An interpretation of rudolf otto s philosophy of religion. Indeed, far from aztec or mayan religion being morally schematized to any extent, we might want to say that their practices involve positive evil and wrong. Rudolf otto grounded his concept of religion in the experience of the sacred. We invited him to answer the question what is philosophy of religion. Conversion is adopting a new religious belief that differs from a previouslyheld belief or no belief at all. Religion and the sense of the numinous rudolf otto. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. Ottos theory of religious experience as encounter with the. Otto left a broad influence on theology and philosophy of religion in the first half of the 20th century. But rudolf otto, to be sure, is no cultural relativist. Nov 25, 2011 the idea of the holy an inquiry into the nonrational factor in the idea of the divine and its relation to the rational by rudolf otto.
Up until the publication of his book, the majority of theologians had striven to rationalise religion and god so as to define him and his characteristics with words such as. Emile durkheim and rudolf otto paper emile durkheim and. The philosophy of religion based on kant and fries. Rudolf otto bishops encyclopedia of religion, society and. Rudolf otto has often been criticized for not showing enough interest in mystical experience. Otto was a christian theologian and had written about the rational side of religion such as the famous arguments for the existence of god, but in this book he writes about the irrational side of religion religious experience, which he regards as the experience of the numinous divine power. Rudolf otto otto was one of the most influential thinkers about religion in the first half of the twentieth century. In this article i want to demonstrate how misplaced this criticism is and to show that it is based on an erroneous interpretation of the relationship between numinous and mystical experience in his.
In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, theorists ranging from friedrich schleiermacher and rudolf otto to emile durkheim, sigmund freud, and william james attempted to define that role. Otto particularly develops the idea of the nonrational element in our encounter with god. Rudolf otto was an eminent german lutheran theologian, philosopher, and comparative religionist. Before religion became morality touched with emotion it was the emotion itself, or a group of emotions, and it still is. Central to their understanding of religion is the idea that religious experience, characterized in terms of feeling, lies at the heart of all genuine religion. As a liberal theologian or, more accurately, a vermittlungstheologe theologian of mediation, otto conceived of systematic theology as a science of religion, whose components were the philosophy, psychology, and history of religions. He is famous, of course, because he wrote one of the greatest works in the history of the philosophy of religion, namely, the idea of the holy. Spirit, reason, purpose, good will, supreme power, unity, selfhood examples used. Rudolf otto project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Yet there have been surprisingly few studies in english of the full extent of his thought, the last and only fullscale.
Rudolf otto and the concept of the numinous oxford. Rudolf otto 25 september 1869 6 march 1937 was an eminent german lutheran theologian, philosopher, and comparative religionist. His ideas about the sui generis nature of the religious experience and of an irreductible numinous or sacred foreshadow the work of scholars such as eliade, but proved highly divisive for scholars and practitioners alike. The eminent romanianamerican historian of religion and philosopher mircea eliade used the concepts from the idea of the. Rudolf otto refined his theory into three distinctive segments. The idea of the holy has been translated into persian by prof.
This was delivered as a paper, the roots of rudolf otto s theory of numinosity in immanuel kant, jakob fries, and leonard nelson, to the philosophy of religion section of the southern california philosophy conference at the university of california, irvine, on saturday, october 26, 1996. Otto describes the central feeling of the mystical experience as a kind of creaturefeeling. An inquiry into the nonrational factor in the idea of. It is abundantly clear that, had otto not rejected apologetics in favor of a more philosophical approach to religious inquiry, he. Otto was one of the most influential thinkers about religion in the first half of the twentieth century. The idea of the holy an inquiry into the nonrational factor in the idea of the divine and its relation to the rational by rudolf otto. Davidson em rudolf otto s interpretation of religion princeton, 1947, pp. Otto, rudolf18691937 rudolf otto, the german theologian, was born at peine in hanover. Philosophical discussions on such topics date from ancient times, and appear in the earliest known texts concerning philosophy. Jun 11, 2019 in the the philosophy of religion based on kant and fries 1909, otto follows closely jakob friedrich fries. An eminent american psychologist, william james 18421910, and a distinguished german scholar of comparative religion, rudolf otto 18691937, initiated the first two comprehensive studies of our internal experience of the divine. Otto is adding to what we discussed about the mystical experience under james.
