Existence and the Existent

by Jacques Maritain

English, French (translation)

Genres: Philosophy, Metaphysics, Theology

1 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1948

About the author

T. S. Eliot once called Jacques Maritain "the most conspicuous figure and probably the most powerful force in contemporary philosophy." His wife and devoted intellectual companion, Raissa Maritain, was of Jewish descent but joined the Catholic church with him in 1906. Maritain studied under Henri Bergson but was dissatisfied with his teacher's philosophy, eventually finding certainty in the system of St. Thomas Aquinas. He lectured widely in Europe and in North and South America, and lived and taught in New York during World War II. Appointed French ambassador to the Vatican in 1945, he resigned in 1948 to teach philosophy at Princeton University, where he remained until his retirement in 1953. He was prominent in the Catholic intellectual resurgence, with a keen perception of modern French literature. Although Maritain regarded metaphysics as central to civilization and metaphysically his position was Thomism, he took full measure of the intellectual currents of his time and articulated a resilient and vital Thomism, applying the principles of scholasticism to contemporary issues. In 1963, Maritain was honored by the French literary world with the national Grand Prize for letters. He learned of the award at his retreat in a small monastery near Toulouse where he had been living in ascetic retirement for some years. In 1967, the publication of "The Peasant of the Garonne" disturbed the French Roman Catholic world. In it, Maritain attacked the "neo-modernism" that he had seen developing in the church in recent decades, especially since the Second Vatican Council. According to Jaroslav Pelikan, writing in the Saturday Review of Literature, "He laments that in avant-garde Roman Catholic theology today he can 'read nothing about the redeeming sacrifice or the merits of the Passion.' In his interpretation, the whole of the Christian tradition has identified redemption with the sacrifice of the cross. But now, all of that is being discarded, along with the idea of hell, the doctrine of creation out of nothing, the infancy narratives of the Gospels, and belief in the immortality of the human soul." Maritain's wife, Raissa, also distinguished herself as a philosophical author and poet. The project of publishing Oeuvres Completes of Jacques and Raissa Maritain has been in progress since 1982, with seven volumes now in print.

Reviews

[Andrew Talbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really difficult, but worth the patient read. His articulation of nihil vs. esse and the differing “causes” alone is worth it. It’s a surprising blend of Athanasian and Augustinian thought regarding sin and freedom. The closing chapter is a powerful critical narrative (almost mythology) of modern existentialism, even Kierkegaard, for co-opting the agony of theology into philosophy and yet refusing to recognize that it has done so. I do not see this as an uncritical forwarding of St. Thomas or a denial of the important questions raised by existentialism. Instead, he shows the place of the latter, and the ways in which Thomas maintains a disciplined separation of theology and philosophy (consistent with Aristotle) that contracted under later philosophers. My mind needs a break. Time for some fiction.

[Julian · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author dismisses all questions about existence very simply. We may think that the things we believe we see in the world are shaped, both by our ability to perceive data and by our cultural preconceptions as to what exactly is a thing. We may believe that our minds play tricks on us, so we both see things that are not there and fail to see things that are there. We may be concerned that the inevitable inaccuracy of sharing of information from mind to mind, resulting from linguistic and other issues, renders any concept of agreed on reality dubious. But we would be wrong.

Apparently the answer to all these, one would have thought, reasonable concerns is this: Thomas Aquinas said that we apprehend the world directly and truthfully, and that all is comprehensible via reason. Thomas Aquinas is a doctor of the church. He is never wrong. QED.

That this is nonsense will be self-evident to some of you, and my saying that is so will seem blasphemous to others. In either case, this book is pointless, for it cannot speak sense to the former group, and will be telling the latter group only what they already know.

[Nicholas Satterlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5 Absolutely beautifully written (at least the translation) my main trouble came down to understanding. There were times were Maritain seemed to contradict himself just because of the way it was written, however I don’t think he was it was more me. The conclusion of this book is absolutely stunning. His critique of anguish and his highlights of some of Thomistic philosophy were completely new to me and although I will need to 100% re read this I’m very satisfied with my first read despite the struggles through certain parts. I like how fairly Maritain treats positions he’s against, he’s also funny on occasion.

[Patrick Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book may be better cast as a rebuttal of existentialist metaphysics, as it fiercely combats in particular the claim that existence precedes essence. It's a very difficult read; I found myself staring at individual sentences for many minutes at a time. Could this be because of translation issues, or because of some conceit in the terminology?

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely needs a reread, bit off more than I could chew with this one.

[Paul Bond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written as though jargon were both a language and a religion. That aside, excellent. Attempts to out-flank atheistic existentialism, and reestablish Christianity as the true home of authentic living. Succeeds in highlighting the aspects of Thomism that encourage curiosity about and engagement with the created world, and a respect for the hidden depths of persons. Stumbles in parts. Most difficult when insisting on the non-existence of evil. The "heads God did good through you, tails you sinned of you own free will" motif was difficult to get past. That's not a specific criticism of Maritain, but a limitation that comes with all his dogmatic commitments. Maritain dances the line, as best it can be danced. Sometimes he describes the glorification of God and empty of self, and I saw a beautiful Zen self-emptying. And sometimes it comes across as really anti-human. Well worth a read.

[Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

It will take several more reads before I will grasp the true profundity of this little text. But on the fist read, it informed my prayer life beyond what I could have imagined. Here is just one excerpt of many that deeply moved me:

"Religion is essentially that which no philosophy can be: a relation of person to person with all the risk, the mystery, the dread, the confidence, the delight, and the torment that lie in such a relationship" -p. 80

[Martin Shanahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most potent and devastating critiques of the existentialist philosophical perspectives of Sartre - it specifically refutes Sartre's "Existentialism is a Humanism".

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Thomistic account of metaphysics.