In my last post, I shared an excerpt from an article that outlined “Romantic Eschatology.” The participation in the framework described was rooted entirely in Romanticism, with only partial allusions to Christianity. However, the partial allusions revealed much.
Romanticism proper—assuming such a thing existed—largely embraced the evolution of consciousness but eventually distanced itself from Christianity. Christianity proper denies the evolution of consciousness and regards Romanticism as an error and a threat. In the end, neither offers a viable solution to the problem of alienation.
Alienation is the emergence of the individual, conscious self. But this emergence requires the split between the natural or unconscious realm of objects, and the conscious realm of the individual subject.
This is a false split that can only be healed by the imagination. Alienation can be thought of as a series of false images or projections of the self and its relation to the world.
For F. W. J. von Schelling and Berdyaev, this involves two forms of evil/despair that arise from within this condition: 1) to be swallowed up in chaos; 2) to create such a stultifying order as to do away with freedom. Each has a myriad of representations, and each is a false image of the self.
Neither Romanticism nor Christianity have been able to heal the false split via imagination. Granted, Romanticism was fueled by the imagination, but with little or no grounding in Christianity, eventually became swallowed up in chaos. Conversely, by rejecting the evolution of consciousness, Christianity doubled down on its stultifying order and stifled freedom and, consequently, imagination.
The solution, as far as I can see, lies in the amalgamation of Romanticism and Christianity. I do not think this can happen at the institutional church level, at least not yet.
For the time being, it will be limited to individuals. Moreover, the nature and quality of any such amalgamation will be set by the individual and his honest and sincere relationship and communication with the Holy Ghost.
The goal, if it can be described as such, is overcoming alienation. More precisely, recognizing and, to the best of one’s ability, overcoming the false images or projections of the self and its relation to the world.
These relations include, nay, are founded upon, the individual’s relationship with the Divine. This relationship must be rooted in freedom, freedom that strives for the actualization of concrete love.
In his essay Of Human Freedom, F. W. J. von Schelling offers some insight into what such a striving aims for:
This is the secret of love, that it unites such being as could each exist in itself, and nonetheless neither is nor can be without the other.
and
This is the secret of eternal Love – that which would fain be absolute in itself nonetheless does not regard it as a deprivation to be so in itself but is so only in and with another.
Romanticism proper—assuming such a thing existed—largely embraced the evolution of consciousness but eventually distanced itself from Christianity. Christianity proper denies the evolution of consciousness and regards Romanticism as an error and a threat. In the end, neither offers a viable solution to the problem of alienation.
Alienation is the emergence of the individual, conscious self. But this emergence requires the split between the natural or unconscious realm of objects, and the conscious realm of the individual subject.
This is a false split that can only be healed by the imagination. Alienation can be thought of as a series of false images or projections of the self and its relation to the world.
For F. W. J. von Schelling and Berdyaev, this involves two forms of evil/despair that arise from within this condition: 1) to be swallowed up in chaos; 2) to create such a stultifying order as to do away with freedom. Each has a myriad of representations, and each is a false image of the self.
Neither Romanticism nor Christianity have been able to heal the false split via imagination. Granted, Romanticism was fueled by the imagination, but with little or no grounding in Christianity, eventually became swallowed up in chaos. Conversely, by rejecting the evolution of consciousness, Christianity doubled down on its stultifying order and stifled freedom and, consequently, imagination.
The solution, as far as I can see, lies in the amalgamation of Romanticism and Christianity. I do not think this can happen at the institutional church level, at least not yet.
For the time being, it will be limited to individuals. Moreover, the nature and quality of any such amalgamation will be set by the individual and his honest and sincere relationship and communication with the Holy Ghost.
The goal, if it can be described as such, is overcoming alienation. More precisely, recognizing and, to the best of one’s ability, overcoming the false images or projections of the self and its relation to the world.
These relations include, nay, are founded upon, the individual’s relationship with the Divine. This relationship must be rooted in freedom, freedom that strives for the actualization of concrete love.
In his essay Of Human Freedom, F. W. J. von Schelling offers some insight into what such a striving aims for:
This is the secret of love, that it unites such being as could each exist in itself, and nonetheless neither is nor can be without the other.
and
This is the secret of eternal Love – that which would fain be absolute in itself nonetheless does not regard it as a deprivation to be so in itself but is so only in and with another.
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