The Theme Of Sacrifice In The Fear And Trembling

  THE THEME OF SACRIFICE IN THE FEAR AND TREMBLING           NAME INSTRUCTOR COURSE DATE         I AFFIRM THAT I HAVE UPHELD THE HIGHEST PRINCIPLES OF HONESTY AND INTEGRITY IN MY ACADEMIC WORK AND HAVE NOT WITNESSED A VIOLATION OF THE HONOR CODE   Abstract Johannes de Silentio, whose real identity is Soeren Aabye Kierkegaard gives a critique of the biblical story of Abraham’s enthusiasm to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice to God in Genesis 22:1-18. According to him, it is not easily comprehensible that Abraham’s blind faith in God can be related to in the present age. In his writing, he opines that it cannot be in God’s nature to give Abraham a command to kill his son Isaac. He assuages the Christian tradition on the premise of faith by casting aspersions on the moral justification of Abraham’s actions. It is an ethical pandemonium for Abraham’s admirers inclined on justifying this act as a sign of faith which Johannes claims is an effort to sanitize murder as a holy act. The dilemma of faith creates further allusions of infinity that supersedes ethics and the argument continues to generate contrasting thoughts such as those borne by Martin Luther that grants that divinity trumps any claim on behalf of reason or morality. While Kant refutes that there is nothing higher than moral law. The author seeks to disturb the complacent postulation that their Christian faith can be tested.   Introduction Abraham is commanded by God to lead his son to Mt.Moriah and sacrifice him and he is willing to do exactly that until when he draws his knife ready to kill him when God intervenes by sending an angel who offers a ram for the sacrifice, sparing Isaac. The willingness of Abraham to offer his son as sacrifice to God without hesitation while knowing very well that this was his way to please his creator lays the basis of protracted arguments in consideration of his faith in God. He does not consider the possibility of the inevitable loss of his son because of what he believes in. Sacrifices are personifications of relinquishing that which is precious and calls for courage to countenance the aftermath. The strong conviction in God who authorizes him to sacrifice his son, an agonizing act demonstrates the difficult and strange nature of religious faith. Fear and trembling . The obedience exhibited by both Abraham and his son is unwavering. First, the father totally trusts in God’s authority and wills to do as commanded without question. Secondly, the son willingly lies down to be slaughtered by his father as a sacrifice to God, albeit impressions of fear. To further illustrate the significance of the ritual, Abraham has no reservations about mortality of his son because of his faith in God. According to Kierkegaard, it is important to maintain the sanctity of human life, the challenges posed by religious beliefs notwithstanding. Although perceived as idiosyncratic and an affront to the Christian faith, he uses this manuscript to pose a dilemma to his readers regarding human relations and spirituality. The sacrifice must come after several days of trekking before getting to Mt. Moriah, both father and son are painstakingly tolerant to the repercussions of each other’s obligations. On one hand the father has a duty to fulfill God’s wish by sacrificing his son and secondly by breaching the ethical responsibility of being the father to his son and not a murderer. The author fronts many questions regarding the implication of sacrificing Isaac one of them being the inconsistencies in morals principles and the value of faith. He further intends to provoke thoughts about the repercussions that would result in a sacrificed Isaac, or even if he had refused to obey God’s command and instead pleaded with him to spare his only son. God’s intention to test Abraham’s faith using the life of his son, is according to the author an equally unethical plan. He further illustrates this using an example of a worshipper who on hearing the account of Abraham would go home and sacrifice his own child to God. The aftermath in this scenario would change because the preacher would persuade the worshipper not to murder his child. This latest example is used by the author to validate his ethical perspective. On Mt.Moriah, there occurs the sacrifice of ethics to obligation. Abraham binding Isaac is more hurtful to himself than to the son, hence the sacrifice is basically his own. Despite this, Gods does not forsake him as he spares Isaac and instead provides him with a ram for the sacrifice. This justifies the religious faith he has in his God. Ethically however, he is a murderer for God without his own volition. The author further provokes the reader’s thoughts by curiously asking what would have happened had God not provided the ram? He argues that ethical necessity to human life must be privileged while religious obligation depends on moral justification and goes on to challenge the rationale that would make such ethical code apply differently on Abraham. "If faith cannot make it a holy act to be willing to murder his son, then let the same judgment be passed on Abraham as on everyone else."[4] Abraham is answerable to God’s will and these manifests in his willingness to behold His instructions while knowing well that what is at stake is his son’s life. It therefore requires him to betray the ethics governing his relations with others. On the other hand, God is not obligated to Abraham. There is a show of asymmetrical accountability between them because God sees through Abraham’s soul. The sacrifice offered by Abraham is not a pleasant one. He undergoes meekness and a difficult life for the greater glory of the nation of Israel as its patriarch. Here again Kierkegaard poses a rhetorical question, "What does it mean to be God's chosen?"[9]? God intended absolute faith for the future of Israel and so to achieve this He had to empower Abraham through Isaac’s ordeal. By drawing the sword and readying himself to sacrifice his son to God, Abraham sacrificed his own fatherhood to Isaac and in that separation, Isaac turned to God in faith, who in turn showed him His mercy and spared his life so that he could lead Israel. Abraham had confidence that God would keep his promise in Isaac, that of blessing all the generations of the world through his seed. The three philosophical problems constituting the fear and trembling include: is there a teleological suspension of the ethical? is there an absolute duty to God? The question on the ethical regards the moral obligations that human beings have towards each other and if there are circumstances in which they can be forgone for purposes of a higher vocation.( Lippit pp.81-86) This is in line with Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac, in which Johannes opines that if this can be justifiably  acceptable as a norm, then there is bound to be teleological suspension of the ethical which makes Abraham’s obligation to God mandatory and supersedes his ethical duty. The ethical, according to Johannes refer to highest moral obligations including divine commands. His was obeying divine commands from his creator. It can also mean the universal. Knowing morals is ...