X. The liberality of philosophy

774 Herr Gruppe and all who resemble him have not yet been able to see from the previous literature of critique what is actually now going on in the world: a few words will perhaps tell them better. Listen therefore!

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775 "It is a folly, says Herr Gruppe p. 98, to want to put a philosophy in the place of a religion; but it is also an impotence. He who wants to overthrow a religion would have to bring a religion again."

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776 Listen therefore!

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777 You think that he who dissolves a limit must set a limit again? He who atones for a crime must immediately commit one again? If I abolish the lie of theology, must I immediately provide for new lies? If I unmask the hypocrisy of the theologians, must I invent a new mask?

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778 That would already be false if it were a question of a limit in general, of an illusion in general, although it indeed usually makes itself of itself so, that he who fights only against a particular limit, if he has conquered, will settle down and rest at a further one.

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779 It is not a question of a particular limit, not of a particular illusion, but of the limit, of illusion as such.

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780 Not one religion, not a particular religion is now recognised and dissolved through knowledge, but religion.

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781 Religion — do you hear? — religion as such is overthrown by critique.

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782 And in its place: what do we put? Herr Gruppe thinks we do not know it or it is something only future — a page before he said we wanted to put a philosophy in the place of religion —.

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783 And in its place: what do we put? Herr Gruppe thinks we do not know it or it is something only future — a page before he said we wanted to put a philosophy in the place of religion —.

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784 No, Herr Gruppe! neither a philosophy, nor philosophy.

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785 So we do not know! "It is foolish, must Herr Gruppe p. 99 call to us, first to make room for what is to come, it is doubly foolish, afterwards not to know what this is." We poor ones! "If you have something, give it!" calls Herr Gruppe to us very challengingly. No! Herr Gruppe, to you and your like we give nothing, take nothing, you have nothing and want to have nothing. You would very much thank yourselves for it if we wanted to offer you what we have to give.

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786 Also Marheineke forgets that we want to make the philosophers everything in everything, also he says: "If one asks them however (p. 39), what they then and whether they in general think to put something in the place of Christianity, then one has — (we leave out the following wordplay) — all reason to expect that they have nothing to bring forward but a blank page for the history of religion."

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787 Also Marheineke forgets that we want to make the philosophers everything in everything, also he says: "If one asks them however (p. 39), what they then and whether they in general think to put something in the place of Christianity, then one has — (we leave out the following wordplay) — all reason to expect that they have nothing to bring forward but a blank page for the history of religion."

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788 No! on this page, on which we erase religion, on this doubly written page, on this palimpsest, when religion is dissolved, the original writing reappears, which is of classical value. Monks have spoiled the original writing through their scribbling, we restore it and man stands on the page which we bring forward to world history.

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789 Is that nothing, to make man into man? To give man back to himself? Is that nothing, to free man from the fetters which have hitherto hindered him from being wholly man? That would be nothing, to put freedom in the place of servitude, perfection in the place of imperfection, fullness in the place of lack, health in the place of sickness?

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790 Is man nothing to you? No something? Indeed he is nothing to you, because you have only regarded him with the irritated, bloodthirsty or only heaven-directed eye of religion, thus in the ground not yet at all. He is nothing to you — but he shall precisely become something, he shall become everything.

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791 All goods of humanity, state, art and science, which form a whole, a system, and among which none counts as an absolute and exclusive, none may rule exclusively, if it is not again to become an evil, all these goods shall finally, after they have hitherto been combated by religion on life and death, i.e., were always to be ruled by the expression of their imperfection, become free and develop freely.

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792 All goods of humanity, state, art and science, which form a whole, a system, and among which none counts as an absolute and exclusive, none may rule exclusively, if it is not again to become an evil, all these goods shall finally, after they have hitherto been combated by religion on life and death, i.e., were always to be ruled by the expression of their imperfection, become free and develop freely.

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793 Humanity no longer wants anything exclusive, therefore it can no longer want religion, which has hitherto hindered it from being everything that is its determination, as a general, ruling affair. It does not therefore exclude religion as religion must exclude art and science, wanting to eradicate it root and branch, but it recognises it and lets it stand as what it is, as a need of weakness, as a punishment of indefiniteness, as a consequence of lack of courage — as a private affair.

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794 Art, state and science will therefore still have to struggle with the imperfections of their development, but their imperfection shall not be raised to a transcendent being and hinder their progress as the heavenly, religious power. Their imperfections shall be recognised as their own and will as such be easily enough overcome in the progress of history.

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795 In religion man is robbed of himself and his essence, which is stolen from him and transferred to heaven, is made into un-essence, into the inhuman, into inhumanity itself. 204 The liberality of philosophy. Critique is the crisis which breaks the delirium of mankind and lets man recognise himself again.

