Who said: "The thing that cowardice fears most is decision"

"The thing that cowardice fears most is decision." - Søren Kierkegaard

Danish philosopher, theologian and cultural critic Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was born in Copenhagen in 1813. He was a strong critic of the Church of Denmark and Hegelianism. Hegelianism is the school of thought based on the philosophy of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) which can be summed up as "the rational alone is real"; whereas Kierkegaard posited what has become known as the "leap of faith" – arguing that faith is not a decision based on evidence alone. However, Kierkegaard did not believe in blind faith, instead he argued that faith was intrinsically linked with doubt. His argument goes something like this – to truly have faith in God, one would also have to doubt one's beliefs about God – as doubt is the rational thought process, without which the faith would have no real substance. To quote Kierkegaard, "doubt is conquered by faith, just as it is faith which has brought doubt into the world."

Some argue that Kierkegaard is both the father of existentialism and of modern psychology. He wrote voluminously during his short lifetime, dying at the age of 42

More quotes from Kierkegaard

• Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays
• The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins
• Face the facts of being what you are, for that is what changes what you are
• It is so hard to believe because it is so hard to obey
• Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards
• Love is all, it gives all, and it takes all
• Once you label me you negate me
• Our life always expresses the result of our dominant thoughts
• Patience is necessary, and one cannot reap immediately where one has sown

More Quotes

This quote & biography originally ran in an issue of BookBrowse's membership magazine. Full Membership Features & Benefits.