In effect otto is adding to what we discussed about the mystical experience under james. The daemonicdivine object may appear to the mind an object of horror and dread, but at the same time it is no less something that allures with a potent charm, and the creature, who trembles before it, utterly cowed and cast down, has always at the same time the impulse to turn to it, nay even to make it somehow his own. Max weber and the influence of religion mircea eliade and religion as response to the sacred clifford geertz and religion as worldview and ethic claude levistrauss and the structure of myth ninian smart and religion. Lucia, queensland, australia 4067 much has been written about the relationship between rudolf otto s mature philosophy of religion and bis commitment to that philosophical tradition inaugurated by immanuel kant. Rudolf otto eyes light rock walls to see this place would truly be worth a trip to india in itself, and from the spirit of the religion that lived here one can learn more in an hour of viewing than from all the books ever written. His perspective offered and continues to offer a major impetus for contemporary debates in theology, the philosophy of religion, religious aesthetics, and religious studies. Edwards reason and religion, an introduction to the philosophy of religion. Davidson, robert f, rudolf otto s interpretation of religion, princeton, 1947 gooch, todd a, the numinous and modernity. Jakob friedrich fries had attempted to integrate an intuitive element into. Todd a gooch the author traces the development of rudolf otto s attempt to construct a normative science of religion.
German theologian and philosopher rudolf otto 18691937 was an influential theorist within the historical development of religious studies. Ottos theory of religious experience as encounter with the numinous and its application to buddhism hoyu ishida rudolf otto 18691937 greatly contributed to the discussion of religious feeling and knowledge in attempting to characterize the experience of the holy as disclosed and distinctive in all religions. The contemporary academic study of religion has its roots in conceptual and theoretical structures developed in the early to mid20th century. Rudolf otto religious experience as apprehension of the. He described this wholly other as numinous meaning the world that is beyond the physical observable universe in which we live. Contentsshow life born in peine near hanover, otto attended the gymnasium andreanum in hildesheim and studied at the universities of erlangen and gottingen, where he wrote his dissertation on martin luthers understanding of the holy spirit, and his habilitation on. Rudolf otto, german theologian, philosopher, and historian of religion. Rudolf otto german philosopher and theologian britannica. As a kind of first approximation for the wholly new concept he is giving us, otto characterises the numinous as the holy i.
He calls this experience numinous, and says it has three components. William james and rudolf otto are key scholars for this topic and their analyses of religious experience by different types are studied here. Nov 27, 20 paul draper is professor of philosophy at purdue university. Almond, department of studies in religion, university of queensland, st. Rudolf otto rudolf otto the idea of the holy various influences had played upon otto s reflections through the years, aiding him in reformulating the religious category that was to carry him beyond schleiermacher. He is best known for his analysis of the experience that, in his view, underlies all religion. Otto cautions that the use of metaphor and symbolism will be essential to any analysis or explanation of these elements what we are looking into here is something which is essentially a mystery for those of us who have not had the experience. Two names often grouped together in the study of religion are friedrich schleiermacher 17681884 and rudolf otto 18691937. Homayoun hemmati under title of mafhoome amre ghodsi, tehran, 2001. Ottos theories regarding the numinous have been extremely influential in the development of the academic study of religion in the 20th and 21st centuries, as evidenced by the impact they had upon scholars such as carl jung, mircea eliade, and ninian smart, whose works were instrumental in the formation of religious studies as a discipline. Rudolf otto 25 september 1869 7 march 1937 was an eminent german lutheran theologian, philosopher, and comparative religionist. Born in romania and educated at the university of bucharest, he became familiar with the work of rudolf otto on the numinous experience which influenced his thought on the philosophy of religion.
Mar 02, 2020 rudolf otto, german theologian, philosopher, and historian of religion, who exerted worldwide influence through his investigation of mans experience of the holy. Rudolf otto s book deserves pride of place for his articulation of the idea of the holy and his usage of the term numinous to describe the otherness of god. Emile durkheim and rudolf otto paper emile durkheim. The philosophy of religion based on kant and fries 1909 was even more significant. Philosophy of religion is the philosophical examination of the central themes and concepts involved in religious traditions. In this article i want to demonstrate how misplaced this criticism is and to show that it is based on an erroneous interpretation of the relationship between numinous and mystical experience in his work by most of his students. His early teacher at gottingen, albrecht ritschl, had located religion in the realm of. He is best known for his analysis of the experience. His early teacher at gottingen, albrecht ritschl, had located religion in the realm of value judgments, whereas, more significantly, his theological colleague at gottingen. A particularly important example of such a structure is the concept of the numinous developed by the theologian and comparativist rudolf otto 186997 in his work, the idea of the holy. For something that is so powerful in our world today, why is there not a clear understanding of religion. Rudolf otto 18691937 using jakob friess epistemological scheme of wissen, glaube, and ahndung, understanding, belief, and aesthetic sense, to use kent richters translation, ruldolf otto expands the meaning of ahndung beyond the merely aesthetic by introducing the category of numinosity, which is the quality of sacred or holy objects, persons, or experiences in religion. If you would like to buy the full version, head over to uk.
