Paul Tillich was a man who some may consider one of the most prominent philosophers and theologians of the 20th century. His ideas focus primarily on Christian theology, and one of his most popular works, Courage to Be, explains how God, nothingness, and humanity fit into the categories of "being" and "being." non-being” (2. Paul). Tillich's work also focuses on feelings of anxiety that threaten the real, spiritual, and moral self. Tillich's ideas seem to reflect the fact that every anxiety is meant to affect a person, but at present his thoughts about being aimless and finding meaning in life, which affects the spiritual self of a person, may be considered by some to be the anxiety that affects the modern generation in the most striking way (Tillich). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In order to understand Tillich's thoughts, it is important to know his background and life up to the publication of Courage to Be. Tillich was born at the end of the 20th century in a German town called Starzeddel (History). He was born into a very conservative Christian family, his father being a Lutheran pastor. Tillich received a good education and eventually became a Lutheran minister like his father. In 1914, Tillich joined the army during World War I, which many consider to be the key factor playing an important role in changing his initially conservative views (1. Paul). From the outside, a person may believe that the atrocities of war caused him to become a much more liberal person in his thinking after feeling that the Church and theology could not adequately answer questions about religion. he existence of a benevolent God while the horrors he saw which became a reality in people's lives at the beginning of the 20th century took place (History). The "benevolent God" he once considered was something that many people in Tillich's time could not pin their hopes on. Tillich was looking for a way of thinking that could deal with the real fear, or what should be called "anxieties" that people felt. that we face and the questions that haunt us most during this time of war (2. Paul). Thus, Tillich's work, The Courage to Be, would reflect his change in perspective. Tillich's writings would address how we, as humans, come to exist in a state of "being" that includes everything we understand about living our lives. Alongside this state of “Being”, Tillich writes about how we overcome the inevitable anxieties that the reciprocal of our “Being” (the “Non-being”) brings. Among these anxieties are fate and death, guilt and condemnation and, perhaps the anxiety that has the greatest impact on people living today, emptiness and absurdity. Tillich writes about the threats that each of these anxieties brings and how they are overcome. Tillich also discusses how God fits into a higher category of "Being" and encompasses the lower levels of "Being" and "Non-being" in order to create an abstract idea of ​​God that cannot relating to people (Tillich).Chapter It is in chapter 6 of Courage to Be that Tillich talks about the many anxieties that come from “Non-Being”. Although insignificance is the anxiety that Tillich seems to characterize as the greatest affecting people's lives in his time, it is also interesting to briefly see how other anxieties affect people. Death and destiny areanxieties meant to affect us, because we, as people, are afraid of not existing. We live in the knowledge of continuity, and not having that can be scary for some. The couple's other anxieties are guilt and condemnation. People are afraid of how they will be judged and the impact their actions will have, because even if we have good intentions, our actions cannot always be positive (Tillich). To analyze those of Tillich, it is important to be able to dissect and understand the notions he addresses. We can delve deeper into understanding, the first line where Tillich speaks of the anxiety of absurdity. “The courage to take upon oneself the anguish of absurdity is the limit to which the courage to be can go.” –Tillich 1952 Tillich's quote about nonsense is a difficult concept to understand, but can be simplified when breaking down Tillich's ideas piece by piece. To begin with, the phrase “anxiety of meaninglessness” can be addressed first. Anxiety is closely linked to fear (Tillich). However, where the two differ is in the item each possesses. Fear has an object, while anxiety does not. We may be afraid of a scary clown, but we worry about how a situation may turn out due to a lack of prior knowledge, such as what happens after we die. A fear can be overcome, while an anxiety cannot (3. Paul). This “meaninglessness anxiety” can be described as anxiety that begins with a feeling of emptiness and how a person may feel unfulfilled by a passion. Eventually, this will lead to a feeling of meaninglessness that Tillich describes as a threat that affects our spiritual being. The threat of having no purpose in life and having all your work go to waste is an anxiety and issue that can affect most people very hard. Absurdity begins with a feeling of emptiness when one feels that one's life passions are unfulfilling. After repeatedly feeling emptiness, a person falls into the depression of emptiness. While Tillich addresses the anxieties of death and condemnation that people may have, it can be argued that the anxiety that most affects people today and in Tillich's time (Tillich) is meaningless. Courage to Be was written at the start of the Cold War. At that time, the world was witnessing great advancements in science, literature and economic growth. In the United States, the Great Depression was over and people were realizing the magnitude of their achievements in science, technology and many other areas. However, despite all these great achievements, the underlying threat of war that could have doomed the world remained. The governments of capitalist and communist nations were competing to see who could be the best, and the underlying threat of nuclear war was a fear that many went to bed with every night (History). I believe that the anxiety of absurdity was the greatest anxiety to overcome during this period when people could glimpse a future in which all the great progress and achievements of the human race could simply be demolished in an instant, n having no value. All the work people put into advancing humanity in the 20th century would have meant nothing, and I believe that feeling might have been something that many people of the time would have struggled with. 