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Papers by Marius T Mjaaland
In Heidegger’s lecture on Augustine (1930), the question of time is emphasised as precondition fo... more In Heidegger’s lecture on Augustine (1930), the question of time is emphasised as precondition for his philosophical and religious confessions. Augustine identifies the distention of the self as the origin of time consciousness, “stretching out” towards the past and the future. Following this line of reasoning, Heidegger identifies the human self as narrating its own existence and thus imagining itself as being there (Dasein represented as Da-Bild in the constitution of time). The article argues that such philosophical confessions dominate the early Black Notebooks. The topos of God is thereby referred to as the most question-able, but completely unknowable place of thought after the “death of God”. However, Heidegger’s mystical confession to the future God (И) falls prey to political phantasms of contemporary apocalyptic ideology.
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, Jun 1, 2021
In der Heidelberger Disputation (1518) lehnt Luther die aristotelische Anthropologie und den scho... more In der Heidelberger Disputation (1518) lehnt Luther die aristotelische Anthropologie und den scholastischen Gottesbegriff ab. Stattdessen behauptet er die Einheit der Verborgenheit Gottes am Kreuz und der paradoxalen Liebe Gottes zu den Menschen. Nicht nur in diesem Fall, sondern dauerhaft und durchgehend scheint die polemische und zugespitzte Form der Disputation die evangelische Theologie geprägt zu habenim Guten wie im Schlechten. Ich gehe daher der Frage nach, wie die Sprachformen der Disputation und des Dialogs dieses Denken diskursiv formatiert haben. Die sokratische Wahrheitssuche einerseits und die scholastische Polemik andererseits haben m. E. diese Denkform tiefgehend beeinflusst. Mit seiner Schrifthermeneutik spitzt aber Luther die theologische Wahrheitsbehauptung noch einmal zu. Theodor Dieter lehnt aber Luthers Disjunktion zwischen Selbstliebe und Kreuzesliebe als weder schlüssig noch besonders überzeugend ab. Gegen Dieter schlage ich vor, dieses Denken anders zu interpretieren, und zwar vom Paradox her. Dadurch komme ich zu einer neuen Antwort auf die alte Frage nach dem Schibboleth, dem Grundprinzip und der Erkennbarkeit einer "evangelischen" Sprache.
Duo Research Archive (University of Oslo), 2020
De Gruyter eBooks, Feb 27, 2008
Teologisk tidsskrift, Oct 15, 2020
Artikkelen analyserer fire prekener som hendelse, og dermed også som en bestemt måte å fortolke v... more Artikkelen analyserer fire prekener som hendelse, og dermed også som en bestemt måte å fortolke virkeligheten på. Prekenene ble holdt i menigheter som opplever økt deltagelse på gudstjenesten i perioden 2013-17; tre av dem hadde også et eksplisitt mål om vekst. I tillegg til videoopptak av prekenene har jeg studert gruppeintervjuer med frivillige og ansatte medarbeidere. To retninger i aktuell prekenteori fokuserer henholdsvis på tilhørernes perspektiv (ny-homiletikken) og på budskapet, sistnevnte med vekt på forholdet mellom preken og ekklesiologi. Ved å analysere prekenen som hendelse søkte jeg å holde de to perspektivene kritisk opp mot hverandre. Jeg ville undersøke om vekstambisjonen også påvirker prekenens innhold og form. Problemstillingen er systematisk-teologisk, idet jeg undersøker hvilken implisitt teologi og ekklesiologi, men også hvilke politiske og ideologiske aspekter ved menigheten som der kommer til uttrykk. Et interessant funn i denne studien er at prekenen som hendelse kaster nytt lys over menighetenes selvforståelse, gudsbilde og implisitte teologi. Der menigheten har en målsetning om å øke deltagelsen ved å vaere inkluderende, åpen og imøtekommende, ser ny-homiletikken også ut til å fungere som ideologi: Evangeliet forenkles til spissformuleringer som «Gud er kjaerlighet», «Gud er omsorg» eller «amor fati». I den eneste menigheten som ikke har et slikt mål om vekst, fremstår homilien derimot som brutt evangelium, da den avdekker et rom for svakhet, fortvilelse og mørke i menighetens liv, men også gir rom for et opplevd fellesskap i troen, håpet og tilliten til Guds løfter. Avslutningsvis utvider jeg perspektivet ved kritisk å spørre om funnet også kan kaste lys over virkemidlene (liturgireform, reklame, hyrdebrev) som kirken de siste ti årene har tatt i bruk for å snu tendensen til at faerre lar sine barn bli døpt: Hvordan forandres kirken-ideologisk, liturgisk og teologisk?
