This 2-volume work was written in the 20^th century,
but it is perhaps the best presentation of the existential dimensions
of New Testament thinking.

(Minneapolis, MN: www.existentialbooks.com, 1991—second edition)
75 pages plus a 15-page appendix on existential guilt
(ISBN: 0-89231-201-7 {large format paperback—8.5 X 11 inches})
(ISBN: 0-89231-200-9 {small format paperback—8.5 X 5.5 inches})
(Library of Congress call number: BS2665.2.P37 1991)

    Our Existential Predicament is not an invention of the 20^th century,
altho existential philosophy and psychology
of the 19^th and  20^th centuries have brought
our Existential Predicament or Spiritual Malaise into new focus.
The earliest recorded awareness of our Spiritual Dilemma
is to be found in the letters of Paul,
written 2000 years ago and collected in the New Testament.

    James Park gives a careful analysis of Paul's most important letter
—Romans—searching for the existential meanings
often hidden in the language and images Paul uses,
and which have become so familiar at least to Christians
that they have lost most of their original meanings.

    Paul's basic message is that we are caught in a Predicament
from which we cannot release ourselves.
But emancipation from our Spiritual Dilemma or Spiritual Malaise
is possible as a gift—if we discover how to re-orient ourselves.

    'Sin' and 'death' are two of the most important
perspectives Paul uses to view our inner Predicament.
In this interpretation 'sin' does not mean misbehaving;
rather, Paul points to a sense of guilt much deeper than behavior
—an existential or spiritual guilt, which is independent of morality.

    Likewise, when Paul speaks of 'death',
he is not referring merely to a biological process that ends life.
Rather he is pointing toward what modern philosophers
have described as being-towards-death or ontological anxiety.

    Some other powerful Christian concepts
are given a similar existential interpretation:
grace, expiation-sacrifice, justification, redemption,
forgiveness, baptism, new self, adoption, grafting-in.

    Describing how we re-orient ourselves
to move from our Spiritual Malaise to Spiritual Freedom
is one of the most difficult tasks of the Christian thinker.
Paul used every image and metaphor that came into his head.
Romans: An Existential Interpretation
(the short title for the second edition)
makes the transformation described by Paul in the first century
intelligible for the careful reader of the 21st century.
An Existential Interpretation of Paul's Letter to the Romans
follows the approach of existential theologian and Biblical scholar,
Rudolf Bultmann, who attempted to uncover the personal,
existential meanings of New Testament mythology.

    This is perhaps the only book of "demythologizing"
that explores the text line-by-line, myth-by-myth, image-by-image,
attempting to make Paul's thought intelligible for our time.
It shows how Paul—thinking as a first-century person—
was already aware of what we now call our Existential Predicament.
In fact, the chapter on existential guilt from
Our Existential Predicament is included as an appendix.

    Three items from this book on Romans
are available on this home page: The Table of Contents,
the copyright page for the possible third edition,
and one page from Chapter 5. Click this title:
Romans Demythologized: An Existential Interpretation.
This is the likely title for the third edition, if there is one.

    Many readers find Kierkegaard's writings extremely difficult,
but a careful reading of the following works,
perhaps together with some books about Kierkegaard
will be richly rewarding
for the seeker on the path of existential spirituality.

translated by Alastair Hannay
(London, UK: Penguin Books, 1985)
(ISBN: 0-14-044449-1; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: BR100.K52 1985)

    The title of this book comes from Paul:
"You must work out your own salvation in fear and trembling."
Kierkegaard selects Abraham as his paradigm of faith.
This is an interesting choice, since Abraham was not a Christian,
having lived thousands of years
before the emergence of Christian faith.
Fear and Trembling is a book of "indirect communication",
rich with obscurities and ambiguities.
Perhaps, it can only be understood
by persons who already know Grace from the inside.
Most readers will spin their wheels in intellectual puzzlement,
getting lost in the concepts Kierkegaard uses
for his indirect communication.

    Kierkegaard's philosophy of religion describes
three levels of existence:
(1) the esthetic—the life of immediate enjoyment;
(2) the ethical—the life of duty and responsibility; &
(3) the religious—living within Grace or Existential Freedom.
Fear and Trembling focuses on the process of making the leap
from the ethical existence to the religious orientation.
Abraham becomes the father of faith by being willing to sacrifice
his only son, Isaac—in whom all his hopes and dreams reside.
Abraham is a knight of faith because he believes God will restore
Isaac—in some way that Abraham cannot foresee.

    Writing as his pseudonym Johannes de silentio—John the silent—
Kierkegaard asks "Who can understand Abraham?"
We might ask "Who can understand Kierkegaard?"
Søren Kierkegaard has written a book so full of difficulties
that most readers miss the basic meaning
—as is illustrated by most academic discussion
of Fear and Trembling.

    But those who already have the faith of Abraham will understand.
People still living on the esthetic level of existence
will only understand Abraham's desire to keep his son alive.
People living on the ethical level will understand
that Abraham has an ethical duty to protect his son—not kill him.
But faith goes far beyond both
immediate desires and the demands of ethics.
Living in Grace provides a completely new basis for making decisions.

    The tragic hero gives up something he loves to serve some higher,
universal principle, such as the good of the whole community.
He is torn between two desires,
but all observers can understand his sacrifice.
The tragic hero still resides on the ethical level.

    In contrast, the knight of faith gives up what all can understand
—love and duty toward a child—for reasons no one can understand.
Abraham's inwardness cannot be made intelligible to others.
Grace or Existential Freedom can only be understood from the inside.
Only those who follow in the footsteps of Abraham
might eventually understand his complete re-orientation of being.

Original Danish edition, 1849
Translated with an introduction and notes by Alastair Hannay
(London: UK: Penguin Books, 1989)       179 pages
(ISBN 0-14-044533-1; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: BT715.K5313 1989)

    This reviewer prefers this translation of The Sickness Unto Death,
not because it is necessarily the most accurate translation.
That designation perhaps belongs to Howard & Edna Hong,
The Sickness Unto Death
Kierkegaard's Writings, XIX, 201 pages
(Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1980) (ISBN: 0691072477).
But I find the Hannay translation easiest to read in English.
I need not say much here about this book
because one chapter of my own book on
Our Existential Predicament (see below)
is an interpretation of this book by Kierkegaard.
If you would like to see the first page of this chapter,
click the following title:
"Existential Splitting: Søren Kierkegaard's Sickness Unto Death"
The particular form of our Existential Malaise
dealt with in this book I call "existential splitting".
It could also be called "existential fragmentation".
Altho this is another very difficult book by SK,
it was one of the first to peer deeply into our Existential Dilemma.
It is a product of SK's mature thinking,
and therefore it should be read
by any serious student of existential spirituality.

Kierkegaard's Writings, VIII
Edited and Translated with Introduction and Notes
by Reidar Thomte in collaboration with Albert B. Anderson
(Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1980)
(ISBN: 0691072442)
(Library of Congress call number: BT720.K52 1980)
(first published in Denmark, 1844)
This is a careful, scholarly edition of the book previously
translated (by Walter Lowrie) as The Concept of Dread.

    Kierkegaard presents what is probably
the first philosophical analysis of existential anxiety.
Angst became one of the buzz words of the 20^th century,
but here we have a careful discussion
of what existential anxiety feels like from the inside.
Anxiety also appears in a number of other books by Kierkegaard.

    Several quotes from The Concept of Anxiety
appear in "Existential Anxiety: Angst"
which is Chapter 6 of Our Existential Predicament.

     Søren Kierkegaard here deals with the relationship between
angst and existential guilt, traditionally called "original sin",
—a sense of 'guilt' that is not related to moral misbehavior.
The thought is profound, but Kierkegaard has not worked out
the phenomenon of existential anxiety
as carefully as Martin Heidegger would do it in the 20^th century.

     Since Kierkegaard draws heavily upon Christian theology
(the sub-title should have "doctrinal" rather than "dogmatic"),
this book might be somewhat difficult for the general public
—but not for people familiar with Christian philosophy.
The Concept of Anxiety is one of Kierkegaard's central books.
Other existential writers have created better formulations of angst,
but it all began here—and it will continue into the future.

Kierkegaard's Writings, XII
(Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1992)
(ISBN: 10691073953; hardback)
(ISBN: 10691020817; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: B4373.A472E5 1992)
Earlier translations also available.

    This is a large and difficult book by Søren Kierkegaard.
But it is the place where he most completely explores
the idea of subjectivity
and makes the extraordinary claim that "truth is subjectivity".
This means that the way we appropriate a 'truth'
matters more than the objective content of that 'truth'.
For example, SK says that it is better
to worship a false god truly
than the true God falsely,
which is what was happening in 19^th century Danish Christianity
in Kierkegaard's view.
The passion of faith is more important than doctrinal correctness.

    Kierkegaard is the champion of subjectivity
in reaction against all attempts to 'prove' Christian faith objectively.
There can be no philosophical system or method that leads to Grace.
In the final analysis, very little factual knowledge about Jesus
is required for us to move
from our Existential Malaise to Existential Freedom.

    This is the longest of Kierkegaard's books,
but it is rich with inward spirituality for the careful reader.

A couple of good translations are available, including:
Upbuilding Discourses in Various Spirits
Kierkegaard's Writings, XV
Translated by Howard & Edna Hong.
(Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1993)       442 pages
(ISBN: 0-691-03274-2; hardback)
(Library of Congress call number: BV4505.K4613 1993)
Purity of Heart is the first of these discourses.

Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing
Translated by Douglas Steere
(New York: Harper & Row, 1956—and later reprints)       220 pages
(ISBN: 0061300047)

    In this meditative book,
SK explores how we might become more single-minded.
This is the first book to present the concept now called Authenticity.
In fact, the Kierkegaard chapter in
Becoming More Authentic: The Positive Side of Existentialism
is largely an interpretation of this small book by SK.
The outline of that chapter will appear on your screen
as a part of the 2-page outline of the whole book.
Simply click the book title above.

Kierkegaard's Writings, X
Translated by Howard & Edna Hong
(Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1993)
(ISBN: 0-691-03300-5)
(Library of Congress call number: BV4505.K48413 1993)

  "At a Graveside" (the third of these discourses)
is perhaps the most profound of these essays.
It explores death as inwardly appropriated.
In a way, it may be the earliest presentation
of being-towards-death or ontological anxiety.
For a 21st century presentation of this concept,
click the following title:
"An Existential Understanding of Death:
A Phenomenology of Ontological Anxiety".

Edited by Howard & Edna Hong
(Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 2000)        524 pages
(ISBN: 0-691-03309-9; hardcover)
(ISBN: 0-691-01940-1; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: B4372.E5 2000)

    After they completed the huge project of translating into English
and publishing all of Søren Kiekegaard's writings,
Howard & Edna chose (with the advice of other Kierkegaard scholars)
the selections that make up this collection of the best of Kierkegaard.

    The selections are presented in historical order,
offering something from every kind of writing Kierkegaard ever did.
All the translations into English are the same as used for
the standard collection of SK's works, called Kierkegaard's Writings,
which was also edited by the Hongs.

    This one-volume anthology of Kierkegaard's writings
will introduce many future generations to the thought of the great Dane.

    Before I read this collection, I had read the complete works of SK.
So I was quite familiar with everything contained in this volume.
Nevertheless, it was a good experience to read it thru again,
to see just how well the life-work of one genius or near-genius
could be compressed into one volume.

    James Park has given an explicit, modern formulation of existential spirituality.
The following four books approach the human spirit in different ways.

(Minneapolis, MN: www.existentialbooks.com, 1995)
(ISBN: 0-89231-022-7 {large format: 8.5 X 11})
(ISBN: 0-89231-021-9 {small format: 5.5 X 8.5})
(Library of Congress call number: B778.P37 1995)

    This book has the virtue of being very short—just 24 pages;
and yet it introduces all the basic concepts of existential spirituality.
The 6 capacities of our human spirits are:

(1) self-transcendence, self-criticism, & altruism;
(2) freedom;
(3) creativity;
(4) love;
(5) awareness of our Existential Predicament;
(6) glimpses of joy and fulfillment.

