After Enlightenment The Post-Secular Vision of J. G. Hamann

After Enlightenment: Hamann as Post-Secular Visionary is a comprehensive introduction to the life and works of eighteenth-century German philosopher, J. G. Hamann, the founding father of what has come to be known as Radical Orthodoxy. Provides a long-overdue, comprehensive introduction to Hamans fascinating life and controversial works, including his role as a friend and critic of Kant and some of the most renowned German intellectuals of the age Features substantial new translations of the most important passages from across Hamanns writings, some of which have never been translated into English Examines Hamanns highly original views on a range of topics, including faith, reason, revelation, Christianity, biblical exegesis, Socrates, theological aesthetics, language, sexuality, religion, politics, and the relationship between Judaism and Christianity Presents Hamann as the founding father of a distinctly post-modern, post-secular theology and, as such, as an alternative to the postmodern triumvirate of Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Derrida Considers Hamanns work as a touchtone of modern Jewish-Christian dialogue, in view of debates with his friend Moses Mendelssohn Explores Hamanns role as the visionary founder of a metacritical movement that radically calls into question the basic principles of modern secular reason, and thus reprises the debate between those defending Hamanns views and those labeling him the bête noir of the Enlightenment

John R. Betz has taught theology at Loyola University Maryland and is currently an associate professor of systematic theology at the University of Notre Dame.