Kirke og kultur, Jun 6, 2002
Norsk teologisk tidsskrift, Jun 26, 2007
Emmanuel Levinas has criticized Kierkegaard for doing «philosophy with a hammer», paving the way ... more Emmanuel Levinas has criticized Kierkegaard for doing «philosophy with a hammer», paving the way for that absurd suspension of the ethical under the rule of German National Socialism. Entering the 21st century, suicide bombers and religious fundamentalists make Abraham's sacrifice in Fear and Trembling seem even more current, but also more problematic than ever. Basing his analysis of Kierkegaard on Derrida's Gift of Death, the author enters into the problem of sacrifice in its relation to faith, love, and responsibility in order to give a more nuanced analysis of modern fundamentalism.
Political Theology, Aug 1, 2011
Abstract After the twin attacks in Oslo on July 22, 2011, the relationship between religion and g... more Abstract After the twin attacks in Oslo on July 22, 2011, the relationship between religion and global politics over the last decade appears in a different light. The Norwegian terrorist from the extreme right submits to the idea of counterjihad, which responds to the Islamist jihad. I argue that this revival of an ancient mythology of crusaders and jihadists has become the most influential political mythology of our times. However, what separates this new mythology from the old is its nihilistic tendency, deliberately constructing an ideological basis for self-destruction and the destruction of others. Still, as a motivation for cruelty it does not fall short of the templars of the First Crusade (1096-1099), massacring thousands of civilians behind the walls of Jerusalem.
Dansk teologisk tidsskrift, May 16, 2017
Verbracht ins Gelände mit der untrüglichen Spur … Nirgends fragt es nach dir-Der Ort, wo sie lage... more Verbracht ins Gelände mit der untrüglichen Spur … Nirgends fragt es nach dir-Der Ort, wo sie lagen, er hat einen Namen-er hat keinen. Sie lagen nicht dort. Etwas lag zwischen ihnen. Sie sahn nicht hindurch.
Universitetsforlaget eBooks, Mar 28, 2023
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, Dec 1, 2011
Brill | Fink eBooks, 2017
De Gruyter eBooks, Jan 27, 2008
Kirke og kultur, Jan 3, 2008
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, Jan 24, 2005
Was ist der Mensch? Um nichts weniger geht es in Søren Kierkegaards »Die Krankheit zum Tode« (184... more Was ist der Mensch? Um nichts weniger geht es in Søren Kierkegaards »Die Krankheit zum Tode« (1849). 1 Schon im Ansatz des Werkes wird die Frage zunächst beantwortet: »Der Mensch ist Geist. Doch was ist Geist? Geist ist das Selbst. Doch was ist das Selbst? Das Selbst ist ein Verhältnis, das sich zu sich selbst verhält, oder es ist in diesem Verhältnis jenes, dass es sich zu sich selbst verhält; das Selbst ist nicht das Verhältnis, sondern dass sich das Selbst zu sich selbst verhält« (KT, 13; SD, 73). So fängt das Kapitel A.A, die wohl berühmteste und meist zitierte Passage des Gesamtwerks des dänischen Schriftstellers an, und eben diese Passage soll hier noch einmal untersucht werden, mit der Frage nach dem Menschen als Ausgangspunkt. Es ist auch nicht etwa zufällig, dass ich gerade bei der Frage ansetze. 