God is dead

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Timeisgoddead.jpg
Time Magazine, April 8, 1966

"God is dead" (German: "Gott ist tot") is a widely quoted phrase by Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900). It is first quoted in The Gay Science, section 108 (New Struggles), and then in section 125 (The Madman) but is also found in Nietzsche's classic work Also sprach Zarathustra, which is most responsible for popularizing the phrase. The full quote is as follows:

"God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we, murderers of all murderers, console ourselves? That which was the holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet possessed has bled to death under our knives. Who will wipe this blood off us? With what water could we purify ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we need to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we not ourselves become gods simply to be worthy of it?" - Nietzsche, Also sprach Zarathustra

The quote from section 108, New Struggles:

" - After Buddha was dead, they still showed his shadow in a cave for centuries - a tremendous, gruesome shadow. God is Dead; but given the way people are, there may still for millenia be caves in which they show his shadow. - And we - we must still defeat his shadow as well!" - Nietzsche

God is dead is perhaps one of the most commonly misunderstood phrases in all of 19th century literature. The phrase should not be taken literally, as in, "God is now physically dead," or, "Jesus, both the son of God and God himself, died on the cross"; rather, it is Nietzsche's controversial way of saying that God has ceased to be a reckoning force in the people's lives, even if they don't recognize it. After all, the philosopher is famous for his "punning" writing style that can be easily perceived as ambiguity. Thus, according to Nietzsche, it is time to transcend both the concept of God and the "good vs. evil" dichotomy found within most religions. The phrase is also commonly misunderstood as an exultation, whereas it is clear from the full context that it is instead a lamentation.

The death of God is a way of saying that humans are no longer able to believe in a cosmic order. The death of God will lead, Nietzsche says, not only to the rejection of a belief of cosmic/physical order but also to a rejection of absolute values themselves -- to the rejection of belief in an objective and universal moral law. This leads to nihilism, and it is what Nietzsche worked to find a solution for by re-evaluating the foundations of human values. This meant, to Nietzsche, looking for foundations that went deeper than the Christian values most people refuse to look beyond.

Nietzsche believed that a natural ground for morality should be sought in order to avoid this calamity. He believed that the majority of men did not recognize (or refused to acknowledge) this death out of the deepest-seated fear. Therefore, when the death did begin to become widely acknowledged, people would despair and nihilism would become rampant, as well as the relativistic belief that human will is a law unto itself -- anything goes and all is permitted. This is partly why Nietzsche saw Christianity as nihilistic. Only by having the foresight to re-establish human values on a new, natural basis could this nightmare future be avoided.

Nietzsche believed there could be positive possibilities for humans without God. Relinquishing the belief in God opens the way for human's creative abilities to fully develop. The Christian God, with his arbitrary commands and prohibitions, would no longer stand in the way, so human beings might stop turning their eyes toward a supernatural realm and begin to acknowledge the value of this world. The recognition that "God is dead" would be like a blank canvas. It is a freedom to become something new, different, creative -- a freedom to be something without being forced to accept the baggage of the past. Like an open sea, this can be both exhilarating and terrifying. It would be a tremendous responsibility, and, Nietzsche believed, many would not be up to it. Most people rely on rules and authorities to tell them what to do, what to value, how to live. The people who eventually learn to create their lives anew will represent a new stage in human transformation, that is, as Nietzsche advocated, an increasing measure to cultivate human qualities that continually strive for mastery and refinement in all matters, thus extolling existence.

It is widely believed that Nietzsche himself "proclaimed" the "death of God", but it should be acknowledged that in Die fröhliche Wissenschaft he put the words into the mouth of a "madman". In this passage, the man is described running through a marketplace shouting, "God is dead! God is dead!" He arouses some amusement; no one takes him seriously. Frustrated, the madman smashes his lantern on the ground, crying out that he has come too soon: people cannot yet see that they have killed God. He goes on to say, "This prodigious event is still on its way, and is traveling – it has not yet reached men's ears. Lightning and thunder need time, the light of the stars needs time, deeds need time, even after they are done, to be seen and heard." He does, however, also have his protagonist in the opening to Also sprach speak the words, commenting to himself after visiting a hermit who, every day, sings songs and lives to glorify his god.

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See also: God is dead, 1965, 1966, 19th century, Also sprach Zarathustra, April 8, Carnivore, Christianity, Dichotomy, Elton John