Концепт: философия, религия, культура (Dec 2021)
Critical Theory of Religion by Erich Fromm: from Messianic Judaism to Radical Humanism
Abstract
This paper studies Erich Fromm’s critical theory of religion and looks into the evolution of the philosopher’s views. We analyze key concepts of Fromm’s humanistic psychology, including biophilia, rejection of idolatry, X-experience, classification of religions as humanistic or authoritarian, plea for sustainable coexistence with the environment, and some others. The author demonstrates close connection of these concepts with Judaic tradition, especially the messianism and negative theology of Maimonides. The paper is divided into chapters tracing the evolution of Fromm’s views on religion — from Hasidic Judaism, through following Freud and Marx, to the concept of humanistic religion. The analysis shows that starting from his early works and up to the radical, socialistic humanism as the pinnacle of his thought, Fromm as a philosopher and a strong Israelite draws inspiration from the religious tradition. Notably, his PhD thesis was devoted to the sociology of Hebrew diaspora, Der Sabbath, The Dogma of Christ. However, Fromm’s theory of religion, accordant with the Frankfurt School, combines aspects of Hegel, Marx and Freud’s teachings. Fromm’s views on religion are an original, self-consistent synthesis of diverse ideas, and result in the concept of radical humanism. The paper specifically considers Fromm’s view on idolatry as a form of alienation. Fromm urges to fight against idolatry in a bro.ader sense, finding it in various social phenomena, ranging from consumerism to religious fundamentalism. The paper also reviews the concept of X-experience that Fromm gives in You Shall Be as Gods. The X-experience is a special transcendental experience, separated from its multiple theistic or non-theistic conceptualizations. X-experience is psychological in its nature and leads to diminishing or eliminating narcissism. It constitutes a certain opposition to the alienation caused by idolatry. The work also considers Fromm’s idea of humanistic religion as related to his other concepts. The author supposes that the distinction between authoritarian and humanistic religions is tied to the earlier separation into authoritarian and humanistic ethics that Fromm presents in Man for himself. The impact of Marx and Freud on Fromm’s philosophy of religion is highlighted. While drawing from both, Fromm considered Marx’s theory to be deeper and more significant.
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