From religionless Christianity to immanent grace : Bonhoeffer's legacy in Badiou

Abstract

This paper seeks to answer the question: In what sense can Alain Badiou's idea of evental grace, conceived of as radically immanent, be understood as the continuation of the legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's nonreligious interpretation? The thematic scope of my analysis is determined by two factors: first, the notions of "religionless Christianity" and "immanent grace" which, as I will argue, despite the evident discrepancy between Bonhoeffer's and Badiou's ontological backgrounds, allow for grasping some analogies between both their general insights and particular views and, second, the willingness to preserve the integrity of each approach. In order to meet the latter requirement I will, first, examine the contexts of Bonhoeffer's concept of worldly faith and Badiou's concept of immanently actual infinity one by one, through the lens of their respective agendas. Only then several analogies among them will be suggested by pointing to the essential continuity of Bonhoeffer's legacy in Badiou with concurrent discontinuity regarding both the ontological basis and the theological implications of their views. Finally, I will suggest a possible message that the trajectory of thought indicated by Bonhoeffer and Badiou might convey to Christianity today.It ought to be mentioned that while Bonhoeffer's theology constitutes the proper and direct object of this study, my treatment of Badiou's philosophy assumes an effort of appropriating his thought theologically, which in itself constitutes an unobvious and often audacious task.