Truth is the Way: Kierkegaard's Theologia Viatorum

by Christopher Ben Simpson

In "The Truth Is the Way", Christopher Ben Simpson presents Kierkegaard’s work as a theologia viatorum, a theology to guide one on life’s way. This truth that is the way is at once existential, metaphysical, and theological — the highest truth is a living in accord with reality that is revealed to us and enabled in us by Jesus Christ. This picture of Kierkegaard’s thought, drawing on the whole of his published corpus, presents his perspectives (by way of prolegomena) on the nature of truth, of communication and of faith and (more substantially) his guiding vision of the world, God, humanity, and Christ, culminating in Kierkegaard’s understanding of the manner of life lived in light of this vision — of a journey walked in the virtues of patience, faith, hope, and love toward a life of joy in the midst of suffering, of communion with oneself, with God, with others.

‘In the aptly named "The Truth is the Way" Christopher Ben Simpson gives an insightful and comprehensive reading of Kierkegaard’s authorship, read as a theologian by a theologian, focusing on Kierkegaard’s second “Christian” authorship as well as the more widely-known pseudonymous
works.’
— C. Stephen Evans, University Professor of Philosophy, Baylor University

‘Kierkegaard is the strangest phenomenon: an enormously influential writer whose thought has nearly always been misunderstood, both by its advocates and by its opponents. Christopher Simpson’s book provides us at last with a reliable and subtle reading that breaks with those of both existentialism and postmodernism. He shows us just why we have not yet caught up with the reflections of the Danish philosopher and why the full reach of his critical understanding must be understood as the reach of his Christian theology.’
— John Milbank, Professor in Religion, Politics and Ethics and Director of the Centre of Theology and Philosophy, University of Nottinghama

SCM Veritas, engages in critical and original questions of pressing concern to both philosophers and theologians. The major concern of all books in this series is to display a rigorous theological critique of categories not often thought to be theological in character, such as phenomenology or metaphysics which are mainly considered as philosophical categories. All the books in this series aim to illustrate that without theology, something essential is lost in our accounts of such categories - not only in the abstract but in the way in which we inhabit the world.

Genres: Philosophy

226 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2010

About the author

Christopher Ben Simpson is an associate professor of philosophy and theology at Lincoln Christian University (Lincoln, IL).

Reviews

[Pastor Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very valuable as an organizing of Kierkegaard's thought, more particularly his religious thought. He quotes Kierkegaard VERY extensively and repeatedly. It's almost as if the author isn't speaking himself, but only finding a way to make what Kierkegaard wrote more systematic. In a way this is great. But occasionally I wanted the author to speak for himself, to smooth it all out, to make Kierkegaard sing in a way that tiny excerpts cannot. All in all, a book I'm very glad I read.