Edifying Discourses

Upbuilding or edification, is the central theme of Soren Kierkegaard's authorship: only the truth that builds up is truth for you (E02:354). Somewhere along the way, Soren Kierkegaard developed a plan to publish some upbuilding discourses to 'accompany his pseudonymous works. These Eighteen Upbuilding Discourses are the focus of the edifying commentaries in this volume.

"Just as Howard V. and Edna H. Hong's translation of Upbuilding Discourses in Various Spirits marked the first appearance of this complete title in English in a single volume, this collection of essays is the first to explore the fascinating and powerful compilation of Kierkegaard's writings that clearly initiate the "second authorship.""--BOOK JACKET.

Søren Kierkegaard's 13 communion discourses constitute a distinct genre among the various forms of religious writing composed by Kierkegaard. Originally published at different times and places, Kierkegaard himself believed that these discourses served as a unifying element in his work and were crucial for understanding his religious thought and philosophy as a whole. Written in an intensely personal liturgical context, the communion discourses prepare the reader for participation in this rite by emphasizing the appropriate posture for forgiveness of sins and confession.

Reidar Thomte's Kierkegaard's Philosophy of Religion is an excellent read for students beginning their study of one of the "greats" of nineteenth and twentieth century philosophy. Thomte directly appropriates Kierkegaard's insightful language and discussion of the theological and philosophical issues that stimulated him, all of which are still alive and well today. This approach has the happy result that readers seeking an introduction do not have to be led through technical debates in order to approach Kierkegaard's thought. Thomte is a master of incisive summary; his presentations of crucial distinctions are level-headed and to the point. Kierkegaard's categories such as "the stages on life's way" (the aesthetic, the ethical, Religiousness A, and Religiousness B), the individual, subjectivity, the Paradox, the varieties of love, faith and knowledge, etc., are provocative and illuminating. Not only is this book a good a "starter," it is also a comprehensive review of the principal issues in Kierkegaard's philosophy of religion. (by Robert L. Perkins, Editor, International Kierkegaard Commentary)

Arne Grøn’s reading of Søren Kierkegaard’s authorship revolves around existential challenges of human identity. The 35 essays that constitute this book are written over three decades and are characterized by combining careful attention to the augmentative detail of Kierkegaard’s text with a constant focus on issues in contemporary philosophy. Contrary to many approaches to Kierkegaard’s authorship, Grøn does not read Kierkegaard in opposition to Hegel. The work of the Danish thinker is read as a critical development of Hegelian phenomenology with particular attention to existential aspects of human experience. Anxiety and despair are the primary existential phenomena that Kierkegaard examines throughout his authorship, and Grøn uses these negative phenomena to argue for the basically ethical aim of Kierkegaard’s work. In Grøn’s reading, Kierkegaard conceives human selfhood not merely as relational, but also a process of becoming the self that one is through the otherness of self-experience, that is, the body, the world, other people, and God. This book should be of interest to philosophers, theologians, literary studies scholars, and anyone with an interest not only in Kierkegaard, but also in human identity.