Beyond Kant and Nietzsche: The Munich Defence of Christian Humanism

Description

The Christian Humanist ideas of six Catholic scholars who were based in Munich during the first half of the 20th century are profiled in this volume. They were all interested in presenting and defending a Christian humanism in the aftermath of German Idealism and the anti-Christian humanism of Friedrich Nietzsche. They were seeking to offer hope to Christians during the darkest years of the Nazi regime and the post-Second World War era of shame, guilt and reconstruction.

Tracey Rowland holds the St John Paul II (Research) Chair of Theology at the University of Notre Dame, Australia.

Rowland has produced a valuable, relevant resource for historical and contemporary conversations on issues related to the transformative power of ideology, the existential significance of theology for the cultivation of personal identity, and the possibilities of embodying the values of a Christian worldview in an increasingly pluralistic public square. * Reading Religion * [T]he author ... succeeds admirably in opening up for readers key themes as developed by the figures who are the subject of this work. * The Heythrop Journal * The internationally noted Australian theologian Tracey Rowland has produced yet another valuable and truly "illuminating" study. Gifted with knowledge in the language and culture of Goethe, Rowland capably sheds light on a, rich and variegated intellectual milieu little known to non-Germans. It is the valiant struggle to counter the materialism of National-Socialism and analogous ideologies with a vigorous restatement of the Catholic genius. This precious book fills a much-felt lacuna. Highly recommended. -- Emery de Gaal, University of St. Mary of the Lake, USA Rowland serves a feast of recovered treasures in her excavation of six major pre-war German Catholic intellectuals who helped shape the best thinkers of the Conciliar years. She writes with erudition, clarity and a deep concern for the restoration of Catholic culture. -- Gavin D'Costa, University of Bristol, UK Professor Rowland's text details a time-period lost and unknown to many of us who care about the history of Catholic theology, especially those of us who are in the Anglophone academic world. The stories of the contributions of these German theologians and their influence on the Second Vatican Council are fascinating. Rowland has done a great service in introducing us to these theologians with her text. -- John P. Cush, Pontifical North American College, Vatican City-State