the thought that there is a God could hardly wish to spoil this for himself, or see it spoiled, by piecing together a definition of what God is... Man... is a synthesis of psyche and body, but also... of the temporal and the eternal.” Soren Kierkegaard Atheistic existentialism... declares with greater consistency that if God does not exist there is at least one being whose existence comes before its essence... That being is man....” Jean-Paul Sartre

I believe in it, I answer for it, for the whole work of man really seems to consist in nothing but proving to himself every minute that he is a man and not a piano-key! It may be at the cost of his skin, it may be by cannibalism! And this being so, can one help being tempted to rejoice that it has not yet come off, and that desire still depends on something we don't know? --Notes from the Underground, Fyodor Dostoevsky

Postmodernism Subjectivity Distrust of ALL meta- narratives Fragmentation Deconstruction Hyperreality

Small Groups: p. 451 Review or Read “I am a Spiritual Seeker” How is Helen Serdiville’s story indicative of the Postmodern Condition? Does she make sense to you?

For Next Wednesday Read Prothero Chapter on Atheism Get a head start on Readings for Pascal, S.K. & Weil Small Group Research