Fear And Trembling Quotes

“Faith is the highest passion in a man.”
― Søren Kierkegaard

“It is now my intention to draw out from the story of Abraham the dialectical
consequences inherent in it, expressing them in the form of
problemata
, in order to see
what a tremendous paradox faith is, a paradox which is capable of transforming a
murder into a holy act well-pleasing to God, a paradox which gives Isaac back to
Abraham, which no thought can master, because faith begins precisely there where
thinking leaves off.”
― Kierkegaard, Søren

“If this had not been the case with Abraham, then perhaps he might have loved God but not
believed; for he who loves God without faith reflects upon himself, he who loves God believingly reflects upon God.”
― Kierkegaard, Søren

“When the child must be weaned, the mother too is not without sorrow at the thought that she and the child are separated more and more, that the child which first lay under her heart and later reposed upon her breast will be so near to her no more.”
― Soren Kierkegaard

“Engaging in meditative self-reflection and gaining increased control of inner experiences provides a person with a sense of control over fear and trembling and the chaos of life.”
― Kilroy J. Oldster, Dead Toad Scrolls

“He follows his heart's desire, but having found what he sought he wanders round to everyone's door with his song and speech, so that all can admire the hero as he does, be proud of the hero as he is.”
― Soren Kierkegaard

“What astounds Kierkegaard is neither the obedience nor the reprieve, but the way in which Abraham and Isaac seem able to return to the way things were before. They have been forced to depart entirely from the realm of ordinary humanity and fatherly protection, yet somehow Abraham is still confident in the Love for his son. For Kierkegaard, the story shows that we must make this sort of impossible leap in order to continue in life after flaws have been revealed. As he wrote, Abraham 'resigned everything infinitely, ans then took back everything on the strength of the absurd.”
― Sarah Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café

“Life is the one riddle that is denotative, referential. Although every person shares a common ultimate destiny, each person must work out their own life, script their own personal salvation, and wrestle with the fear and trembling that is inherent when we consider our mortality.”
― Kilroy J. Oldster, Dead Toad Scrolls

“Consequently, for us light-minded and unstable human beings there is sheer fear and trembling in this thought of God's changelessness”
― Søren Kierkegaard, The Essential Kierkegaard

“Only in much fear and trembling is a human being able to speak with God, in much fear and trembling”
― Søren Kierkegaard, The Essential Kierkegaard

“What is certain is that to become of interest, for one's life to be interesting, has nothing to do with what you can turn your hand to but is a fateful privilege which, like every privilege in the world of spirit, can only be purchased in deep pain.”
― Søren Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling