Panel: CHRISTIAN ATHEISM / ATHEISTIC CHRISTIANITY: GENEALOGIES, PARADOXES, AND CONTEMPORARY RECONFIGURATIONS



276.2 - "THE ABSENCE OF GOD RESEMBLES GOD" - BATAILLE'S ATHEOLOGY MEETS MUSIL'S LAY THEOLOGY

AUTHORS:
Boelderl A. (University of Klagenfurt, Robert-Musil-Institut für Literaturforschung ~ Klagenfurt ~ Austria)
Text:
This paper brings Georges Bataille's atheology into dialogue with Robert Musil's notion of a "lay theology." Starting from the paradoxical claim that the absence of God can itself resemble God, it explores how both authors rethink transcendence without recourse to traditional theism. While Bataille radicalizes the divine absence into an experience of excess, negativity, and transgression, Musil develops a non-dogmatic, experiential approach to theological questions within a secular horizon. The paper argues that their encounter illuminates a distinctive form of post-theistic reflection situated between literature, philosophy, and theology.