Kierkegaard Trumping Trump

“This work is a timely reflection on our polarized political landscape and imperiled democracy. Impeccably researched, Thompson’s book offers a sober assessment of our troubled times, drawing a number of intriguing parallels between our social-political situation and the thought of the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. It is full of fresh insights and perspectives that will be of great interest to readers concerned by the current trajectory of the age.”


—Jon Stewart, Researcher, Institute of Philosophy, Slovak Academy of Sciences





“An unlikely but fruitful pairing; thoroughly researched, convincingly argued! Thompson, asking where God may be discerned to be potently present in our tumultuous situation, incisively critiques Trump’s presidency by digging insightfully into Kierkegaard’s profound probing of human existence. New light is shed on both men. Thompson’s categorical structure and norming values suggest a constructive theological ethic winsomely addressing the challenge of being civil and gracious across the divide. A creative going deeper to go forward.”


—Paul R. Sponheim, Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology, Luther Seminary, St. Paul





“Resources from Meister Eckhart to March Madness inform Curt Thompson’s exceptional call for individual and communal choices to overcome polarization and the disregard for truth and rule of law now endangering American democracy. He argues concretely and convincingly that Kierkegaard’s distinctive analysis of his own era’s moribund conformism can help us ‘resurrect’ democracy and thus ‘trump Trump.’ Thompson’s sophisticated SK primer reminds us how much we can learn from the wisdom of the past.”


—Carol Schersten LaHurd, Distinguished Affiliate Professor at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago





“Trump and Kierkegaard? It may sound like the set up to a joke, but Thompson’s nuanced understanding of Kierkegaard leads the reader to a far more subtle understanding of Trump and ‘Trump-world.’ That, coupled with Thompson’s Kierkegaardian appreciation of divine possibility, makes this a must-read book for all who hope to get past the lamentations and handwringing and on to the hard work of rebuilding and reconstruction in a post-Trump world.”


—Warren G. Frisina, Hofstra University