2 Die drei Fragen nach dem Menschen, nach dem Geist und nach dem Selbst sind in der Passage A.A von »Die Krankheit zum Tode« alle ineinander verwoben wie Fäden in einer Textur. Und als Fäden einer Textur, die gebrochene Struktur dieses Textes, sollen sie unsere Leitfäden sein. In dieser Textur spielt die eben zitierte Stelle eine Schlüsselrolle. Jede Frage öffnet ein neues Feld, eine neue Möglichkeit und Perspektive. Und auf jede Frage folgt zunächst eine Antwort, die Schritt für Schritt den Menschen näher bestimmt. Die Reihe endet dann auch mit einer Definition des Menschen als reflexives Selbstverhältnis; nicht nur das Verhältnis zeichnet das Selbst aus, sondern dass sich das Selbst zu sich selbst verhält. Die Antworten hinterlassen allerdings jeweils auch eine Unruhe. Die Unruhe hat zwei Gründe. Der eine Grund ist die Verzweiflung, die laut der erweiterten Überschrift als eine Krankheit im Selbst und im Geist verortet ist:
Teologisk tidsskrift, Apr 13, 2023
De Gruyter eBooks, Jan 27, 2008
Brill | Fink eBooks, Aug 31, 2017
In Heidegger’s lecture on Augustine (1930), the question of time is emphasised as precondition fo... more In Heidegger’s lecture on Augustine (1930), the question of time is emphasised as precondition for his philosophical and religious confessions. Augustine identifies the distention of the self as the origin of time consciousness, “stretching out” towards the past and the future. Following this line of reasoning, Heidegger identifies the human self as narrating its own existence and thus imagining itself as being there (Dasein represented as Da-Bild in the constitution of time). The article argues that such philosophical confessions dominate the early Black Notebooks. The topos of God is thereby referred to as the most question-able, but completely unknowable place of thought after the “death of God”. However, Heidegger’s mystical confession to the future God (И) falls prey to political phantasms of contemporary apocalyptic ideology.
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, Jun 1, 2021
In der Heidelberger Disputation (1518) lehnt Luther die aristotelische Anthropologie und den scho... more In der Heidelberger Disputation (1518) lehnt Luther die aristotelische Anthropologie und den scholastischen Gottesbegriff ab. Stattdessen behauptet er die Einheit der Verborgenheit Gottes am Kreuz und der paradoxalen Liebe Gottes zu den Menschen. Nicht nur in diesem Fall, sondern dauerhaft und durchgehend scheint die polemische und zugespitzte Form der Disputation die evangelische Theologie geprägt zu habenim Guten wie im Schlechten. Ich gehe daher der Frage nach, wie die Sprachformen der Disputation und des Dialogs dieses Denken diskursiv formatiert haben. Die sokratische Wahrheitssuche einerseits und die scholastische Polemik andererseits haben m. E. diese Denkform tiefgehend beeinflusst. Mit seiner Schrifthermeneutik spitzt aber Luther die theologische Wahrheitsbehauptung noch einmal zu. Theodor Dieter lehnt aber Luthers Disjunktion zwischen Selbstliebe und Kreuzesliebe als weder schlüssig noch besonders überzeugend ab. Gegen Dieter schlage ich vor, dieses Denken anders zu interpretieren, und zwar vom Paradox her. Dadurch komme ich zu einer neuen Antwort auf die alte Frage nach dem Schibboleth, dem Grundprinzip und der Erkennbarkeit einer "evangelischen" Sprache.
