Tomáš Halík’s Concept of God as the Depth of Reality

Abstract

The purpose of this article, whose point of reference are selected works of the Czech philosopher and theologian Tomáš Halík, is to critically analyse his concept of God. He distances himself from the idea of the Absolute as a construct of human reason and turns to the concept of God as an ontic foundation of the world. He rejects the concept of the Absolute alienated and separated from the world and embraces the vision of God hidden in the depths of reality and allowing us to experience his proximity in various ways. In the first part of the article, the philosophers’ concept of God, identified with the First Mover of the world and the Supreme Being, is critiqued. In the second part, the vision of God as the foundation and depth of being and the related issues of pantheism, panentheism and the personality of God are outlined. In the third part, attention is given to the fundamental ways of experiencing His presence and proximity, which include the experience of nature and historical events, the experience of the human interior (“deeper self”) and the encounter with another person, especially a wounded and suffering one.