Kant's legacy: The unbroken doubt about God's knowability

Kant's legacy: The unbroken doubt about God's knowability

The 300th birthday of the German philosopher Immanuel Kant, celebrated on April 22, 1724 in Königsberg, remains a central point in the theological debate. According to a recent podcast by Austrian theologians in “This Side of Eden,” Kant remains a “thorn in the side of theology.” The Viennese Protestant theologian Christian Danz emphasizes that Kant's epistemological philosophy does not negate the concept of God, but pushes him out of the realm of recognizable objects. God plays an ethical role, particularly in practical reason, which illustrates Kant's influence on thinking about God and morality. While people often want to banish Kant to the “poison cupboard” of theology, theologians such as Christoph Amor and Franz Gruber show that Kant's skepticism towards the natural knowability of God can be seen as a salutary questioning. This enables deeper considerations and new approaches to theology, as can be heard in the current episode of the podcast, which illuminates the challenges and implications of Kant's thinking kathpress.at reported.

Knowledge of God in the Kantian framework

Another aspect of the discussion about Kant concerns the way in which people can know God. Rainer Langlitz's contribution addresses the difference between faith and knowledge: While theists speak of a recognizable deity, which in the Christian tradition is mediated by Jesus Christ, deism emphasizes that God cannot be recognized within reality. In contrast, Kant affirms that although God is not knowable to humans, the existence of moral laws points to his reality. Kant argues that the existence of these laws postulates the existence of a supreme being, and sees this as a practical approach to God that is crucial to the perfection of the reality of life. Langlitz shows that it is about observing moral laws in order to do justice to the existence of God, as Kant put it. This critical examination of Kant's structure of thought further underscores the enduring influence that this thinker has on today's theology and understanding of questions of faith rainer-langlitz.de reported.