Duo Research Archive (University of Oslo), 2020
De Gruyter eBooks, Feb 27, 2008
Teologisk tidsskrift, Oct 15, 2020
Artikkelen analyserer fire prekener som hendelse, og dermed også som en bestemt måte å fortolke v... more Artikkelen analyserer fire prekener som hendelse, og dermed også som en bestemt måte å fortolke virkeligheten på. Prekenene ble holdt i menigheter som opplever økt deltagelse på gudstjenesten i perioden 2013-17; tre av dem hadde også et eksplisitt mål om vekst. I tillegg til videoopptak av prekenene har jeg studert gruppeintervjuer med frivillige og ansatte medarbeidere. To retninger i aktuell prekenteori fokuserer henholdsvis på tilhørernes perspektiv (ny-homiletikken) og på budskapet, sistnevnte med vekt på forholdet mellom preken og ekklesiologi. Ved å analysere prekenen som hendelse søkte jeg å holde de to perspektivene kritisk opp mot hverandre. Jeg ville undersøke om vekstambisjonen også påvirker prekenens innhold og form. Problemstillingen er systematisk-teologisk, idet jeg undersøker hvilken implisitt teologi og ekklesiologi, men også hvilke politiske og ideologiske aspekter ved menigheten som der kommer til uttrykk. Et interessant funn i denne studien er at prekenen som hendelse kaster nytt lys over menighetenes selvforståelse, gudsbilde og implisitte teologi. Der menigheten har en målsetning om å øke deltagelsen ved å vaere inkluderende, åpen og imøtekommende, ser ny-homiletikken også ut til å fungere som ideologi: Evangeliet forenkles til spissformuleringer som «Gud er kjaerlighet», «Gud er omsorg» eller «amor fati». I den eneste menigheten som ikke har et slikt mål om vekst, fremstår homilien derimot som brutt evangelium, da den avdekker et rom for svakhet, fortvilelse og mørke i menighetens liv, men også gir rom for et opplevd fellesskap i troen, håpet og tilliten til Guds løfter. Avslutningsvis utvider jeg perspektivet ved kritisk å spørre om funnet også kan kaste lys over virkemidlene (liturgireform, reklame, hyrdebrev) som kirken de siste ti årene har tatt i bruk for å snu tendensen til at faerre lar sine barn bli døpt: Hvordan forandres kirken-ideologisk, liturgisk og teologisk?
Kirke og kultur, Jun 6, 2002
Norsk teologisk tidsskrift, Jun 26, 2007
Emmanuel Levinas has criticized Kierkegaard for doing «philosophy with a hammer», paving the way ... more Emmanuel Levinas has criticized Kierkegaard for doing «philosophy with a hammer», paving the way for that absurd suspension of the ethical under the rule of German National Socialism. Entering the 21st century, suicide bombers and religious fundamentalists make Abraham's sacrifice in Fear and Trembling seem even more current, but also more problematic than ever. Basing his analysis of Kierkegaard on Derrida's Gift of Death, the author enters into the problem of sacrifice in its relation to faith, love, and responsibility in order to give a more nuanced analysis of modern fundamentalism.
Political Theology, Aug 1, 2011
Abstract After the twin attacks in Oslo on July 22, 2011, the relationship between religion and g... more Abstract After the twin attacks in Oslo on July 22, 2011, the relationship between religion and global politics over the last decade appears in a different light. The Norwegian terrorist from the extreme right submits to the idea of counterjihad, which responds to the Islamist jihad. I argue that this revival of an ancient mythology of crusaders and jihadists has become the most influential political mythology of our times. However, what separates this new mythology from the old is its nihilistic tendency, deliberately constructing an ideological basis for self-destruction and the destruction of others. Still, as a motivation for cruelty it does not fall short of the templars of the First Crusade (1096-1099), massacring thousands of civilians behind the walls of Jerusalem.
Dansk teologisk tidsskrift, May 16, 2017
Verbracht ins Gelände mit der untrüglichen Spur … Nirgends fragt es nach dir-Der Ort, wo sie lage... more Verbracht ins Gelände mit der untrüglichen Spur … Nirgends fragt es nach dir-Der Ort, wo sie lagen, er hat einen Namen-er hat keinen. Sie lagen nicht dort. Etwas lag zwischen ihnen. Sie sahn nicht hindurch.
