Judge for Yourselves!

For the 1953–1954 NBC television series starring Fred Allen, see Judge for Yourself.

Judge for Yourselves! (subtitle: For Self-Examination, Recommended to the Present Age, Second Series) is a work by Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. It was written as part of Kierkegaard's second authorship and published posthumously in 1876. This work is a continuation of For Self-Examination. This work continues a critique of Christendom, Christianity as a social and political entity, and its cultural accommodation. Kierkegaard discusses Bishop Jakob Mynster as a representative of Christendom and one of the main reasons Judge for Yourselves! was not published in Kierkegaard's lifetime was of his personal respect for Mynster.^[1]

Imitation, the imitation of Christ, is really the point from which the human race shrinks. The main difficulty lies here; here is where it is decided whether or not one is willing to accept Christianity. If there is emphasis on this point, the stronger the emphasis the fewer the Christians. If there is a scaling down at this point (so that Christianity becomes, intellectually, a doctrine) more people enter into Christianity. If it is abolished completely (so Christianity becomes, existentially, as easy as mythology and poetry and imitation an exaggeration, a ludicrous exaggeration), then Christianity spreads to such a degree that Christendom and the world are almost indistinguishable, or all become Christians; Christianity has completely conquered – that is, it is abolished!
— Søren Kierkegaard, Judge for Yourselves! in Essential Kierkegaard, p. 406

Notes

↑ Hong, Howard V. & Edna H. The Essential Kierkegaard. Princeton University Press, 2000.

Søren Kierkegaard

1841–1846	On the Concept of Irony with Continual Reference to Socrates Either/Or De omnibus dubitandum est: Everything Must Be Doubted Two Upbuilding Discourses, 1843 Repetition Three Upbuilding Discourses, 1843 Fear and Trembling Four Upbuilding Discourses, 1843 Sermon Preached at Trinity Church, 1844 Two Upbuilding Discourses, 1844 Three Upbuilding Discourses, 1844 Philosophical Fragments Prefaces The Concept of Anxiety Four Upbuilding Discourses, 1844 Eighteen Upbuilding Discourses Three Discourses on Imagined Occasions Stages on Life's Way Concluding Unscientific Postscript to Philosophical Fragments Two Ages: A Literary Review

1847–1854	Edifying Discourses in Diverse Spirits Works of Love Christian Discourses The Crisis and a Crisis in the Life of an Actress The Lily of the Field and the Bird of the Air Two Minor Ethical-Religious Essays The Sickness Unto Death Three Discourses at the Communion on Fridays Practice in Christianity Two Discourses at the Communion on Fridays The Book on Adler For Self-Examination Attack Upon Christendom

Posthumous	The Point of View of My Work as an Author Judge for Yourselves! The Journals Writing Sampler

Ideas	Philosophy Theology Angst Anguish Authenticity Double-mindedness Indirect communication Infinite qualitative distinction Knight of faith Leap of faith Levelling Present age Ressentiment Rotation method Thorn in the flesh Despair

Related topics	Works about Kierkegaard Regine Olsen Peter Kierkegaard Hans Lassen Martensen Jacob Peter Mynster J. L. Heiberg Thomasine Christine Gyllembourg-Ehrensvärd Adolph Peter Adler Influence and reception of Søren Kierkegaard Danish Golden Age Søren Kierkegaard Research Center Howard V. and Edna H. Hong Kierkegaard Library Prayers of Kierkegaard