The numinous is describes as the power or being of divinity. Explaining rudolf ottos views on religious language and. Rudolf otto eyes light rock walls to see this place would truly be worth a trip to india in itself, and from the spirit of the religion that lived here one can learn more in. Rudolf otto psychology wiki fandom powered by wikia. Emile durkheim on the other hand had a different way of seeing things and many different views. The field is related to many other branches of philosophy, including metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics. He is regarded as one of the most influential scholars of religion in the early twentieth century and is best known for his concept of the numinous, a profound emotional experience he argued was at the heart of the worlds religions. In a previous post, we discussed the unity and opposition of both poles in. Otto, rudolf 18691937 rudolf otto, the german theologian, was born at peine in hanover. Rudolf otto defined it himself as nonrational, nonsensory experience or feeling whose primary and immediate object is outside the self. Nov 12, 2012 rudolf otto was a highly influential figure in the history of religious studies, but whether that influence was for good or not is a debatable issue. Theology philosophy of religion history of religion ed.
Rudolf otto 1869 1937 was a german systematic theologian who contributed especially to the philosophy and history of religion. While his work started in the domain of liberal christian theology, its main thrust was always apologetical, seeking to defend religion against naturalist critiques. Indeed, far from aztec or mayan religion being morally schematized to any extent, we might want to say that their. He is particularly remarkable for his contribution to the phenomenology of religious consciousness and his work in the fields of comparative religion and the history of religion. The 20 th century saw a dramatic change in theology, largely inspired by otto s ideas on religious language and religious experience.
Rudolf otto was a german philosopher, famous for his exploration of religious experience in his book, the idea of the holy 1917. Sep 20, 20 otto and the numinous weber and religions influence on culture interlude. Otto, indeed, coined the term numinous, which has now become part of common usage. Rudolf otto s concept of the numinous otto was one of the most influential thinkers about religion in the first half of the twentieth century.
He is wellknown for his idea of religious experience as being the apprehension of the holy or the numinous, concepts he presented in his book the idea of the holy 1917. Ottos friesian theory, only a footnote to philosophy and religion in the 20th century. End of notes on the idea of the holy by rudolph otto. Rudolf otto rudolph otto pointed out that a central element of direct experiences of god was an apprehension of the wholly other. Rudolf otto and mystical experience religious studies. Rudolf otto september 25, 1869 march 5, 1937 was an eminent theologian and religious scholar in the german protestant tradition.
Rudolf otto september 25, 18696 march 1937 was an eminent german lutheran theologian and scholar of comparative religion. Philosophical inquiry is a central element in the intellectual history of many civilizations. This work was reproduced from the original artifact. Otto and the numinous weber and religion s influence on culture interlude. Rudolf otto books list of books by author rudolf otto. He studied at erlangen and gottingen, where he became a privatdozent in systematic theology in 1897. Although otto remained throughout his career a theologian by title, he was an exemplary philosopher of religion in many ways. It also shows kantian influences in how otto argued that human beings have immediate knowledge of the noumenal world, which shows itself in feelings of truth. Rudolf otto and the concept of the numinous oxford research.
Contentsshow life born in peine near hanover, otto attended the gymnasium andreanum in hildesheim and studied at the universities of. He does warn the reader that if they have never experienced a deeplyfelt religious experience, they need not read any further. The philosophy of fries in its relation to theology. Otto promoted what other believers considered liberal views. Otto starts the idea of the holy by arguing that the nonrational in religion must be given its due importance, then goes on to introduce and develop his notion of the numinous. Rudolf otto rudolf otto the idea of the holy various influences had played upon ottos reflections through the years, aiding him in reformulating the religious category that was to carry him beyond schleiermacher. The idea of the holy, 1923 is his most important work. Jan 21, 2015 the 20 th century saw a dramatic change in theology, largely inspired by ottos ideas on religious language and religious experience. Religion is defined in many different ways and there is no one set definition. Friedrich schleiermacher and rudolf otto oxford handbooks. Max weber and the influence of religion mircea eliade and religion as response to the sacred clifford geertz and religion as worldview and ethic claude levistrauss and the structure of myth ninian smart and religion as worldview. Rudolf otto and his analysis of the numinous experience are familiar items of discussion in the modern study of religion, and contemporary accounts of the nature of religious experience invariably and necessarily contain references to his bestknown work, the idea of the holy. Rudolf otto, religion and the sense of the numinous. Otto also sets a paradigm for the study of religion that focuses on the need to realize the religious as a nonreducible, original category in its own right.
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