Only a God Can Save Us

Last updated

"Only a God Can Save Us" (German : Nur noch ein Gott kann uns retten) refers to an interview given by Martin Heidegger to Rudolf Augstein and Georg Wolff for Der Spiegel magazine on September 23, 1966. Heidegger agreed to discuss his political past but asked for the publication to be delayed until after his death. The interview went beyond personal questions to address the general connections between philosophy, politics, and culture (as indicated by the title quote). It was published five days after Heidegger's death, on 31 May 1976. [1] The English translation was produced by William J. Richardson.

Contents

Summary concerning Heidegger's political past

The title derives from a passage of the interview in which Heidegger speaks of the impotence of philosophy in the face of the present crisis of civilization: "Only a god can save us. The only possibility available to us is that by thinking and poetizing we prepare a readiness for the appearance of a god, or for the absence of a god in [our] decline, insofar as in view of the absent god we are in a state of decline". [1]

In the interview, Heidegger defended his entanglement with National Socialism in two ways: first, he argued that there was no alternative, saying that with his acceptance of the position of rector of the University of Freiburg he was trying to save the university (and science in general) from being politicized and thus had to compromise with the Nazi administration. Second, he admitted that he saw an "awakening" (Aufbruch) which might help to find a "new national and social approach," but said that he changed his mind about this in 1934, when he refused, under threat of dismissal, to remove from the position of dean of the faculty those who were not acceptable to the Nazi party, and he consequently decided to resign as rector. [1]

In his interview Heidegger defended as double-speak his 1935 lecture describing the "inner truth and greatness of this movement." He affirmed that Nazi informants who observed his lectures would understand that by "movement" he meant National Socialism. However, Heidegger asserted that his dedicated students would know this statement was no apologia for the NSDAP. Rather, he meant it as he expressed it in the parenthesis that he did not read out yet claimed in the interview was present from the beginning (and included in his Introduction to Metaphysics (1953), namely, "the confrontation of planetary technology and modern humanity").

The Löwith account from 1936, according to which Löwith, in Rome, had exhibited an SS insignia during a conference, has been cited to contradict the account given in the Der Spiegel interview in two ways: that he did not make any decisive break with National Socialism in 1934, and that Heidegger was willing to entertain more profound relations between his philosophy and political involvement. The Der Spiegel interviewers did not bring up Heidegger's 1949 quotation comparing the industrialization of agriculture to the extermination camps. In fact, the interviewers were not in possession of much of the evidence now known for Heidegger's Nazi sympathies. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Heidegger</span> German philosopher (1889–1976)

Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is often considered to be among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernst Moritz Arndt</span> German historian, writer and politician (1769–1860)

Ernst Moritz Arndt was a German nationalist historian, writer and poet. Early in his life, he fought for the abolition of serfdom, later against Napoleonic dominance over Germany. Arndt had to flee to Sweden for some time due to his anti-French positions. He is one of the main founders of German nationalism during the Napoleonic wars and the 19th century movement for German unification. After the Carlsbad Decrees, the forces of the restoration counted him as a demagogue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German philosophy</span> Specialty in philosophy, focused on German language origin

German philosophy, meaning philosophy in the German language or philosophy by German people, in its diversity, is fundamental for both the analytic and continental traditions. It covers figures such as Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Immanuel Kant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, Martin Heidegger, Ludwig Wittgenstein, the Vienna Circle, and the Frankfurt School, who now count among the most famous and studied philosophers of all time. They are central to major philosophical movements such as rationalism, German idealism, Romanticism, dialectical materialism, existentialism, phenomenology, hermeneutics, logical positivism, and critical theory. The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard is often also included in surveys of German philosophy due to his extensive engagement with German thinkers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rudolf Augstein</span> German journalist (1923–2002)

Rudolf Karl Augstein was a German journalist, editor, publicist, and politician. He was one of the most influential German journalists, founder and part-owner of Der Spiegel magazine. As a politician, he was a member of the Bundestag for the Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP) between November 1972 and January 1973.

Karl Löwith was a German philosopher in the phenomenological tradition. A student of Husserl and Heidegger, he was one of the most prolific German philosophers of the twentieth century.

"God is dead" is a statement made by the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. The first instance of this statement in Nietzsche's writings is in his 1882 The Gay Science, where it appears three times. The phrase also appears in Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Sloterdijk</span> German philosopher (born 1947)

Peter Sloterdijk is a German philosopher and cultural theorist. He is a professor of philosophy and media theory at the University of Art and Design Karlsruhe. He co-hosted the German television show Im Glashaus: Das Philosophische Quartett from 2002 until 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gianni Vattimo</span> Italian philosopher and politician (1936–2023)

Gianteresio Vattimo was an Italian philosopher and politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Heidegger and Nazism</span> Philosophers relations to the politics of his time

Philosopher Martin Heidegger joined the Nazi Party (NSDAP) on May 1, 1933, ten days after being elected Rector of the University of Freiburg. A year later, in April 1934, he resigned the Rectorship and stopped taking part in Nazi Party meetings, but remained a member of the Nazi Party until its dismantling at the end of World War II. The denazification hearings immediately after World War II led to Heidegger's dismissal from Freiburg, banning him from teaching. In 1949, after several years of investigation, the French military finally classified Heidegger as a Mitläufer or "fellow traveller." The teaching ban was lifted in 1951, and Heidegger was granted emeritus status in 1953, but he was never allowed to resume his philosophy chairmanship.

