'What is Truth?'

by Andrew Shanks

"The Western philosophical tradition and mainstream Christian theology have failed consistently to appreciate poetic truth. However, nineteenth- and twentieth-century philosophy has seen a move towards rejection of this prejudice, pioneered largely by Heidegger and Nietzsche." "In this theological work, Andrew Shanks argues that the rebellion of Heidegger and Nietzsche is also deeply flawed and proposes an alternative strategy for reconciling Christian theology with poetic truth. Heidegger's ideal prophetic poet, Friedrich Holderlin, is rescued from the Heideggerian interpretation through being set alongside his equally prophetic contemporary, William Blake, and also alongside Nelly Sachs, arguably the greatest religious poet of the twentieth century." "'What is Truth?' forges an essentially new form of 'mythic theology', opening up a fresh approach to the deepest nature of poetic truth. In a culture where the status of institutional religion is a decline, there is a pressing need for