A New Look on Franz Rosenzweig’s Account of Revelation in The Star of Redemption

In the section ‘Language of Eros’ in Book II of Part II of THE STAR OF REDEMPTION, Franz Rosenzweig offers a beautiful account of revelation between God and the soul as love and dialogue. For some reason, as part of the developments that unfold in this moment of pure presentness, Rosenzweig includes a stage in which the soul acknowledges and confesses for both its past and still present sinfulness – ‘I have sinned’ and ‘I am sinner.’ Why is the discovery of sin part of the event of revelation? Why is confession part of the event of revelation? And why does Rosenzweig insist that the soul is still a sinner at the very moment in which its sins are absolved and it is overtaken by divine love?
In this paper I suggest that Rosenzweig’s account of revelation should be read in light of developments in nineteenth century and twentieth century German Protestant theology. More specifically, I argue that it reflects the refocusing of religious thought on justification and forgiveness of sin and the increasing emphasis on the experience of revelation that took place as part of a general effort to ‘complete the reformation’ under the conditions of modernity through a repeated appeal to Martin Luther and his ‘authentic’ teachings. Ultimately, I suggest that Rosenzweig’s account of revelation is not only an account of divine self-disclosure to the human but also an event of justification of the sinner in the face of God, modelled according to the directives of Luther’s doctrine of SIMUL JUSTUS ET PECCATOR [at once a sinner and justified].