Hans Jonas (; ; 10 May 1903 – 5 February 1993) was a German-born American philosopher. From 1955 to 1976 he was the Alvin Johnson Professor of Philosophy at the

New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR), previously known as The University in Exile and The New School University, is a graduate-level educational division of The New School in New York City, United States. NSSR enrolls more than 1,000 stud ...

in New York City.

Biography

Jonas was born in

Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach (, ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in North Rhine-Westphalia, western Germany, west of the Rhine, halfway between Düsseldorf and the Netherlands, Dutch border. Geography Municipal subdivisions Since 2009, th ...

, on 10 May 1903 to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family. He studied

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

at the

University of Freiburg The University of Freiburg (colloquially ), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (), is a public university, public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The university was founded in 1 ...

, the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

and the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

, and finally earned his Doctorate of Philosophy in 1928 from the

University of Marburg The Philipps University of Marburg () is a public research university located in Marburg, Germany. It was founded in 1527 by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, which makes it one of Germany's oldest universities and the oldest still operating Prote ...

H. Jonas, "''Wissenschaft'' as Personal Experience," ''The Hastings Center report'' 32:4 (Jul–Aug 2002), 30. with a thesis on

Gnosticism Gnosticism (from Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek: , Romanization of Ancient Greek, romanized: ''gnōstikós'', Koine Greek: Help:IPA/Greek, �nostiˈkos 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems that coalesced ...

entitled ''Der Begriff der Gnosis'' (''The Concept of

Gnosis Gnosis is the common Greek noun for knowledge ( γνῶσις, ''gnōsis'', f.). The term was used among various Hellenistic religions and philosophies in the Greco-Roman world. It is best known for its implication within Gnosticism, where ...

'') and directed by

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; 26 September 1889 – 26 May 1976) was a German philosopher known for contributions to Phenomenology (philosophy), phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. His work covers a range of topics including metaphysics, art ...

. During his study years his academic advisors included

Edmund Husserl Edmund Gustav Albrecht Husserl (; 8 April 1859 – 27 April 1938) was an Austrian-German philosopher and mathematician who established the school of Phenomenology (philosophy), phenomenology. In his early work, he elaborated critiques of histori ...

and

Rudolf Bultmann Rudolf Karl Bultmann (; ; 20 August 1884 – 30 July 1976) was a German Lutheran theologian and professor of the New Testament at the University of Marburg. He was one of the major figures of early 20th-century biblical studies. A prominent c ...

. In Marburg he met

Hannah Arendt Hannah Arendt (born Johanna Arendt; 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German and American historian and philosopher. She was one of the most influential political theory, political theorists of the twentieth century. Her work ...

, who was also pursuing her PhD there, and the two of them were to remain friends for the rest of their lives. When Heidegger joined the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

in 1933, it may have disturbed Jonas, as he was Jewish and an active

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

. In 1964 Jonas repudiated his mentor Heidegger for his affiliation with the Nazis. He left Germany for England in 1933, and from England he moved to Palestine in 1934. There he met Lore Weiner, to whom he became betrothed. In 1940 he returned to Europe to join the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

which had been arranging a special brigade for

German Jews The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321 CE, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (c. 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish commu ...

wanting to fight against

Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

. He was sent to Italy, and in the last phase of the war moved into Germany. Thus, he kept his promise that he would return only as a soldier in the victorious army. In this time he wrote several letters to Lore about philosophy, in particular

philosophy of biology The philosophy of biology is a subfield of philosophy of science, which deals with epistemology, epistemological, metaphysics, metaphysical, and ethics, ethical issues in the biological and biomedical sciences. Although philosophers of science and ...

, that would form the basis of his later publications on the subject. They finally married in 1943. Immediately after the war he returned to Mönchengladbach to search for his mother but found that she had been sent to the gas chambers in the

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

. Having heard this, he refused to live in Germany again. He returned to Palestine and took part in the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...

. Jonas taught briefly at the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

before moving to North America. In 1950 he left for Canada, teaching at

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...

