The Essence of Christianity

by Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach

 

Chapman's

Quarterly Series.

No. VI

 

THE

ESSENCE OF CHRISTIANITY.

BY

LUDWIG FEUERBACH.

Translated from the Second German Edition

BY
MARIAN EVANS,
TRANSLATOR OF "STRAUSS 'S LIFE OF JESUS."

LONDON:
JOHN CHAPMAN,
8 KING WILLIAM STREET, STRAND.

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MDCCCLIV.

 

LONDON:
SAVILL AND EDWARDS, PRINTERS, CHANDOS STREET,
COVENT GARDEN.

 

CONTENTS.

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	Preface to the Second Edition
INTRODUCTION.
chapter		page
I.	§ 1. The Essential Nature of Man	1
I.	§ 2. The Essence of Religion considered generally	12
Part I. THE TRUE OR ANTHROPOLOGICAL ESSENCE OF RELIGION.
II.	God as a Being of the Understanding	32
III.	God as a Moral Being, or Law	43
IV.	The Mystery of the Incarnation; or, God as Love, as a Being of the Heart	49
V.	The Mystery of the Suffering God	58
VI.	The Mystery of the Trinity and the Mother of God	64
VII.	The Mystery of the Logos and Divine Image	73
VIII.	The Mystery of the Cosmogonical Principle in God	79
IX.	The Mystery of Mysticism, or Nature in God	86
X	The Mystery of Providence and Creation out of Nothing	100
XI.	The Significance of the Creation in Judaism	111
XII.	The Omnipotence of Feeling, or the Mystery of Prayer	119
XIII.	The Mystery of Faith—the Mystery of Miracle	125
XIV	The Mystery of the Resurrection and of the Miraculous Conception	134
XV	The Mystery of the Christian Christ, or the Personal God	139
XVI.	The Distinction between Christianity and Heathenism	149
XVII	The Significance of Voluntary Celibacy and Monachism	159
XVIII.	The Christian Heaven, or Personal Immortality	169
Part II. THE FALSE OR THEOLOGICAL ESSENCE OF RELIGION.
XIX.	The Essential Stand-point of Religion	184
XX.	The Contradiction in the Existence of God	196
XXI.	The Contradiction in the Revelation of God	203
XXII.	The Contradiction in the Nature of God in general	211
XXIII.	The Contradiction in the Speculative Doctrine of God	224
XXIV.	The Contradiction in the Trinity	230
XXV.	The Contradiction in the Sacraments	234
XXVI.	The Contradiction of Faith and Love	245
XXVII.	Concluding Application	267
APPENDIX.
section
1.	The Religious Emotions purely Human	275
2.	God is Feeling released from Limits	277
3.	God is the highest Feeling of Self	278
4.	Distinction between the Pantheistic and Personal God	279
5.	Nature without interest for Christians	282
6.	In God Man is his own Object	284
7.	Christianity the Religion of Suffering	287
8.	Mystery of the Trinity	288
9.	Creation out of nothing	293
10.	Egoism of the Israelitish Religion	294
11.	The Idea of Providence	295
12.	Contradiction of Faith and Reason	300
13.	The Resurrection of Christ	304
14.	The Christian a Supermundane Being	304
15.	The Celibate and Monachism	305
16.	The Christian Heaven	313
17.	What Faith denies on Earth it affirms in Heaven	315
18.	Contradictions in the Sacraments	316
19.	Contradiction of Faith and Love	319
20.	Results of the Principle of Faith	325
21.	Contradiction of the God-Man	332
22.	Anthropology the Mystery of Theology	337