ABSTRACT
Martin Heidegger, born in Messkirch (Germany) in 1889, was one of the most influential philosophers of the twentieth century. This chapter discusses Heidegger’s relationship to religion under the following themes: Heidegger’s interpretation of early Christianity; philosophy and religious faith as mortal enemies; and a possible meaning of the last God. Heidegger understands the human being first and foremost as a radical historical being. For Heidegger, the faith of the Thessalonians is not a concern, nor is the specific content of their faith. For Heidegger, the self is completely historical; it is not a tranquil, theoretical moment, but rather historical actualization. In Heidegger’s view, there is almost no relation between faith and philosophy as it is worked out in his essay Phenomenology and Theology, because that which has to be understood conceptually is inconceivable from the very beginning.
