Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia

Thou shall love. But can love be commanded? That is one of the key questions that troubled Kierkegaard in the Works of Love. We learn from Saint Paul that ‘no human being will be justified … by works of the law’ (Romans 3:20), but what about the works of love? The law of love turns love into a duty....

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Main Author: Joshua Neoh
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Southern Queensland Law, Religion, and Heritage Research Program Team 2024-04-01
Series:Australian Journal of Law & Religion
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ausjlr.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Volume-4-Neoh.pdf
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author Joshua Neoh
author_facet Joshua Neoh
author_sort Joshua Neoh
collection DOAJ
description Thou shall love. But can love be commanded? That is one of the key questions that troubled Kierkegaard in the Works of Love. We learn from Saint Paul that ‘no human being will be justified … by works of the law’ (Romans 3:20), but what about the works of love? The law of love turns love into a duty. The worry about using the language of law to demand love is that it turns love from a free act to a commanded, and therefore compelled, act. The law of love is love bound by law. This paper examines how this puzzle about law and love is resolved in Kierkegaard’s Works of Love, Benedict’s Rule, and More’s Utopia.
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publisher University of Southern Queensland Law, Religion, and Heritage Research Program Team
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series Australian Journal of Law & Religion
spelling doaj-art-e0c55ea4407e487eb162b6103a18044e2024-11-17T08:49:38ZengUniversity of Southern Queensland Law, Religion, and Heritage Research Program TeamAustralian Journal of Law & Religion2653-51222024-04-0147583https://doi.org/10.55803/S087EKierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's UtopiaJoshua Neoh0Australian National UniversityThou shall love. But can love be commanded? That is one of the key questions that troubled Kierkegaard in the Works of Love. We learn from Saint Paul that ‘no human being will be justified … by works of the law’ (Romans 3:20), but what about the works of love? The law of love turns love into a duty. The worry about using the language of law to demand love is that it turns love from a free act to a commanded, and therefore compelled, act. The law of love is love bound by law. This paper examines how this puzzle about law and love is resolved in Kierkegaard’s Works of Love, Benedict’s Rule, and More’s Utopia.https://ausjlr.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Volume-4-Neoh.pdflovetheologykierkegaardbenedictmoreutopia
spellingShingle Joshua Neoh
Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia
Australian Journal of Law & Religion
love
theology
kierkegaard
benedict
more
utopia
title Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia
title_full Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia
title_fullStr Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia
title_full_unstemmed Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia
title_short Kierkegaard's Works of Love: From Benedict's Rule to More's Utopia
title_sort kierkegaard s works of love from benedict s rule to more s utopia
topic love
theology
kierkegaard
benedict
more
utopia
url https://ausjlr.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Volume-4-Neoh.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT joshuaneoh kierkegaardsworksoflovefrombenedictsruletomoresutopia