Table Of ContentMiddlesex University Research Repository
An open access repository of
Middlesex University research
http://eprints.mdx.ac.uk
Edwards, Brian (2018) Self-deception at the intersection of Friedrich Nietzsche and the Apostle
Paul. PhD thesis, Middlesex University / Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. [Thesis]
Final accepted version (with author’s formatting)
This version is available at: https://eprints.mdx.ac.uk/23527/
Copyright:
MiddlesexUniversityResearchRepositorymakestheUniversity’sresearchavailableelectronically.
Copyright and moral rights to this work are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners
unlessotherwisestated. Theworkissuppliedontheunderstandingthatanyuseforcommercialgain
is strictly forbidden. A copy may be downloaded for personal, non-commercial, research or study
without prior permission and without charge.
Works, including theses and research projects, may not be reproduced in any format or medium, or
extensive quotations taken from them, or their content changed in any way, without first obtaining
permissioninwritingfromthecopyrightholder(s). Theymaynotbesoldorexploitedcommerciallyin
any format or medium without the prior written permission of the copyright holder(s).
Full bibliographic details must be given when referring to, or quoting from full items including the
author’s name, the title of the work, publication details where relevant (place, publisher, date), pag-
ination, and for theses or dissertations the awarding institution, the degree type awarded, and the
date of the award.
If you believe that any material held in the repository infringes copyright law, please contact the
Repository Team at Middlesex University via the following email address:
[email protected]
The item will be removed from the repository while any claim is being investigated.
See also repository copyright: re-use policy: http://eprints.mdx.ac.uk/policies.html#copy
Self-deceptiAonB SaTt RthAeC ITn tersection of
Friedrich Nietzsche and the Apostle Paul
Brian Andrew Edwards
OCMS, PhD
2017
ABSTRACT
Self-deception is a key component in Friedrich Nietzsche’s concept of ressentiment. It
also plays a significant role in Paul’s notion of the fall. This thesis explores issues of
self-deception in the realm of Nietzsche-Paul discourse. Specifically, Nietzsche’s
explication of self-deception inherent in ressentiment is used to elucidate Paul’s usage
of self-deception in the context of the fall. Nietzsche’s work on ressentiment is set in
historical context to identify circumstances, people, and events that influenced
development of his overall thought. A literature review is also supplied to appreciate the
development of ressentiment. The primary source for Nietzsche’s treatment of
ressentiment are his late works. Analysis of Nietzschean ressentiment is conducted
through them, first by means of a genealogical study of the castes of ressentiment, then
in terms of an examination of the mechanism of ressentiment. This supplies a
knowledge of the fundaments and workings of ressentiment requisite to identify its
crowning feature, self-deception. The resulting platform allows a fresh reading of
Pauline fallenness, specifically concerning the notion of self-deception, in terms of the
internalisation and moralisation of ressentiment. Paul’s Letter to the Romans,
particularly Chapters 1 and 2, is the material for this reading. The correspondence
between select contours of Pauline fallenness and those of Nietzschean ressentiment
validates the hypothesised association, propelling the investigation of self-deception
forward. This brings to light a congruence of self-deception between the Nietzschean
ressentiment-man and the Pauline fallen-man. It also recommends a driving motive for
self-deception, fear of death. Death as a theme for Nietzsche is examined both
biographically and philosophically. Seminal conclusions from the thesis argument are
reviewed, contributions to the existing literature are offered, and significance of the
project for the psychology of religion is discussed.
FRONTISPIECE
The world will be standing on its head for the next few years: since the old God has abdicated,
I shall rule the world from now on.
– Friedrich Nietzsche in a letter to Carl Fuchs, 18 Dec. 1888
These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also.
– Luke the physician on the Apostle Paul and his companions, Acts of the Apostles, 17:6
SELF-DECEPTIOTNI TALTE T PHAEG IEN TERSECTION OF
FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE AND THE APOSTLE PAUL
A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
Middlesex University
Brian Andrew Edwards
Director of Studies: Stephen N. Williams
Second Supervisor: Benno van den Toren
House Tutor: Bernard Farr
October 2017
Oxford Centre for Mission Studies
Middlesex University
DECLARATIONS
DECLARATION 1
This work has not previously been accepted in substance for any degree and is not being
concurrently submitted in candidature for any degree.
Signed
Date 1 October 2017
DECLARATION 2
This thesis is the result of my own investigations, except where otherwise stated. Other
sources are acknowledged by inline citations, footnotes, or explicit references. A
bibliography of all works mentioned is appended.
Signed
Date 1 October 2017
DECLARATION 3
I hereby give consent for my thesis, if approved, to be available for photocopying by the
British Library and for Inter-library Loan, for open access to the Electronic Thesis
Online Service (EthoS) linked to the British Library, and for the title and summary to be
made available to outside organisations.
Signed
Date 1 October 2017
Brian Andrew Edwards
Copyright © 2017
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Friedrich Nietzsche and the Apostle Paul were both big on the body. Just as a body is
comprised of parts, so this thesis is a work of many. My Director of Studies, Stephen
Williams, illuminated my project in terms of substance and style. Were I to record all
his suggestions and directions in footnotes, they would rival the word count of the body
of my thesis. Regardless of how juvenile my questions may have come across, his
typical response was seasoned with grace. I am privileged to have sat in his shadow. My
debt extends also to the entire faculty of the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies who
laboured to make the lonely enterprise of doctoral research a collegial one. The greater
amongst equals for my sake was Ben Knighton. In the face of innumerable enquiries
pertaining to both content and form of my thesis, he manifested the patience of Job and
the wisdom of Solomon. To thank him once again is still to be in deficit. I must also
thank our librarian, Ralph Bates. He seemed to know quite a bit about everything, and
when he did not, he knew where to direct me. I am grateful that the breadth of his ken
was matched by the wideness of his open-door policy.
There are others whose support was more atmospheric but no less vital. I met Don
Apley twenty years ago. The first words I remember him uttering were, ‘I stand ready to
serve’, and I have never known him to abandon his post. I am grateful for his ad hoc
service to me on my thesis journey. Warren and Betty Wiersbe also walked with me the
entire way of this project, support me in more ways than I can count, all of which
accrued to tremendous encouragement to keep on keeping on. Roger Trigg began as a
technical consultant of sorts, and while he remained ever-ready to answer thesis-related
questions, he gradually took on the role of thesis-mentor. The same can be said of Stuart
Judge, whose words of encouragement were timelier than he knows, and whose help has
been eminently practical. I am blessed to call him a friend. Four other friends whom I
call brothers have also marked my thesis journey. Eric Howard’s own trials along the
thesis trail resulted both emotional and material support. Matthew Schultz lent his tech
expertise to resolve glitches in my Microsoft document, as did Mark Graham, whose
agile and analytical mind were also indispensable in helping resolve defects in my
argument. Tom Reed’s above-and-beyond assistance in revising also helped improve
major aspects of the project.
Mistakes tend to mount as words multiply, and my manuscript is a myriad of
words. To mitigate rudimentary errors, a platoon of proof readers rallied to my aid. I
i
Description:fabricated by a lie' and full of upside down1 thinking, values, and truth (A 10) But Enlightenment values had seeped into the movement, altering it ever so slightly on the surface, but fundamentally relativising it. The naïve faith of previous generations was being 2001 Nietzsche S Mandel trans.
