LEVINAS: GOD IS RELATIONAL, NOT METAPHYSICAL, FROM 1995

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LEVINAS’ CONCEPT OF “GOD” ARTICULATED THROUGH TWO MODALITIES:

This manuscript appears 30 years after Levinas’ masterpiece of “Totality and Infinity”, where he depicted his Phenomenology. Now he gives us the detailed articulation of what he meant in that essay by “transcendence”; understanding it within sociology. The following outline represents his position in this 121 page essay:

LEVINAS’ JUDAIC CONCEPT OF “GOD”; UNDERSTOOD WITHIN TWO MODALITIES:“TRANSCENDENCE” AND “ALTERITY”:

TRANSCENDENCE: “3” moments:

1. The “psyche” describes the “space-of-transcendence”
a. Found in the face of the fellow-self.
b. Ethical-awakening takes place and quest for “logos”
c. Logos = the space of the “social-ideal-vigor”
d. Transcendent space = this “social-ideal-vigor”

2. The “conversation-threshold” describes the “time-of-transcendence”
a. “Psyche” breaks from spatial thinking.
b. Self seeks “originary-I” of the “other” behind the articulated “ideal-vigor”
c. Concept of “being” is posited.
d. The “originary-I” is the companion of the “logos-I”.
e. “originary-I” is posited as “prophecy”, which is anterior to “logos”
f. It is expressed as “motivation”

3. The “cogito” describes the “panoramic-notion-of-transcendence”
a. Formed through the following equation: psyche’s articulated “ideal-vigor-logos” (Greek philosophy) – plus: the “prophetic-motivational-base” (Jewish spirituality) = the logos-proper; or “transcendence”.

ALTERITY: “3” moments:
1. “transcendental-cogito” is awakened.

2. Buber’s moments of “ethical-alterity” are taken-up by the transcendental-self.
a. “morphological-desire” is expressed toward exteriority.
b. Negation of any “i-it” relation in sociology
c. Categorical-imperative of “justice” toward the “other” in an “i-thou” relation is posited.

3. The “originary-I” discovered through dialogue is coupled with the “originary-I” discovered through “ethics”.
a. Speech: beginning with speech-act at the DT. Conversation-threshold.
b. Inscribing: of the self’s “psyche” and “cogito” with the trace of “transcendence”.
c. Suffering: through the “decay-of-human-relation” which is present today.
d. Articulation of FACE: in reciprocal-understanding between dialogue and ethics; transcendence and alterity; Greek philosophy and Jewish spirituality.

Postscript: this work, of course, is done by the exiled self of “Exodus”. Wandering in the desert and constantly disturbed by the memory of genocide by the Nazi regime during WWII. Levinas believes there is the possibility of reconciliation, even after this horror. Absolutely worth 5 stars!!