Back in 1960 I had the opportunity to hear Paul Tillich lecture and meet Reinhold Niebuhr. Tillich’s lecture was at Unitarian Church of All Souls. His topic was “Religious Existentialism”, and the place was packed. Tillich began, with a heavy German accent, in this wise: “I want to begin with a very paradoxical statement. There is no such thing as Religious Existentialism because there is ONLY religious existentialism!”. From there speaking without notes he went on to explain that because existentialism raises all the basic questions about the meaning of life and death it cannot avoid being religious in nature.
Tillich spoke with a very heavy accent and with a great deal of energy. He traced back through the thoughts of such thinkers as Nietzsche and Kierkegaard, as well as through the poetry of Rilke and the paintings of Picasso. From what I could tell he was not working from a written manuscript but was speaking extemporaneously as “the spirit moved him”. During the question-and-answer time after the lecture Tillich fielded numerous questions from the audience, filtered through the master of Ceremonies, adeptly and interestingly. He moved around the stage with great energy and verve even though he was in his eighties at the time.
I must say that I really enjoyed seeing Tillich perform – and I think he was for the large part on the money. It’s when he waxes more philosophical that I begin to have questions about his understanding of such notions as truth, meaning, and God that I find myself asking serious questions. I have written a few articles about his thought in religious journals. I think one of them actually helped me get my job at Eckerd College back in the day. In spite of all the stories one hears about his political and personal life, he was certainly a thinker to be dealt with and a delight to witness.
When I was a graduate student in philosophy at the University of Washington, I wrote my Master’s Thesis on the thought of Reinhold Niebuhr and later published a reduced version of it in a major theological journal. So, when I saw that he was going to give a lecture at the little church across the street from Union Theological Seminary I thought it would be a real honor to meet him. There were only about 50 of us gathered in the little church that morning. After the first speaker had finished, we took a short break. But when it was time to resume the Master of Ceremonies seemed to have disappeared.
So, Professor Niebuhr walked up to the podium, and without any formal introduction he said: “My name is Reinhold Niebuhr and I have been asked to speak to you about the given topic, so we might as well begin”. After his talk, the topic of which I do not recall, I waited around for a chance to meet him. Finally, as he was putting on his coat to leave, I addressed him: “Professor Niebuhr, I wrote my Master’s thesis on an aspect of your thought and I wonder if you would read it and tear it up for me.” At the very mention of the words “Tear it up” he quickly brought his finger to his lips and said: “Oh, I would never do that.” After I had blurted out my apology for misspeaking Professor Niebuhr said he would be glad to read my paper.
About a month after I had sent the paper to him Professor Niebuhr sent me a postcard on which he had typed his response to my thoughts. He very kindly said that I had got his view correctly, except for one small matter, which he then briefly explained. His signature was scrawly because he had had a stroke the previous year. Of course, I took his remarks to heart and wrote him a “Thank you” note. What impressed me the most about our brief encounter was the quickness and nature of his reply to my remark about his “tearing up” my thesis. He sort of gasped when he said “Oh, I would never do that.” I shall never forget the sincerity and quickness of his response.