The Problem of Religion, Christianity, and the Role of Protestantism in the Philosophy of the Early Hegel (1795–1806)

Introduction: Hegel’s Problem(s) of Religion
	Research topics of this dissertation
Chapter I: The Young Hegel and Religion
	1. The Metaphysical–mystical Hegel
	2. What is Religion? Religion in the context of modern philosophy
	3. The motivations of the young Hegel.
	4. Politics and Religion
Chapter II: The problems of the philosophy of religion in the 18th century
	1. The politicization of religion
		2.1 Machiavelli
		2.2 Rousseau
	2. The historicization of religion
	3. Religion and morality
		Kant and Christianity
		God’s role in Kant’s ethics and the importance of Christianity
		The problems of Kantian ethicotheology as a foundation of religion
	4. Summary of Chapter II: Religion as politics, history and morality
Chapter III: “Volksreligion” and Christianity: The young Hegel’s problem of religion in Bern
	1. Subjective and objective religion
	2. The “Spirit of the Greeks” and their religion
		The Greek Ideal
	3. Excursus: The fate of political religions: civil religions in France and America
		A. The French revolution as a realization of antiquity: the religious folk festival and the failure of its rejuvenation
		B. Excursus: Civil Religion in America
	4. The reality of Christianity and the Reformation
	5. The positivity of Christianity
		a.
		b.
	6. Hegel’s view on religion in his last works in Bern
	7. Summary of Chapter III: Towards a more speculative philosophy of religion
Chapter IV: Infinite life—Hegel’s new concept of religion
	1. Vereinigungsphilosophie: the theoretical overcoming of alienated objectivity
	2. Hegel’s idea of unification (Vereinigung) as the theory of subjective–vivid morality
	3. Jewish history and Jesus: the historical basis of alienation
	4. The beginnings of the speculative system
	5. The constitution of Germany: religion as separation and the origin of the modern state
	6. Summary of Chapter IV: Religion as unification
Chapter V: Speculative ‘Good Friday’ and Protestantism: A new philosophy of religion
	1. A new form of “intervention in the life of men”:
		A. From the “subordinate needs” to the system
		B. The need for philosophy
	2. The critique of culture
	3. The system of speculative philosophy: overcoming alienation
	4. The concept of religion: “Assurance without insight”
	5. Religion in Phenomenology: “The depth of the self-certain spirit”
	Summary of Chapter V: Philosophy and religion
Conclusion
Bibliography