Jayne Svenungsson
Researcher
Sacrifice, Conflict and the Foundation of Culture
Author
Summary, in English
In the wake of the geo-political development in recent years, the question of sacrifice has come to the fore in the contemporary philosophical discussion. Does sacrifice merely sharpen conflicts between cultures, or should it be seen as an inevitable part of their foundation? This article addresses the question from the perspective of the biblical view of sacrifice, expressed paradigmat- ically in the story of the Akedah. The author picks up Merold Westphal’s argument - developed in extension to Kierkegaard - that the biblical view of sacrifice rather implies an unsettling of human culture, by pointing to a God whose transcendence disrupts and relativises every human culture. However, although Westphal’s appeal for transcendence is greeted, a more discriminating approach to transcendence, involving phenomenological and hermeneutical questions, is pleaded for. The author seeks to outline such an approach by combining Emmanuel Levinas’ critical reading of the Akedah with René Girard’s argument that the Bible ultimately reveals an anti-sacrificial logic.
Publishing year
2008
Language
English
Pages
330-341
Publication/Series
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie
Volume
50
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
De Gruyter
Topic
- Religious Studies
- Philosophy
Keywords
- Sacrifice
- Akedah
- Kierkegaard
- Levinas
- Girard
- culture
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 0028-3517