Description
The philosophy of Maurice Merleau-Ponty was developing into a radical ontology when he died prematurely in 1961. Merleau-Ponty identified this nascent ontology as a philosophy of incarnation that carries us beyond entrenched dualisms in philosophical thinking about perception, the body, animality, nature, and God.
What does this ontology have to do with the Catholic language of incarnation, sacrament, and logos on which it draws? In Things Seen and Unseen, Orion Edgar argues that Merleau-Ponty's philosophy is dependent upon a logic of incarnation that finds its roots and fulfillment in theology, and that Merleau-Ponty drew from the Catholic faith of his youth. Merleau-Ponty's final abandonment of Christianity was based on an understanding of God that was ultimately Kantian rather than orthodox. As such, Merleau-Ponty's philosophy suggests a new kind of natural theology, one that grounds an account of God as ipsum esse subsistens in the questions produced by a phenomenological account of the world. This philosophical ontology also offers Christian theology a route away from dualistic compromises and back to its own deepest insight.
Orion Edgar (PhD, Nottingham) is Curate at Pershore Abbey in Worcestershire.
“Merleau-Ponty's philosophy is . . . one of the most fertile sources in recent thought for reshaping the way we think about knowledge, time, and embodiment. It is also a style of thought with obvious theological resonance, a question that has long been in need of the kind of careful, insightful, and creative attention that Orion Edgar provides in this really admirable study.” Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury, University of Cambridge.
“This is, quite simply, the most magnificent account of Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology ever written. Edgar brings to life, in the fullest possible terms, the genius of Merleau-Ponty - the church should be truly grateful.” Conor Cunningham, Associate Professor in Theology and Philosophy,
University of Nottingham.
“Edgar's analysis is both philosophically insightful and theologically rich, and this study makes a significant contribution to Merleau-Ponty scholarship.” Sarah Coakley, Norris-Hulse Professor of Divinity, University of Cambridge.
“A welcome and elegant contribution to the recovery of Merleau-Ponty's 'incarnational' phenomenology for theology.” Janet Soskice, Professor of Philosophical Theology, University of Cambridge.
What does this ontology have to do with the Catholic language of incarnation, sacrament, and logos on which it draws? In Things Seen and Unseen, Orion Edgar argues that Merleau-Ponty's philosophy is dependent upon a logic of incarnation that finds its roots and fulfillment in theology, and that Merleau-Ponty drew from the Catholic faith of his youth. Merleau-Ponty's final abandonment of Christianity was based on an understanding of God that was ultimately Kantian rather than orthodox. As such, Merleau-Ponty's philosophy suggests a new kind of natural theology, one that grounds an account of God as ipsum esse subsistens in the questions produced by a phenomenological account of the world. This philosophical ontology also offers Christian theology a route away from dualistic compromises and back to its own deepest insight.
Orion Edgar (PhD, Nottingham) is Curate at Pershore Abbey in Worcestershire.
“Merleau-Ponty's philosophy is . . . one of the most fertile sources in recent thought for reshaping the way we think about knowledge, time, and embodiment. It is also a style of thought with obvious theological resonance, a question that has long been in need of the kind of careful, insightful, and creative attention that Orion Edgar provides in this really admirable study.” Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury, University of Cambridge.
“This is, quite simply, the most magnificent account of Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology ever written. Edgar brings to life, in the fullest possible terms, the genius of Merleau-Ponty - the church should be truly grateful.” Conor Cunningham, Associate Professor in Theology and Philosophy,
University of Nottingham.
“Edgar's analysis is both philosophically insightful and theologically rich, and this study makes a significant contribution to Merleau-Ponty scholarship.” Sarah Coakley, Norris-Hulse Professor of Divinity, University of Cambridge.
“A welcome and elegant contribution to the recovery of Merleau-Ponty's 'incarnational' phenomenology for theology.” Janet Soskice, Professor of Philosophical Theology, University of Cambridge.
Details
Publisher -
Language - English
Paperback
Contributors
Author
Orion Edgar
Published Date -
ISBN - 9780227175941
Dimensions - 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.4 cm
Page Count - 273
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