“What it does remind us is that 'God' is not to be separated from the quest for the Kingdom of God and is not and cannot be the object of any detached 'scientific' contemplation. Heidegger's critique of onto-theology is also driving a wedge between speaking of God and the aims of science - not so as to get rid of God but rather to free God from a false objectification.” DoeObjectsAimDrivingTheologyKingdomsContemplationQuestsKingdom Of GodCritiqueDetachedObjectificationWedgesHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Religious life is about something real in human experience that is not constrained by what Wittgenstein called 'all that is the case'. In this sense Heidegger is not simply 'mistaken' - he just asks us, as philosophers mostly do, to think more carefully about what we're saying.” ThinkingHumansRealLife IsAsksReligiousCasesPhilosopherMistakenHuman ExperienceSomething RealReligious LifeHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“But why should a religious person be interested in a work like Heidegger's that many regard as the epitome of nihilism? For a start, because Heidegger forces us in a way that few philosophers do to really think through the seriousness and all-encompassing nature of our mortality.” ThinkingWayShouldPersonsForceReligiousRegardPhilosopherMortalitySeriousnessNihilismEpitomeReligious PersonHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Positively, he [Heidegger] shows that the prospect of death doesn't of itself destroy all possibilities of meaning but calls instead for these to be relocated from fantasies about a future post-mortem life. However, I don't think he does enough in this work to show that this relocation has - I believe - a primarily ethical character (in Levinas's sense of 'ethical').” ThinkingBelieveDoeEnoughCharacterShowsI BelieveFantasyPossibilityPostsEthicalPositivelyHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“In brief, I regard love as a more decisive focus of meaning than death. In terms of Heidegger's argument, this is because I think he misdescribes the importance of the deaths of others and focuses exclusively on my relation to my own death. But, in reality, the deaths of others have a more urgent and immediate impact on our lives than the purely notional knowledge that I too will one day die.” ThinkingRealityDiesTermMy OwnFocusOur LivesOne DayArgumentImportanceRelationRegardImpactUrgentHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“I think he [Heidegger] sets the question up in a useful way and, despite appearances, he's not 'against' technology. He just wants us to have a questioning and thoughtful relation to it. This must be relevant to any approach.” ThinkingWayWantTechnologyApproachRelationAppearanceDespiteThoughtfulRelevantQuestioningWant UHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Of course, if one's reading Kierkegaard for personal interest that's fine - but it's sloppy scholarship just to cherry pick what suits one from a particular author, whether it's Kierkegaard, Heidegger, or whoever. Nevertheless, it does seem to me that even the more religious parts of the authorship can offer significant insights into the meaning of the human condition to those who can't then say that, e.g., they believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God and their personal Saviour.” IfsBelieveHumansDoeSeemsCoursesReadingJesusInterestChristReligiousConditionsParticularSonFineOffersPicksJesus ChristInsightSignificantSuitsHuman ConditionNeverthelessScholarshipSaviourCherriesAuthorshipSloppyPersonal InterestHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Every stroke a tennis player plays is different, yet we perceive them as playing in a distinctive and unique way. It's what Heidegger called a certain 'how' of existing. It's ultimately always singular, and the double task of (a) getting it in view and (b) communicating it to others will inevitably be marked more often by failure than success!” WayDifferentPlayCertainViewsPlayerUniqueTasksCommunicatePerceiveTennisStrokesDistinctiveTennis PlayerHeidegger Author:George Pattison