. From there he moved in 1955 to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where he was to live for the rest of his life. He was a fellow of the Hastings Center and Professor of Philosophy at

from 1955 to 1976 (where he was Alvin Johnson Professor). From 1982 to 1983 Jonas held the

Eric Voegelin Eric Voegelin (born Erich Hermann Wilhelm Vögelin, ; January 3, 1901 – January 19, 1985) was a German-American political philosopher. He was born in Cologne, and educated in political science at the University of Vienna, where he became an ass ...

Visiting Professorship at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

. He died at his home in New Rochelle, New York, on 5 February 1993, aged 89.

Philosophical work

Jonas's writings were very influential in different spheres. For example, ''The

Gnostic Gnosticism (from Ancient Greek: , romanized: ''gnōstikós'', Koine Greek: �nostiˈkos 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems that coalesced in the late 1st century AD among early Christian sects. These diverse g ...

Religion'', based on his early research on the

and first published in 1958, was for many years the standard work in English on the subject of

. ''The Imperative of Responsibility'' ( German 1979, English 1984) centers on social and ethical problems created by

technology Technology is the application of Conceptual model, conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word ''technology'' can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible too ...

. Jonas insists that human survival depends on our efforts to care for our planet and its future. He formulated a new and distinctive supreme moral imperative: "Act so that the effects of your action are compatible with the permanence of genuine human life". While ''The Imperative of Responsibility'' has been credited with catalyzing the

environmental movement The environmental movement (sometimes referred to as the ecology movement) is a social movement that aims to protect the natural world from harmful environmental practices in order to create sustainable living. In its recognition of humanity a ...

in Germany, his work ''The

Phenomenon A phenomenon ( phenomena), sometimes spelled phaenomenon, is an observable Event (philosophy), event. The term came into its modern Philosophy, philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be ...

of Life'' (1966) forms the philosophical undergirding of one major school of

bioethics Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health (primarily focused on the human, but also increasingly includes animal ethics), including those emerging from advances in biology, me ...

in America.

Murray Bookchin Murray Bookchin (; January 14, 1921 – July 30, 2006) was an American social theorist, author, orator, historian, and political philosopher. Influenced by G. W. F. Hegel, Karl Marx, and Peter Kropotkin, he was a pioneer in the environmental ...

and Leon Kass both referred to Hans Jonas's work as major, or primary, inspiration. Heavily influenced by

but also one of Heidegger's most outspoken philosophical critics,Sariel, Aviram. "Jonasian Gnosticism." Harvard Theological Review 116.1 (2023): 91-122. ''The Phenomenon of Life'' attempts to synthesize the philosophy of matter with the philosophy of mind, producing a rich existential understanding of biology, which ultimately argues for a simultaneously material and

moral A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. The moral may be left to the hearer, reader, or viewer to determine for themselves, or may be explicitly encapsulated in a maxim. ...

human nature.Michael Hackl, ''Freiheit als Prinzip. Schellings absoluter Idealismus der Mitwissenschaft als Antwort auf die metaphysischen und ethischen Problemhorizonte bei Hans Jonas, Vittorio Hösle und Klaus Michael Meyer-Abich''. Göttingen: V+R press, 2020, 57-99. On the question of

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

, Jonas was against it, saying, "a mother-to-be is more than her individual

self In philosophy, the self is an individual's own being, knowledge, and values, and the relationship between these attributes. The first-person perspective distinguishes selfhood from personal identity. Whereas "identity" is (literally) same ...

. She carries a human trust, and we should not make abortion merely a matter of her own private wish", society had a "social responsibility" to pregnant mothers, and "To give this mission otherhoodover completely to individual

choice A choice is the range of different things from which a being can choose. The arrival at a choice may incorporate Motivation, motivators and Choice modelling, models. Freedom of choice is generally cherished, whereas a severely limited or arti ...

oversteps the order of nature." His writing on the history of

revisits terrain covered by earlier standard works on the subject such as Ernesto Buonaiuti's ''Lo gnosticismo: storia di antiche lotte religiose'' (1907), interpreting the religion from a unique version of

existentialist Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and value ...

philosophical viewpoint that also informed his later contributions. He was one of the first philosophers to concern himself with ethical questions in biological science. Jonas's career is generally divided into three periods defined by his three primary works, but in reverse order: studies of gnosticism, studies of philosophical biology, and ethical studies.

Works

English books

*''The Gnostic Religion: The Message of the Alien God & the Beginnings of Christianity'' (Boston: Beacon Press, 1958) Second, enlarged edition, 1963. Third edition, 2001. (N.B. The "Introduction to the Third Edition" is in fact a talk given by Jonas in 1974.) *''The Phenomenon of Life: Toward a Philosophical Biology'' (New York, Harper & Row, 1966) OCLC 373876 (Evanston, Ill. : Northwestern University Press, 2001). *''The Imperative of Responsibility: In Search of Ethics for the Technological Age'' (translation of ''Das Prinzip Verantwortung'') trans. Hans Jonas and David Herr (1979). (University of Chicago Press, 1984) *''Philosophical Essays: From Ancient Creed to Technological Man'' (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1974) **"Technology and Responsibility: Reflections on the New Tasks of Ethics," ''Social Research'' 15 (Spring 1973). **"Jewish and Christian Elements in Philosophy: their Share in the Emergence of the Modern Mind" **"Seventeenth Century and After: The Meaning of the Scientific and Technological Revolution" **"Socioeconomic Knowledge and Ignorance of Goals" **"Philosophical Reflections on Experimenting with Human Subjects" **"Against the Stream: Comments on the Definition and Redefinition of Death" **"Biological Engineering—A Preview" **"Contemporary Problems in Ethics from a Jewish Perspective" **"Biological Foundations of Individuality" **"Spinoza and the Theory of Organism" **"Sight and Thought: A Review of 'Visual Thinking.'" **"Change and Permanence: On the Possibility of Understanding History." **"The Gnostic Syndrome: Typology of Its Thought, Imagination, and Mood." **"The Hymn of the Pearl: Case Study of a Symbol, and the Claims for a Jewish Origin of Gnosticism." **"Myth and Mysticism: A Study of Objectification and Interiorization in Religious Thought." **"Origen's Metaphysics of Free Will, Fall, and Salvation: a 'Divine Comedy' of the Universe." **"The Soul in Gnosticism and Plotinus." **"The Abyss of the Will: Philosophical Meditations on the Seventh Chapter of Paul's Epistle to the Romans." *''Mortality and Morality: A Search for the Good After Auschwitz'' ed. Lawrence Vogel (Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern University Press, 1996). *With Stuart F Spicker: ''Organism, medicine, and metaphysics : essays in honor of Hans Jonas on his 75th birthday, May 10, 1978'' *''On faith, reason and responsibility'' (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1978. New edition: Institute for Antiquity and Christianity, Claremont Graduate School, 1981.) *''Memoirs'' (Brandeis University Press, 2008)

English monographs

*''Immortality and the modern temper : the Ingersoll lecture, 1961'' (Cambridge : Harvard Divinity School, 1962) OCLC 26072209 (included in ''The Phenomenon of Life'') *''Heidegger and theology'' (1964) OCLC 14975064 (included in ''The Phenomenon of Life'') *''Ethical aspects of experimentation with human subjects'' (Boston:American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 1969) OCLC 19884675.

