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Lecture "The Dead End of Theology and Atheism: The Philosophy of the Coming God"

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When
now
08.02.2026 · 17:00 · UTC+3
Where
Saint Petersburg
Центральная городская публичная библиотека имени Маяковского
Intent
Socializing
About

Modern philosophy increasingly suggests that the debate between believers and atheists has reached a dead end. In the lecture by Anastasia Merzenina, they will explore how thinkers from the late 20th to early 21st century propose to talk about God without rigid dogmas and militant denial, while maintaining intellectual honesty, doubt, and ethical sensitivity. For a long time, the debate between theism and atheism seemed to be the main nerve of philosophical discussions about religion. Today, more and more authors argue that this opposition has exhausted itself: theology is losing its familiar foundations, while the denial of God remains tied to the same metaphysics it seeks to break away from. Anastasia Merzenina's lecture is dedicated to how thinkers from the late 20th to early 21st century are searching for new languages to discuss the divine. The focus is on post-metaphysical approaches to the divine theme in the works of Jacques Derrida, John Caputo, Gianni Vattimo, and Richard Kearney. Listeners will learn how the concepts of "weak thought" and "weak theology" are structured, what "the God who can be" means, and why for these authors, messianicity without classical messianism is important. Through the comparison of different projects, it will become clear how philosophy attempts to maintain the conversation about God while rejecting the image of an omnipotent substance. A separate block of the lecture is related to the question of rationality. It will discuss what happens to the arguments in favor of faith when philosophy stops relying on rigid ontological constructions. Is the rejection of "strong" foundations doomed to arbitrariness and relativism, or does critical thought still have ways to maintain demands on itself and the language of faith? It is also important to consider the political consequences of post-metaphysical concepts. The lecturer will raise the question of whether the discussion of the "weak" divine becomes a convenient screen for indifference to violence and injustice. Listeners will see how the authors on whom the lecture relies attempt to connect reflections on God with themes of responsibility, hospitality, and vulnerability.

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