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Hegelianism and Christianity Hegelianism and Christianity John H. Gerstner, Jr. John Oman has written : .. We God." are waiting today for some change in There was one thing more surpris philosophy away from Helegianism ing than the stupendousness of Hegel's and the process of thought as the key claim and that was that his contempor to the universe, corresponding to the aries believed it! But they did, and movement of science away from New- following a period of philosophical tonianism, with its assumption of the inebriation came the morning after laws of motion as the efficient cause and then the revulsion from which, it of things."^ This statement reveals seems, philosophers are still suttering. two : that Hegel is still things first, When this revulsion set in, the phi with that men who us, and, second, losophers not only threw out Hegel's think as Oman thinks wish he were with Hegel's wash, but they not. baby threw out Hegel too. And it is proving Hegel's influence has been greatly veiy difticult for him to get back again. under-rated precisely because his own Hence, we hear much disparagement claims were so greatly over-stated. and little appreciation. Xevertheless, Xever in the history of thought did though Hegel's name may be anath any man profess such exhaustive ema, many of his ideas, as Oman sug knowledge and practical omniscience. gests, have become sacred. F. L. that master of verbal Patton, Let us comment briefly on the : "When caricature, states it this way Hegelianism of two of the world's the Zopliar the Naamathite put ques outstanding philosophers, A. N. tion to his class, 'Who by searching Whitehead and John iJewey. Op can find out God?' an amid Hegelian, posed as each of these men is to tiie the silence of the school, courageously Absolute Idealism of Hegel, they held his hand."^ : as up Again "Here, nevertheless show striking alfinity for is a o- a witty writer suggests, catasti his fundamental viewpoint. The the reverse of that of the phe Korah; German philosopher was most char earth has not swallowed the up man, acteristically dissatisfied with any the man has swallowed the but up thing lurking behind phenomena. universe."-' Unfortunately, though Thus, he refuted the substance theory no one is Hegel explained everything of Spinoza, the thing-in-itself of Kant can It seems sure he explain Hegel. and the absolute of Schelling. As that a student a to brought passage Weber has stated : "In Hegel, the for and the Hegel explanation philos absolute is the process itself; it does : "When that opher replied passage not produce movement and life, it is was there were two who knew written, movement and life.""^ For Whitehead its �God and Xow, meaning myself. and Dewey also process is reality. In that is alas! there is but one, and the former's Process and Reality existence and the natural order are 1 Naturalism and Supernaturalism, (Macmillan. ultimate, and God, if anything, ap 1931), pp. 107-108. pears to be its product, certainly not 2 Fundamental Christianity, (Macmillan, 1926), p. 38. 3 Harris. Samuel The Self-Revelation of God, 4 Weber and Perry, History of Philosophy, 406. (Scribners, 1887), p. 260. (Scribners, 1925), p. HEGELIAXISM AND CHRISTIANITY 139 its producer. Dewey's Quest for Cer was the God-man in a unique sense.^ tainty is significant here. He deplores Biedermann supplemented Hegel by the philosophical endeavor to find teaching that religious faith was a abiding ideas and prefers to believe distinct element not to be equated in the world as flux or process. Thus with or dissolved by reason. But this Dewey finds uncertainty, and Hegel a faith presupposes revelation which it kind of certainty, but the important discerns immediately. H. R. Mac thing is that they look in the same intosh in Types of Modern Philosophy place. All of these philosophers find describes Biedermann as the philos- nothing behind phenomena. oi^her "who meant to be as Hegelian Hegel's influence is by no means as possible, but always found Christ restricted to philosophical circles. ianity breaking in.'"' The Rather, as Dr. Brightman says : radical wing found in Feuer- bach and Strauss their ablest and It speaks well for the power of reason today that most Feuer- Hegel is still an influence in the world of affairs. devastating exponents. No Hegel, no Marx-Engels-Lenin ; no commun bach reduced the absolute to man's ism and no socialist critique of communist dogma. size and ultimately, as a materialist, No Hegel, no Nazi theory of the state and no rejected all ideas including those of Liebert to indict it. No no Gentile to or Hegel, God which he called "Wunchwesen" ganize the Fascist system of education and no or wishful In Strauss's Croce to defy Mussolini. It is from Hegel that thinking. Royce received much of his inspiration ; from Leben Jesu, the pictures of Hegel have Hegel that Dewey took bis start, and to Hegel become the "myths'" of Christianity. he still looks as the of the greatest systematic In iilaiih^ nsleJirc, religion in general philosophers. 