Universitetsforlaget eBooks, Mar 28, 2023
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, Dec 1, 2011
Brill | Fink eBooks, 2017
De Gruyter eBooks, Jan 27, 2008
Kirke og kultur, Jan 3, 2008
Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie, Jan 24, 2005
Was ist der Mensch? Um nichts weniger geht es in Søren Kierkegaards »Die Krankheit zum Tode« (184... more Was ist der Mensch? Um nichts weniger geht es in Søren Kierkegaards »Die Krankheit zum Tode« (1849). 1 Schon im Ansatz des Werkes wird die Frage zunächst beantwortet: »Der Mensch ist Geist. Doch was ist Geist? Geist ist das Selbst. Doch was ist das Selbst? Das Selbst ist ein Verhältnis, das sich zu sich selbst verhält, oder es ist in diesem Verhältnis jenes, dass es sich zu sich selbst verhält; das Selbst ist nicht das Verhältnis, sondern dass sich das Selbst zu sich selbst verhält« (KT, 13; SD, 73). So fängt das Kapitel A.A, die wohl berühmteste und meist zitierte Passage des Gesamtwerks des dänischen Schriftstellers an, und eben diese Passage soll hier noch einmal untersucht werden, mit der Frage nach dem Menschen als Ausgangspunkt. Es ist auch nicht etwa zufällig, dass ich gerade bei der Frage ansetze. 2 Die drei Fragen nach dem Menschen, nach dem Geist und nach dem Selbst sind in der Passage A.A von »Die Krankheit zum Tode« alle ineinander verwoben wie Fäden in einer Textur. Und als Fäden einer Textur, die gebrochene Struktur dieses Textes, sollen sie unsere Leitfäden sein. In dieser Textur spielt die eben zitierte Stelle eine Schlüsselrolle. Jede Frage öffnet ein neues Feld, eine neue Möglichkeit und Perspektive. Und auf jede Frage folgt zunächst eine Antwort, die Schritt für Schritt den Menschen näher bestimmt. Die Reihe endet dann auch mit einer Definition des Menschen als reflexives Selbstverhältnis; nicht nur das Verhältnis zeichnet das Selbst aus, sondern dass sich das Selbst zu sich selbst verhält. Die Antworten hinterlassen allerdings jeweils auch eine Unruhe. Die Unruhe hat zwei Gründe. Der eine Grund ist die Verzweiflung, die laut der erweiterten Überschrift als eine Krankheit im Selbst und im Geist verortet ist:
Teologisk tidsskrift, Apr 13, 2023
De Gruyter eBooks, Jan 27, 2008
Brill | Fink eBooks, Aug 31, 2017
Excerpt from Marius Timman Mjaaland, The Hidden God (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2016)... more Excerpt from Marius Timman Mjaaland, The Hidden God (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2016) Thus God is hidden and incomprehensible, Luther writes as early as 1513, commenting on the passage " Darkness is his hiding-place " (Psalms 18:12). His model of thought is formed by the negative theology of Dionysius Areopagita, to whom he explicitly refers. i The passage is all about the place of the divine: on the one hand, that God is hiding in darkness, on the other, that an inaccessible light has become God's hiding place, to which a human being may ascend only by following the way of negations. God is not bound to either darkness or light; hence, the place of God is beyond this distinction. These examples follow the Dionysian pattern of exceeding beyond the common limits of reason, beyond the visible as well as the invisible, beyond being as well as non-being: " There the simple, absolved and unchanged mysteries of theology lie hidden in the darkness beyond light of the hidden mystical silence, there, in the greatest darkness, that beyond all that is most evident exceedingly illuminates the sightless intellects. " (Mystical Theology 998A-B) ii Dionysius is a common reference for philosophers and theologians in medieval Europe, an authority who comes close to the biblical authors. It is nevertheless worth noticing the way Luther adopts Dionysius in his commentaries, indicating that the query [quaerare] for God advances through negations and negations of negations; hence, God " is " neither light nor darkness, neither being nor non-being. Luther's negation of the Scholastic definitions of God is the philosophical and linguistic precondition for everything he will say and write about deus absconditus later on. Toward the end of the short text known as The Mystical Theology, this way of negations brings Dionysius into linguistic difficulties when describing the unknown Cause of all, which transcends and thus logically precedes philosophical distinctions, including the Aristotelian rules of logic, stating that things should either be classified as being or non-being and propositions should either be true or false: " It is not non-being nor being, not known as it is by beings, not a knower of beings as they are. There is neither logos, name, or knowledge of it. It is not dark nor light, not error and not truth. " (Mystical Theology 1048 A) iii How do these contradictory statements influence the rationality of Dionysius's text? Instead of taking the meaning of the name " God " for granted, it is drawn into a reflection upon the difficulties of defining its referent. Hence, intellectually grasping the ultimate referent of the linguistic and philosophical system is rendered impossible. Instead of being the answer to all questions, the name of God has itself become a question, and a way of questioning the foundations of Scholastic theology and metaphysics. iv These radical negations introduce a general doubt about the linguistic system and the Aristotelian Law of the Excluded Middle as well as the Principle of Non-Contradiction. Luther becomes