We have before us the fiendishness of business competition and the world war, passion and wrongdoing, antagonism between classes and moral depravity within them, economic tyranny above and the slave spirit below.
There is no philosophy that is not to some extent also theology.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Philosophy and theology are intertwined, influencing each other in understanding existence and meaning.
Karl Barth's quote emphasizes the inherent connection between philosophy and theology, suggesting that philosophical inquiries often lead to theological considerations. This intertwining reflects the complexity of human thought, where questions about existence, morality, and the universe cannot be fully explored without contemplating the divine or spiritual aspects that influence philosophical discourse.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on the relationship between science and religion, one might use this quote to illustrate how philosophical questions about the universe often intersect with theological discussions.
More from Karl Barth
All quotes βWhen we speak of our virtues we are competitors, when we confess our sins we become brothers.
Conscience is the perfect interpreter of life.
That the zeal for God's honor is also a dangerous passion, that the Christian must bring with him the courage to swim against the tide instead of with it... accept a good deal of loneliness, will perhaps be nowhere so clear and palpable as in the church, where he would so much like things to be different. Yet he cannot and he will not refuse to take this risk and pay this price... he belongs where the reformation of the church is underway or will again be underway.
In the Church of Jesus Christ there can and should be no non-theologians.
Christian worship is the most momentous, most urgent, most glorious action that can take place in human life.
Similar quotes
But man is a fickle and disreputable creature and perhaps, like a chess-player, is interested in the process of attaining his goal rather than the goal itself.
I look forward to death with great anticipation, to meeting God face to face.
Tithe in kind where your spirit is fed.
The one thing with writing stories about the rise of fascism is that if you wait long enough, you'll almost certainly be proved right. Fascism is like a hydra - you can cut off its head in the Germany of the '30s and '40s, but it'll still turn up on your back doorstep in a slightly altered guise.
When one reaches this state of harmony between things and one's self, one reaches a state of perfect freedom and peace-which makes everything possible and right. Life becomes perpetual revelation.
Americanization means the process of becoming an American. It means civic incorporation, becoming a part of the polity - becoming one of us. But that does not mean conformity. We are more than a melting pot, we are a kaleidoscope, where every turn of history refracts new light on the old promise.