Life in process: exploring the duality between life and death in the reflections of Paul Tillich

Abstract

This article seeks, through Paul Tillich's reflections, to explore the concepts of "process" and "life". Both living and inanimate beings are equally subject to "processes", but in the context of death, "life" carries with it its own negation. The emphatic use of the term "life" aims to express the overcoming of this negation - as evidenced in expressions such as "life reborn" or "eternal life". It may not be an exaggeration to say that the words that designate life emerged from the experience of death. In any case, the duality between life and death has always influenced the meaning of the word "life". This polar concept of life implies the use of the term to identify a particular group of existing entities, that is, "living beings". "Living beings" are also "beings that are dying" and exhibit singular characteristics under the influence of the organic dimension. The objective of this text is to investigate how the generic concept of life serves as a basis for the formation of the ontological concept of life. The observation of a certain potential of beings, whether of a species or of individuals, is realized in time and in the essence of the being. For this analysis, we will use works by the German philosopher and theologian, as well as other authors who have enriched the debate on the subject.