(Minneapolis, MN: www.existentialbooks.com, 2007—second edition)
(ISBN: 978-0-89231-919-0; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: BJ1481.P37 2007)

    This book explores the six most frequently trodden paths
toward attempted self-fulfillment:
One chapter is devoted to each of the following:

(1) Money & Possessions;
(2) Achievement;
(3) Marriage;
(4) Children;
(5) Pleasure & Enjoyment; 
(6) Religion.

    However, the possibly-surprising thesis of this book is that
none of these six paths ultimately leads to fulfillment.
We can certainly find relative happiness on each of these paths,
but ultimate fulfillment comes only in a way we do not expect.

    Each chapter, after exploring money, achievement, etc.,
shows how Existential Freedom—release from our Existential Malaise—
is much more fulfilling than anything we could achieve.

    For more information about In Quest of Fulfillment,
click that title.

(Minneapolis, MN: www.existentialbooks.com, 2006—fifth edition)
(ISBN: 978-0-89231-950-3 (paperback 8.5 X 11)      312 pages)
(Library of Congress call number: B819.P37 2006)

    This book offers a comprehensive account of existential spirituality.
Do we feel lonely, depressed, meaningless, anxious, guilty, insecure?
Each of these psychological feelings (which we can understand)
conceals a hidden existential twin,
a much deeper problem that only seems to be psychological.
Each chapter probes thru the psychological problem
to our Existential Malaise: 

(1) Behind interpersonal loneliness,
we will discover existential loneliness. 

(2) Underneath psychological depression,
we will notice existential depression. 

(3) Below incongruity & disharmony,
we will encounter existential absurdity. 

(4) Behind lack of meaning & order,
we will discern existential meaninglessness. 

(5) Under ordinary losses & deprivations,
we will find the existential Void. 

(6) Beneath ordinary fears & worries,
we will perceive existential anxiety. 

(7) Behind ordinary fragmentation,
we will recognize existential splitting. 

(8) Below understandable pangs of conscience,
we will uncover existential guilt. 

(9) Underlying our ordinary fears of death,
we will discover ontological anxiety. 

(10) Behind ordinary disappointments,
we will decipher existential despair. 

(11) And below ordinary insecurity,
we will distinguish existential insecurity.

    The Introduction explains how to develop our spirits
by becoming more sensitive and more subjective.
And the Afterword examines several obstacles to becoming
Existentially Free, which means living beyond our Existential Dilemma.

    The contents of Our Existential Predicament
will appear on your screen, if you click this title.

(Minneapolis, MN: www.existentialbooks.com, 2007—second edition)
(ISBN: 978-0-89231-922-0; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: BT761.2.P37 2007)

    For readers who do not have time to read
Our Existential Predicament:
Loneliness, Depression, Anxiety, & Death,
this much shorter book covers most of the same territory .
Opening to Grace is designed as a study-book
for intelligent readers in spiritual quest.
It is not sectarian
—not an exposition of any particular doctrine of Grace.
Open-minded persons
of all spiritual traditions will appreciate Opening to Grace.

    One chapter is devoted to each of the following:
spiritual loneliness, guilt, depression, meaninglessness,
the spiritual Void, insecurity, despair, & anxiety.
Most chapters are limited to 4 pages, 15-20 minutes of reading.
Each chapter ends with a set of questions for discussion.

Opening to Grace: Transcending Our Spiritual Malaise

Chapter 1   Interpersonal Loneliness & Spiritual Loneliness
        (The complete text of Chapter 1 is available on-line.
        Click the title above.)

Chapter 2   Pangs of Conscience & Spiritual Guilt

Chapter 3   Psychological Depression & Spiritual Depression

Chapter 4   Relative Meaninglessness & Spiritual Meaninglessness

Chapter 5   Filling Our Spiritual Void

Chapter 6   Ordinary Insecurity & Spiritual Insecurity

Chapter 7   Sinking into the River of Despair

Chapter 8   Simple Fear & Spiritual Anxiety

Afterword:   Obstacles to Grace

    For more information about Opening to Grace,
click that title.

    Other seekers on the path of Existential Spirituality
are encouraged to suggest additional books for this bibliography.
Send all suggestions and other comments to James Park:
PARKx032@TC.UMN.EDU