An Extended Critique of Hegelian Panentheism

: Judaism-Focussed Reflections on the Hegelian God Being Overinclusive of Extreme Evil and Underinclusive of the World’s Diverse Peoples

Abstract

Broadly defined, panentheism is a model of divinity according to which the world is in God and, vice versa, God is in the world. Once obscure, panentheism has recently gained traction in mainstream academic philosophy of religion. A result of panentheism’s upsurge is that it has become increasingly common for scholars to develop new panentheisms alongside panentheistic readings of the canonical philosophers. Where the literature consequently abounds with different formulations of the notion that the world is in God and God in the world, now is an opportune time to critically evaluate the existing panentheisms in order to identify and gain a better understanding of any recurring issues and to thereupon think constructively about how the panentheistic position can be refined. Wishing to progress research into panentheism as such, this thesis offers an extended critique of the writings of G.W.F. Hegel as they have been panentheistically interpreted. Referring throughout to Judaism and Jewish thinkers, this thesis portrays Hegel’s as a panentheism that struggles with inclusion in two senses of the word: (1) In terms of panentheism’s inclusion of the world in God, insofar as Hegelian panentheism takes this key tenet literally and thus suggests, with much difficulty, that events of such extraordinary evil as the Shoah take place inside of God, and (2) in terms of treating the world’s diverse peoples equally, i.e. being inclusive of them, insofar as Hegel includes many non-eurochristian groups, such as Jewish people, in God in a way that excludes them from divinity’s peak. Finding that Hegelian panentheism is overly inclusive of extreme evil and not inclusive enough of the world’s various individuals, this thesis notes that related issues pertaining to inclusion in both senses have cropped up across the spectrum of panentheisms. Accordingly, the thesis closes with some reflections on how panentheism can strike a better balance between these two types of inclusion in omitting evil from God’s being while concurrently extending divinity fruitfully to people of varying cultures and convictions.

Date of Award	26 Sept 2024
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Winchester
Supervisor	Timothy Secret (Supervisor) & Marika Rose (Supervisor)