Metaphysics as Prayer: Introducing Ferdinand Ulrich

Adapting Hegel's division of poetry into the three modes, epic, lyric, and drama, Hans Urs von Balthasar characterized his own distinctive approach to theology as “dramatic,” indicating by that term an integration of the objective, conceptual dimension of the epic mode and the subjective, exist...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Modern theology 2024-01, Vol.40 (1), p.172-193
Main Author: SCHINDLER, D. C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Adapting Hegel's division of poetry into the three modes, epic, lyric, and drama, Hans Urs von Balthasar characterized his own distinctive approach to theology as “dramatic,” indicating by that term an integration of the objective, conceptual dimension of the epic mode and the subjective, existential dimension of the lyric mode. This essay proposes that the German thinker Ferdinand Ulrich (1931‐2020), friend of Balthasar, achieves something analogous in philosophy: an “onto‐drama,” which integrates metaphysics and prayer. The principal aim of this essay is to introduce Ulrich to a wider audience by presenting the basic themes of his 1973 book, Prayer as the Fundamental Act of the Creature. Using Emmanuel Levinas's text “Philosophy and the Idea of Infinity” as a foil in order to bring out the distinctive features of Ulrich's thought, this essay argues for the essential interdependence of the encounter with God and meditative reflection on the question of being, an interdependence that is played out as a drama right at the heart of personal identity.
ISSN:0266-7177
1468-0025
DOI:10.1111/moth.12848