'accept, and this might have been the most important anxiety that Tillich's Courage to Be could have answered. In order to understand how Tillich suggests people overcome this insignificance, weWe should first try to understand where the insignificance lies in the realm of “being” and “non-being”. Tillich continues the quote by saying "Beyond it is simple non-being" - Tillich 1952. Tillich's work, The Courage to Be, talks a lot about "being" versus "non-being » and addresses these concepts at different levels. The first level of “Being” can be summed up as everything that involves life as we know it. Breathe, move and simply live. The first level of “Non-Being” addresses the things that we, as humans, feel anxiety towards, as they include either absurdity, despair, condemnation, guilt, etc., as I mentioned it earlier. According to Tillich's model, there is a second level of "Being" which includes the first level of "Being" and "Non-Being". However, the second level of “Being” involves the Divine. The second level of “Non-Being” is the whole state of nothingness and things that we, as humans, are not capable of physically understanding. The Divine includes the two second levels of “Being” and “Non-Being” and can overcome the first level of “Non-Being” that we face. At the top of all levels of "Being" and "Non-being" is the third level of "Being", or what Tillich is talking about in his quote. “In him all forms of courage are restored to power. of the God above the God of theism. » -Tillich 1952Tillich would argue that the second level of "Being" would also face nothingness and a level of uncertainty. Therefore, it introduces another level of God into the picture. This God exists on a third level of “Being”. “The courage to be is rooted in the God who appears when God has disappeared in the anguish of doubt. - Tillich 1952 I would consider the third "Being" or "God who appears 'when God had disappeared' to be the God that Tillich would suggest as the God into which a person must be grasped in order to overcome the second level of 'Non-Being' and the anguish of nothingness. The idea of ​​having faith in this “Being” is not so much what Tillich advocates, but rather being encompassed by the idea. This is necessary because the second level of "Being" would always have the second level of "Non-being" as anxiety and would also have a level of nothingness to overcome. This third level of God or "Being" would include all of the second level of "Being" and "Non-Being" and would be able to overcome the second level of "Non-Being". Tillich calls this level of being “the ground of being.” It is reasonable to consider that Tillich says this in order to overcome the uncertainty of the second level of "Non-being" which the second level of "Being" cannot overcome. It can be understood that we must place our hope in the third level of “Being” where the Divine is threatened with a level of doubt that the third level of “Being” can overcome (Tillich). Tillich's ideas caused a lot of problems. for some people. Specifically, by his declaration of “God above the God of theism.” Essentially, many believed that Tillich was declaring a false god and denying the God of Christianity. In addition to this, Tillich speaks of the Divine as “the being of God is being itself” (Tillich). Tillich goes on to create an image of a very pantheistic God who would be a more transcendental essence that includes all of life and existence rather than a personal God (3.Paul). Although Tillich's quote did not appeal to many religious Christians, it appealed to other groups of people. Tillich's idea denies the need for a personal God in which the tradition of many religions resides. To an atheist or pantheist, Tillich's idea may have been attractive because Tillich presents the description of aGod who helps us understand how we, as humans, can live. our lives in the best possible way with the knowledge of a God who exists who can help us deal with the anxiety we have in the face of absurdity and who can overcome the unknown aspect of "Non-Being" that we will never be able to understand (1. Paul). That being said, I don't believe Tillich is trying to please any specific group of people with his ideology. I think the important point he was trying to make was that whatever idea of ​​"God" we find our courage in, we must be able to overcome the anxieties of "Non-being" that we face . This third level of being created by Tillich does just that. This level of God is the “ground of being” and underlies all aspects of everything. This God is able to overcome all anxieties and understands everything that is unknown to us (Tillich). I would say that I agree and disagree with different points of Tillich's argument. If I could broadly summarize Tillich's ideas about God, I would say that Tillich argues for a transcendental God and a God who is not a real being but the essence of life and all that we know. I agree with the idea that God is transcendental or above all things and includes all things. I think he makes some very good points about understanding who God is and what he does for the anxieties we face. asserting that if God is above all the nothingness and things we are uncertain, we can put our hope in Him (Tillich). I personally agree with this part of Tillich's God because I believe it can also mean that God is all-powerful and beyond our human understanding. However, I disagree with the latter part of his ideology and would argue that the higher level of being that helps us overcome nothingness is indeed a personal God. Tillich said that “God is himself, not a being.” I personally believe that we need a God who transcends our understanding to have Tillich's "Courage to Be", but I also think it is important to have a personal God to overcome absurdity and anxieties of “Non-Being”. I think just believing that there is a higher abstract God who can overcome absurdity doesn't really help us overcome our anxieties. Personally, the idea of ​​an unrelated level of God does as much for me as not having a God. I think believing in a personal God helps us better understand ourselves and the role we play as humans on earth. Overall, I think Tillich's quote can apply to many aspects of life today, but in a different way than what he said. presents it as being. If I could summarize Tillich's quote in my own words, I would do so: “As a people, we are struck by the reality that everything we do and achieve is meaningless. The way to overcome this is to put our courage into a being who transcends this insignificance and who can understand what we cannot understand about what it means to no longer exist. My personal understanding of Tillich's quote is that any Christian, atheist, pantheist, etc. can have the power to live life fully every day because there is a being who understands and contains everything (that is, all things “Being” and all things “Non-being”). I think that while it may give people the courage to try to live their lives to the fullest, it inspires them to live their lives in perhaps a meaningless way. I think people today are too obsessed with the media..