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Wär Gott nicht mit uns diese Zeit, BWV 14, in Leipzig in 1735 for the fourth Sunday after Epiphany and first performed it on 30 January 1735, a few weeks after his Christmas Oratorio. The cantata, in Bach's chorale cantata format, is based on Martin Luther's hymn "Wär Gott nicht mit uns diese Zeit". Its text paraphrases Psalm 124, focussing on the thought that the believers' life depends on God's help and is lost without it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rufst du, mein Vaterland</span> 1848–1961 national anthem of Switzerland

"Rufst du, mein Vaterland" is the former national anthem of Switzerland. It had the status of de facto national anthem from the formation of Switzerland as a federal state in the 1840s, until 1961, when it was replaced by the Swiss Psalm.

"Wär Gott nicht mit uns diese Zeit" is a Lutheran hymn, with words written by Martin Luther based on the Psalm 124. The hymn in three stanzas of seven lines each was first published in 1524. It was translated to English and has appeared in 20 hymnals. The hymn formed the base of several compositions, including chorale cantatas by Buxtehude and Bach.

<i>Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild</i>, BWV 79 Church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild, BWV 79, in Leipzig in 1725, his third year as Thomaskantor, for Reformation Day and led the first performance on 31 October 1725.

<i>Introduction to Metaphysics</i> (Heidegger book) 1953 book by Martin Heidegger

Introduction to Metaphysics is a revised and edited 1935 lecture course by Martin Heidegger first published in 1953. The work is notable for a discussion of the Presocratics and for illustrating Heidegger's supposed "Kehre," or turn in thought beginning in the 1930s—as well as for its mention of the "inner greatness" of Nazism. Heidegger suggested the work relates to the unwritten "second half" of his 1927 magnum opus Being and Time.

<i>Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält</i>, BWV 178

Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält, BWV 178 is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Leipzig for the eighth Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 30 July 1724. It is a chorale cantata from his second annual cycle, based on the hymn "Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält" (1524) by Justus Jonas, a paraphrase of Psalm 124.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält</span> 1524 Lutheran hymn

"Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält" is a Lutheran hymn by Justus Jonas, a paraphrase of Psalm 124 in eight stanzas. It was first published in 1524 in the Erfurt Enchiridion. The theme of the psalm is the need of help against raging enemies. It has been translated also as "Where the Lord God does not stand (stay) with us", "If God the Lord is not with us", "If God the Lord is not on our side", among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Es woll uns Gott genädig sein</span>

"Es woll uns Gott genädig sein" is a Lutheran hymn, with words written by Martin Luther based on the Psalm 67. The hymn in three stanzas of nine lines each was first published in Wittenberg in 1524. Its best known hymn tune, Zahn No. 7247, was published in Strasbourg in 1524. Heinrich Schütz and Johann Sebastian Bach wrote settings of the hymn. It was translated to English and has appeared in dozens of hymnals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr</span>

"Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr" is an early Lutheran hymn, with text and melody attributed to Nikolaus Decius. With the reformers intending church service in German, it was intended as a German version of the Gloria part of the Latin mass, used in almost every service. Decius wrote three stanzas, probably in 1523, while a fourth was added, probably by Joachim Slüter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ach lieben Christen seid getrost</span>

"Ach lieben Christen seid getrost" is a Lutheran hymn in German with lyrics by Johannes Gigas, written in 1561. A penitential hymn, it was the basis for Bach's chorale cantata Ach, lieben Christen, seid getrost, BWV 114.

Georg Wolff was a German SS Hauptsturmführer and journalist. During the Second World War, Wolff was a Head of Division III for the Sicherheitspolizei command in Oslo. He was later a leading editor for news magazine Der Spiegel, from 1952 until his retirement in 1978. It was in this latter capacity that Wolff, along with Rudolf Augstein, conducted the 1966 interview with Martin Heidegger, "Only a God Can Save Us".

References

  1. 1 2 3 Augstein, Rudolf; Wolff, Georg; Heidegger, Martin (31 May 1976). "Nur noch ein Gott kann uns retten". Der Spiegel : 193–219. Retrieved 2013-06-14. English translation by William J. Richardson in Sheehan, Thomas, ed. (1981). Heidegger. The Man and the Thinker. Piscataway, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. pp.  45–67. ISBN   978-1-412-81537-6. ISBN   1-41281537-1.
  2. ↑ For critical readings of the interview (published in 1976 as "Only a God Can Save Us," Der Spiegel), see the "Special Feature on Heidegger and Nazism" in Critical Inquiry 15:2 (Winter 1989), particularly the contributions by Jürgen Habermas and Maurice Blanchot. The issue includes partial translations of Derrida's Of Spirit and Lacoue-Labarthe's Of Spirit and Heidegger, Art, and Politics: the Fiction of the Political.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.