Pontifical University St Patrick’s College Maynooth Believing Anew: Gianni Vattimo and A Form of Faith in Contemporary Culture A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Theology in Partial Fulfilment of the Conditions for the Doctoral Degree in Theology By Sarah Gorman Supervisor: Rev. Prof. Michael A. Conway February 2020 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................... v Believing Anew: Gianni Vattimo and A Form of Faith in Contemporary Culture PART ONE A Foundation for a Contemporary Discussion of Faith Introduction ........................................................................................................ 1 Chapter One Only Interpretations: Vattimo’s Reading of Nietzsche 1.0 Introduction .......................................................................................... 9 1.1 Vattimo’s Understanding of Nietzsche’s Nihilism .............................. 10 1.1.1 Nietzsche’s Influence For Vattimo ............................................. 10 1.1.2 Active and Passive Nihilism ....................................................... 14 1.1.3 Nihilism and Historicism: The Historical Malady ...................... 20 1.1.4 Temporality and the Eternal Return ............................................ 25 1.2 How the World Became a Fable: Myth, Interpretation, and Culture ... 30 1.2.1 From Philology to Philosophy .................................................... 30 1.2.2 Philology: A Basis for Truth ....................................................... 35 1.2.3 The Death of God ........................................................................ 40 1.3 Vattimo’s Exploration Nietzsche’s Aesthetics .................................... 48 1.3.1 The Death of God: Excess and Arts ............................................ 48 1.3.2 The Will to Power ....................................................................... 53 1.3.3 The Will to Power as Arts ........................................................... 60 1.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................... 64 i Chapter Two Vattimo’s Reception of Heidegger 2.0 Introduction .......................................................................................... 66 2.1 Heidegger’s Thought on Being ............................................................ 68 2.1.1The Question of Being ................................................................. 68 2.1.2 The Early Heidegger on Being ................................................... 71 2.1.3 Being in the World ...................................................................... 75 2.1.4 The Ontology of Difference ........................................................ 79 2.2 Heidegger’s Nihilism ........................................................................... 84 2.2.1 Nihilism ...................................................................................... 84 2.2.2 Vattimo’s Reading of Nihilism Through Nietzsche and Heidegger ........................................................................................................ 86 2.2.3 The Dissolution of Being in Exchange-Value ............................ 88 2.3 Vattimo and the Crisis of Humanism ................................................... 91 2.3.1 The Crisis of Humanism ............................................................. 91 2.3.2 Humanism and Technology ........................................................ 93 2.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................... 101 PART TWO The Death of Propitiatory Religion and the Birth of Christianity Chapter Three Deceit and Desire: The Development of Girard’s Mimetic Theory 3.0 Introduction .......................................................................................... 104 3.1 The Collapse of the Autonomous Self ................................................. 105 3.1.1 Mimetic Theory .......................................................................... 105 3.1.2 Metaphysical Desire and the Divine Inheritance ........................ 112 ii 3.2 Propitiatory Religion: Violence and the Sacred ................................... 116 3.2.1 Violence and the Sacred .............................................................. 116 3.2.2 The Sacrificial Crisis and the Scapegoat Mechanism ................. 124 3.3 Things Hidden: Sacrifice and Christianity ........................................... 131 3.3.1 Religious Foundations ................................................................ 131 3.3.2 Myth and Persecution Texts ........................................................ 136 3.3.3 Desacralization in Progress ......................................................... 144 3.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................... 153 Chapter Four The Dissolution of the Sacred 4.0 Introduction .......................................................................................... 155 4.1 Vattimo’s Theory of Weakening ......................................................... 155 4.1.1 Weak Thought ............................................................................. 155 4.1.2 Weak Thought and Truth ............................................................ 158 4.1.3Weak Thought and Kenosis ......................................................... 164 4.2 Secularization as a Continuation of Kenosis ....................................... 170 4.2.1 A Positive View of Secularization ............................................. 171 4.2.2 Secularization: An Ongoing Kenosis .......................................... 175 4.3 Conclusion ........................................................................................... 178 PART THREE Believing Anew: A Form of Faith Chapter Five Myth and the Recovery of Religion 5.0 Introduction .......................................................................................... 180 5.1 Vattimo and Myth ............................................................................... 180 5.1.1 Existentialism and Myth (Pareyson) ........................................... 181 5.1.2 Theories of Myth and Metaphysics ............................................. 186 iii 5.2 The Decline and Recovery of Religion ................................................ 193 5.2.1 The Return of Religion: Two Forms of Return .......................... 194 5.2.2 Recovery and Hermeneutics ....................................................... 198 5.3 Vattimo’s Spiritual Age ....................................................................... 201 5.3.1 A Spiritual Model ....................................................................... 202 5.3.2 Charity as the Limit of Secularization ........................................ 207 5.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................... 209 Chapter Six Ontology and Aesthetics: The Opening up of a World 6.0 Introduction .......................................................................................... 211 6.1 Ontological Aesthetics ......................................................................... 212 6.1.1 Aesthetics and Ontology ............................................................. 212 6.1.2 Ontology and Poetics .................................................................. 218 6.1.3 The Setting into Work of Truth .................................................. 223 6.2 Hermeneutics, Art, and Religion ......................................................... 233 6.2.1 Hermeneutics: The Connection Between Art and Religion ........ 234 6.2.2 The Eschatological Character of Art ........................................... 242 6.2.3 Interruption and Response .......................................................... 249 6.3 Conclusion ........................................................................................... 258 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 259 Bibliography ........................................................................................................ 266 iv Acknowledgements As I come towards the end of this journey, there are those that I wish to thank for their continued support throughout. First, and foremost, I would like to take this opportunity to express my deepest gratitude and thanks to my supervisor, Rev. Prof. Michael Conway, who encouraged me to embark on this odyssey. From the very beginning, his patience, guidance, diligence, and unwavering encouragement have been a constant support. I cannot adequately express how thankful I am for his generosity, his freely given time, and attentiveness throughout this project. I would like to thank the academic and administrative staff of St. Patrick’s College for their assistance and support throughout my years here. I am very aware that without the financial assistance I received from the college I would not have been able to complete my PhD. To my parents, Liam and Carmel, I thank you from the very bottom of my heart for everything that you have given me over the years. Indeed, it seems inadequate in the face of all the opportunities, support, and love that you have unconditionally bestowed. Again, thank you. Finally, to my husband, Paul, whose love and belief in me throughout this undertaking has never once faltered. Again, it seems inadequate, but I am forever grateful