Akt wiary jako adekwatna odpowiedź na wyzwania demitologizacji religii według Leszka Kołakowskiego

Abstract

The article deals with the Leszek Kołakowski’s assessment of demythologization of religion with its fundamental presumption of separation between the “empirical” and “mythological” aspects of reality. The paper begins with a quote from Kołakowski’s essay Jezus ośmieszony. Esej apologetyczny i sceptyczny (The Ridiculed Jesus – An Apologetic and Sceptical Essay), in which he asserts that it is only through acts of faith that one can participate in the realm of sacrum in the world, where the loss of religious heritage is increasingly manifested. The loss also results from the demythologization of Christian religion and the Revelation, a process based on the presumed separation between the “empirical” and the “mythological”. Kołakowski claims that such a radical separation is impossible and actually unnecessary since both make up its unity. He insists on adopting a global view of religion and history, which is possible through an act of faith that simplifies an interpretation of reality as an organized harmony. The act of faith with its coherent view of reality seems the best response to the challenges of demythologization.