increasingly skeptical of Aristotelian scholasticism in this period, and Dionysius's apophatic theology is helpful in order to open up a space for a different logic and thereby question the place of God. This place cannot be rationally identified, he concludes; it brings reason to rest in silent reverence of the Hidden One. In the Heidelberg Disputation (1518), the abscondity of God is confirmed once more, but the point of view is different: Luther describes the sovereign God who is hidden in suffering (absconditus in passionibus). The cross is identified as the specific place of hiddenness. The denials that pointed beyond the world are now drawn into the human world; the " visible " things of God are thus placed " in direct opposition to the invisible, namely, his human nature, weakness, foolishness. " v When I analyzed the Heidelberg Disputation above, I underscored the paradox, thus crossing out and subverting the principles of Scholastic metaphysics in a destruction of man and of human constructions of God. Dionysius's way of negations, referred to in the Lectures on the Psalms (1513/15), never rejected the power and superiority of the Almighty. On the contrary: This double negation of the possibility of grasping God is indirectly a confirmation of divine power. With the Heidelberg Disputation, negative theology suddenly takes a political and bodily turn, subversive in its criticism of human power, strength, and wisdom. The body is the visible site of this suffering, at once concrete and tangible, although the suffering of Christ is historically linked to a singular event of the past. Hence, the perception of anything divine in this body depends on belief; on seeing this body as a sign of the invisible (invisibilia) within the
Kierkegaard and Derrida are two of the most influential thinkers of late modernity. Without reduc... more Kierkegaard and Derrida are two of the most influential thinkers of late modernity. Without reducing the difference between philosophy and religion, they both analyze the fundamental questions of human existence: How a human being relates to itself, to death, and to God. In Autopsia, the Norwegian scholar Marius Timmann Mjaaland has analyzed texts by Kierkegaard and Derrida, focusing on their rationality as well as ontheir content. The result is a far-reaching analysis of how philosophy may approach religious topics without reducing their inherent logos to the supposed universality of human reason.
Whereas Samuel Moyn has argued that human rights represent the last utopia, sociologist Hans Joas... more Whereas Samuel Moyn has argued that human rights represent the last utopia, sociologist Hans Joas suggests that the modern history of human rights represents a critical alternative to the standard theory of secularization understood as disenchantment (Weber). In Joas's reading, human rights contribute to a sacralization of the person, not only understood as utopia, but as societal ideal. Following Durkheim, Joas understands the sacred within society as the continuous process of refashioning the ideal society within the real society. Although acknowledging Joas's critique of Weber, the author is more critical of his idealization of universal human rights and his affirmative genealogy of this ideal running back to the so-called Axial Age. He argues that the normative and formative function of human rights is better served by a suspicious genealogy of morals, taking also their problematic aspects into account, including their dependence on new forms of violence and cruelty. He concludes that a more modest and pragmatic understanding of human rights may therefore strengthen rather than weaken their authority and future influence. HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE SACRED SPACE OF SOCIETY Sociologist Hans Joas argues in Die Macht des Heiligen (2017) that by studying the place of the sacred within secular society, we may observe how it interrupts and changes society from within. Whereas many nations have constructed the nation as sacred during the 20 th century and still do so today, Joas argues that this is a false sacralization, which leads to violence, militarism, and in some cases totalitarianism. According to Joas, human rights represent an alternative to this story of the sacred nation, emphasizing universal humanitarian values and the sacredness of the person, hence also the de-sacralization of the state (Joas 2019). His argument follows along historical trajectories similar to Samuel Moyn's analysis of human rights as the last utopia (Moyn 2010), yet within a different theoretical framework. Setting out from Durkheim's understanding of the social construction of a sacred space, Joas undertakes a detailed and critical analysis of Weber's theory of secularization as disenchantment of the world. He points out that the idea that religion will gradually disappear in modern society is a narrative based on Weber's contemporary situation, yet with extremely poor historical basis. Joas has previously discussed the term 'post-secular' condition as defined by Habermas (2001) and argued that there was never such a thing as a merely secular society (Joas 2004). In his most recent book, we are offered a more complex, but also a more balanced theory of secularization and re-sacralization as an alternative to Max Weber's theory of disenchantment. The article presents and discusses the theoretical background of Joas's