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796 Marheineke therefore poses the question very falsely when he says the war-cry of the critics is: "Philosophy or Christianity"; he hears very falsely when he hears in their "either-or" the "language of the old dogmatism." Critique knows no more dogmatism; its password is: Humanity or inhumanity, death or life, nothing or everything.

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797 If our opponents knew our password, they would also not set up the strange demand that we should speak quietly, softly, lisp or rather not speak at all, do nothing like them.

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798 "If it is something (what we have to give), says Herr Gruppe, it will stand of itself, also without declamations." (In the end, without our working and fighting.) — "It then also needs no such (!) polemic, no hateful attacks on what is venerable and holy to others" (p. 99). The moment before Herr Gruppe had said: "only the new bud is it which in autumn pushes off the withered leaf."

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799 Fie on the bud which directs its hateful attacks on the withered leaf! Fie on the declamation with which the ripe fruit bursts the husk so that it cracks. The North Americans were babblers and declaimers when they defended the freedom of the people against the aristocracy of the old world under cannon thunder. The French would also have conquered the coalition without declamations, i.e., without battle noise. The slave may not clank with his fetters when he breaks them, i.e., he must remain stuck in them. Only not declaimed, not polemicised, let heaven provide, i.e., remain what you are, slaves!

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800 And how our opponents now first wonder at the speed of the development which the more recent critique has brought about and into which they are naturally drawn themselves — they act as if the world had slept for eighteen centuries, as if there were no eighteenth century, as if German philosophy had not for fifty years rattled at the gate of the future and thundered against it.

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801 "If a movement of thought, says Marheineke p. 44, drives itself so rapidly to its summit and lacks all level-headedness and moderation, then it drives its own refutation at the same time out of itself." Now, that is precisely its glory, that it does not need to wait for the theologians to learn where it still stands weakly. It corrects itself through itself and does not need to trouble a Neander, a Tholuck, a Lange when the shoe pinches it and when at riper age it needs new shoes for its stronger feet.

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802 "If a movement of thought, says Marheineke p. 44, drives itself so rapidly to its summit and lacks all level-headedness and moderation, then it drives its own refutation at the same time out of itself." Now, that is precisely its glory, that it does not need to wait for the theologians to learn where it still stands weakly. It corrects itself through itself and does not need to trouble a Neander, a Tholuck, a Lange when the shoe pinches it and when at riper age it needs new shoes for its stronger feet.

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803 Yes, but it goes yet far too quickly? We have, says Marheineke, Marheineke ibid., a short-breathed life! "As if we held life for the highest of goods and did not gladly sacrifice ourselves for the matter!"

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804 "Even Strauss is past," cries Herr Gruppe (p. 72), "already they have declared Strauss antiquated," cries Marheineke: our care is on the contrary solely and alone that of who is right, who leads us to truth; the person, however, we do not regard.

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805 Today this one and that one rules, cries p. 72 Herr Gruppe, "and tomorrow who?"

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806 Answer: whoever advances further!

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807 "And when comes the deluge?"

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808 Herr Gruppe should know scripture better! The flood comes when they eat and drink, marry and are given in marriage, and do not want to notice the day of the Lord.

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809 "This constant progress makes, however," a known panting follower calls after us, "perfectibility illusory!"

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810 So therefore — see how the follower just stops in to give himself a heart-strengthening, afterwards he will lie down by the way to rest from his mighty work! We wish him well to rest! — So therefore is perfectibility illusory, because it is really posited, because it really goes further, because it has become a truth?

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811 What brave and worthy men they are! Everything should loiter and hesitate, because they do not like to get from the spot. Because they always want to sleep, it should be constantly night. Yes, after a couple of centuries, in a millennium, one of them calls to us, you can penetrate with your principles. He does not hear our answer, since he has already lain down on the other side and at most speaks against us in a dream. Hey there, friend! Wake up! Hear: if our principles are true, then we cannot hurry enough to lead them into life and make them valid. Truth, when it is there, is always there at the right time: the sun has never yet, as long as the world stands, risen during the night, before it should come. Wake up, the sun stands there, it is already very hot, there may be a thunderstorm. Wake up!

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812 Truth, when it is there, is always there at the right time: the sun has never yet, as long as the world stands, risen during the night, before it should come. Wake up, the sun stands there, it is already very hot, there may be a thunderstorm. Wake up!

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813 Marheineke makes it a reproach to us (p. 43) that we "strive after practice." That would be a fine doctor, who has learned something proper, is surrounded by a host of sick and would not strive after practice!

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814 Theory, critique has recognised reality as sick and it should not seize, not strive after practice?

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815 We will still have opportunity to show wherein this practice consists, by finally discussing the question of leaving the church.

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