5 seems to lose its savor. Finally Nevertheless, our concern in this Strauss asks himself, "Are we still paper is with Hegel's significance in Christians?" and answers: "If we the realm of religion. Himself always would have our yea yea and our nay an avowed Lutheran, Hegel's philos nay, in short, if we would speak as ophy of Christianity was Janus-faced. honest, upright men, we must acknowl His identification of the content of edge that we are no longer Christ religion and of philosophy could be ians."^ Pfleiderer points out Strauss' evaluated diversely. If one is im significance in the histoiy of Hegel pressed with the rational bulwark thus ianism. for as is provided religion, Hocking, Two previous works upon Immortality, the au is If one is the effect conservative. thors of which are Richter and Feuerbach, were impressed with the complete rational reckoned among the Hegelian school, had indeed, the izing of religion, the effect is radical. by radical negative conclusions therein reached by the application of this Ahnost after Hegel the philosophy, immediately shaken the confidence generally felt in Hegelian chose sides, . theologians up forming orthodoxy; but . produced no very important themselves into right and left wing effect. When, however, Strauss brouglit the Hegelians. heavy artillery of his criticism, distinguished equally by learning and penetration, to bear, first, the conservatives. Daub and Among on the historical foundations of the dogma itself Biedermann are especially examples. the unsubstantial fabric of Hegelian dogmatism Daub could write that the sig-nificance was within a few years completely destroyed.9 of ( hiist was that he exhibited the 6 The eternal incarnation of God and re Pfleiderer, Otto, Development of Theol ogy, (Macmillan, 1890), p. 132. of the world in his own demption 7 H. R. Macintosh, Types of Modern Philos- Thus he pei'son as a historical fact. ohpy. p. 133. 8 Quoted in Smith, H. B., Faith and Philosophy, S Amer In Wieman, H. N., and B. E. Meland, (Scribner, Armstrong & Co., 1877), p. 469. 9 ican Philfl'snphii's of Religion, (Willett, Clark & The Development of Theology. (Macmillan, Co., 1936), p. 319. 1890), p. 132. 140 JOHN H. GERSTNER, JJl. In England Hegelianism prevailed shall see, to overcome them by his in a pure form at Oxford, but was famous dialectical method�thesis and gradually watered down. In the class antithesis taken up into {aufgehohen) room, Dr, Brightman once gave his a higher synthesis. Kierkegaard was rating of some of the British thinkers the policeman who, as soon as he saw and this is the score if my notes do the philosophical machine begin to not fail me: Bradley and Bosanquet, grind its gears, blew his whistle, 100% Hegelian ; Pringle-Pattison, "Stop !" He was the champion of the 60%; Sorley, 40%; Ward, 0%. Dr, unresolved contradiction. For Hegel Ralph Barton Perry, rather more glee religion was whole thought; for Kier ful than sad, has a similar story to kegaard it was shattered thought. tell: Hegel relied on rationality; Kierke gaard cast himself upon the irrational. Thus the weakness of Hegel, from the later deified the intellect Kierke idealistic point of view, lies not in his general Hegel ; crucified it. For programme, but in the fact that he boldly set gaard Hegel religion about carrying it out. He made too many pos was a steady climb; for Kierkegaard itive assertions. The fact that Hegel did make it was a frantic leap.^^ assertions about about positive natural evolution, For all historical development, and about international Kierkegaard's earnestness, we doubt that he ever liberated politics, accounts for the fact that his philosophy truly was of vital consequence, and to many a source himself from rationalism. As John of inspiration. But today no one is more ready Wild has pointed out.^^ Kierkegaard than the idealist to point out that Hegel made asserts the good is unknowable and the mistake of forcing 'psychological' categories paradoxical. But this is belied upon nature and history. He tried to deduce the by two : he makes no actual cosmic process from the laws of spirit; things first, appeal and it is now generally conceded that he failed. to anything other than reason. Sec Everyone but the idealist explains his failure by ond, his three stages imply that man the falsity of the project itself; but he attributes naturally comes to a knowledge of the it to the fact that Hegel's categories of spin; were not purely logicalA^ good. The spiritual seed of Kierkegaard, Josiah H, Howison Royce, George Earth and Brunner, show the same and William E.
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