Choose 1 of the following:

1. Compare and contrast the ways in which Freud and Buber construct the real in their
approaches to God. Consider the critical importance of Freuds term illusion and
Bubers I-It/I-Thou dyad in delineating particular criteria for the real and its other
(the not-real or the not-as-real).
2. Discuss the ethical impulse informing the definitions of the sacred (as religion or as
God/Spirit) in Freud, Buber, and Berger. Consider their assumptions about human nature
and human evolution, and whether or not they espouse hope for the future of humanity.
Choose 1 of the following:
3. Use Bergers understanding of world-construction as dialectic to discuss how
suffering is made meaningful in early Christian martyrdom. You must engage (but are
not limited to) the following primary sources: Ignatius, Polycarp, Tertullian, and Origen.
4. Employing approaches to gender found in Castelli, Shaw and Perkins, discuss how the
femininity and/or masculinity of the martyr conveys meaning. You must engage (but are
not limited to) both the Passion of Perpetua & Felicity and the Martyrs of Lyons.

Quotes:
Origen- An Exhortation to Martyrdom
I pray that our souls may never be disquieted and even more that in the presence of the
tribunals and of the naked swords drawn against our necks they may be guarded by the
peace of God, which passes all understanding, and may be quieted when they consider
that those who are foreigners from the body are at home with the Lord (43)
And I think that God is loved with the whole soul by those who through their great
longing for fellowship with God draw their soul away and separate it not only from their
earthly body but from every corporeal thing.
Buber- I and Thou
The encounter with God does not come to man in order that he many henceforth attend
to God, but in order that he may prove its meaning in action in the world.
Extended, the lines of relationship intersect in the eternal You (123)
How foolish and hopeless must one be to leave ones way of life to seek God: even if
one gained all the wisdom of solitude and all the power of concentration, one would miss
him.

Buber, Martin (2011-05-17). I and Thou, Trans. Kaufmann (p. 128). . Kindle Edition.
It is a finding without seeking; a discovery of what is most original and the origin. The
Buber, Martin (2011-05-17). I and Thou, Trans. Kaufmann (p. 128). . Kindle Edition.
Wishing to understand the pure relationship as dependence means wishing to deactualize
one partner of the relationship and thus the relationship itself. (131). In this quote, Buber
is saying that God needs us just as we need God

On a fundamental level, Buber is saying that in order to find meaning in the world and
cure the ailments of modern man, we must cease our obsession with the It and focus on
the Thou.
To bring religion into his argument, he begins focusing on the Eternal Thou, which is
God. As humans on earth, we cannot directly experience God whenever we wish; instead,
we feel and connect with God through our human encounters. The feeling of wanting
more after a human interaction is our impatience waiting for the ultimate encounter with
Godone that will be exclusively I-Thou and not I-it.
After readying ourselves for the encounter with God,
Real is the way it obscures the psychic condition
Our wish for it is real, but that is fake and it obscures our view we are blinded by the
wish that religion
The only thing real about religion is our genetic precondition that makes us want to rely
on religion as a crutch
With Buber the real
Both talking about science with imagery of infants.
Illusion- we think that what we are doing is real, but this just further impedes us from the
truth.
Looking at the movement of humanity very differentlyreligion is in the way of
evolving for Freud, but is crucially important for Buber

For Freud, belief in God keeps humans from seeing the real, Gets in the way of humanity
being able to attain being most valuable or must real where for Buber it is only belief in
God that gives one access to the real experiences that touches God
Buber would consider Freuds science as I-it
For Freud, the very thing that Buber thinks can access reality is an illusion
For Buber the very thing that Freud thinks can access reality is ever partial
What is most precious to one is the opposite to the other, symmetry in the comparison
For Buber- gods act of creation was entering a relationship with us
The existence of God as the eternal thou makes possible these types of relationships with
humans
Hes an insider when Freud is an outsider
God is the only thing that makes escaping the I-it possible
Vision of an eternal thou is his way to criticize society

SPirtuality not really religion

Interested in idea that God could be encountered anywhere
Religion = Human institution that points us to god as eternal thou
Religion is the vehicle to arrive at the I-thou more easily, help us to
prepare us and respond to the Thou wherever it happens
I thou isnt confined to religion, but can help us be prepared to answer
it
Religion has potential to take us somewhere real, for Buber for Freud
its a roadbloack.
Readying ourselves to meet God is mans decisive moment
we must actively be ready for the divine while still passively
waiting to be met. When entering into this relationship with

God, it is the fully satisfying experience that we have formerly

caught glimpses of through I-Thou moments in everyday life.
Buber is not claiming to confirm the existence of the encounter
that he references as the ultimate I-Thou moment, however. He
is just hypothesizing what he imagines it would be like, so how
real this system of beliefs is entirely unconfirmed. His
argument hinges on an extension of an experience we all feel
everyday, and to Buber, this has to mean that there is the
absolute, pure version of this same experience that is waiting
for those who actively pursue it.
Bubers views of God are extremely abstract, he never
attempts to describe God in any way and believes that are
modes of communication (writing, language) are insufficient to
discuss the higher power.
During the encounter with God, what makes us ourselves is not
lost or diluted; we maintain the aforementioned soul, only
losing our focus on self-affirmation.