Roe Fremstedal on Søren Kierkegaard

Roe Fremstedal on Søren Kierkegaard

From Athens and Jerusalem (in Education) by Knut Ove Æsøy, Steven Phelps, Kamran Namdar

April 18, 2026 · 1h 8m · Episode 36

About this episode

The episode features Professor Roe Fremstedal discussing Søren Kierkegaard's philosophy, particularly his views on faith and ethics.

In this episode, we talk about the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. We have with us an expert on his philosophy, Professor Roe Fremstedal at NTNU, Norway. He presents his interpretation of Kierkegaard as an ethical thinker. We start from the distinction between knowledge and faith. A central point is that when it comes to faith, we cannot be certain. While when it comes to knowledge, we can have evidence that supports the knowledge. The uncertainty of reason means that humans must choose. We cannot help but relate to faith and questions without evidence. Refusing to relate to faith will also be a choice. In the podcast we discuss that even those who say they do not believe have a belief. And those who are good people, but think they do not believe, actually believe deep down. However, we will not be completely clear in this podcast when it comes to answering life's essential questions, rather there will be a good deal of nuance in Kierkegaard's philosophy and not least clarification of some of the misconceptions about him. Enjoy! For further reading: Roe Fremstedal, Kierkegaard on Self, Ethics, and Religion: Purity or Despair, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2022 And…

People in this episode

Hosts: Knut Ove Æsøy, Steven Phelps, Kamran Namdar

Guest: Roe Fremstedal

Topics covered

  • philosophy
  • faith
  • ethics
  • knowledge
  • uncertainty
  • Kierkegaard

Keywords

  • Søren Kierkegaard
  • faith
  • ethics
  • knowledge
  • philosophy
  • uncertainty
  • Roe Fremstedal

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NTNU, Cambridge University Press

Books & works: Kierkegaard on Self, Ethics, and Religion: Purity or Despair, The Ethical and the Religious

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