1690. Faith is or involves an existential . . .

SCANNED PDFogden1689anyexistential.pdf

1. Faith is or involves an existential self-understanding.

2. The existential self-understanding that faith is or involves implies an existential understanding of existence, or, alternatively, an understanding of God, the world, and human existence.

3. The existential understanding of existence, or of God, the world, and human existence, implied by the existential self-understanding that faith is or involves implies an existentialist understanding of human existence—and, as necessarily included therein, a purely formal, transcendental understanding of reality as such. 

4. The existential self-understanding that faith is or involves finds expression, first of all, in the direct witness of proclamation.

5. The existential understanding of existence, or of God, the world, and human existence, that faith, and hence the direct witness of proclamation, implies is made explicit in the indirect witness of teaching.

6. The existentialist understanding of human existence, including the purely formal, transcendental understanding of reality as such, that faith, and hence the witness of faith; implies is made explicit in existentialist analysis as including transcendental metaphysics.

7. Theology, as distinct from faith and the witness of faith, indirect as well as direct, is critical reflection on witness (i.e., critical interpretation of its meaning and critical validation of its claims to validity) in terms of existentialist analysis as including transcendental metaphysics.

1 June 1998