German

*''Gnosis und spätantiker Geist'' (1–2, 1934–1954) *''Technik, Medizin und Ethik — Zur Praxis des Prinzips Verantwortung'' — Frankfurt a.M. : Suhrkamp, 1985 — (''On Technology, Medicine and Ethics: On the Practice of the Imperative of Responsibility'') *''Das Prinzip Verantwortung: Versuch einer Ethik für die technologische Zivilisation'' (Frankfurt am Main : Insel-Verlag, 1979). * ''Erinnerungen. Nach Gesprächen mit Rachel Salamander'', ed. Ch. Wiese. Frankfurt am Mein-Leipzig: Insel Verlag, 2003. * ''Macht oder Ohnmacht der Subjektivität? Das Leib-Seele-Problem im Vorfeld des Prinzips Verantwortung.'' Frankfurt am Main: Insel, 1981, and then Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 1987. * ''Erkenntnis und Verantwortung, Gespräch mit Ingo Hermann in der Reihe "Zeugen des Jahrhunderts"'', Edited by I. Hermann. Göttingen: Lamuv, 1991. * ''Philosophische Untersuchungen und metaphysische Vermutungen.'' Frankfurt am Main: Insel, 1992, and then Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 1994. * ''Organismus und Freiheit. Ansätze zu einer philosophischen Biologie.'' Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1973. * ''Augustin und das paulinische Freiheitsproblem. Ein philosophischer Beitrag zur Genesis der christlich-abendländischen Freiheitsidee'', Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1930. Second edition entitled ''Augustin und das paulinische Freiheitsproblem. Eine philosophische Studie zum pelagianischen Streit'', with an introduction by J. M. Robinson. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1965.

French

*''Le concept de Dieu après Auschwitz'' *''Evolution et liberté'' *''Le Principe responsabilité'' *''Le Droit de mourir'' *With Sabine Cornille and Philippe Ivernel: ''Pour une éthique du futur'' *''Une éthique pour la nature'' *With Sylvie Courtine-Denamy: ''Entre le néant et l'éternité'' *''La gnose et l'Esprit de l'Antiquité tardive. Histoire et méthodologie de la recherche'' .

Selected papers

* "The Right to Die." ''Hastings Center Report'' 8, number 4 (1978): 31–36. * "Straddling the Boundaries of Theory and Practice: Recombinant DNA Research as a Case of Action in the Process of Inquiry." In ''Recombinant DNA: Science, Ethics and Politics'', edited by J. Richards, 253–71. New York: Academic Press, 1978. * "Toward a Philosophy of Technology." ''Hastings Center Report'' 9 (1979): 34–43. * "The Heuristics of Fear." In ''Ethics in an Age of Pervasive Technology'', edited by Melvin Kranzberg, 213–21. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1980. * "Parallelism and Complementarity: The Psycho-Physical Problem in Spinoza and in the Succession of Niels Bohr." In ''The Philosophy of Baruch Spinoza'', edited by Richard Kennington, 121–30. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of the Americas Press, 1980. * "Reflections on Technology, Progress and Utopia." ''Social Research'' 48 (1981): 411–55. * "Technology as a Subject for Ethics." ''Social Research'' 49 (1982): 891–98. * "Is Faith Still Possible? Memories of Rudolf Bultmann and Reflections on the Philosophical Aspects of His Work." ''Harvard Theological Review'' 75 (1982): 1–23. * "Ontological Grounding of a Political Ethics: On the Metaphysics of Commitment to the Future of Man." ''Graduate Faculty Philosophical Journal'' 10, no. 1 (1984): 47–62. * "Ethics and Biogenetic Art." ''Social Research'' 52 (1985): 491–504. * "The Concept of God after Auschwitz: A Jewish Voice." ''Journal of Religion'' 67, number 1 (1987): 1–13. * "The Consumer's Responsibility." In ''Ecology and Ethics. A Report from the Melbu conference'', 18–23 July 1990, edited by Audun Øfsti, 215–18. Trondheim: Nordland Akademi for Kunst og Vitenskap, 1992. * "The Burden and Blessing of Mortality." ''Hastings Center Report'' 22, no. 1 (1992): 34–40. * "Philosophy at the End of the Century: A Survey of Its Past and Future." ''Social Research'' 61, number 4 (1994): 812–32. * "''Wissenschaft'' as Personal Experience rief memoir" ''The Hastings Center report'' 32:4 (Jul–Aug 2002): 27–35 * "Materialism and the Theory of Organism." ''University of Toronto Quarterly'', 21, 1 (1951): 39–52.

Other papers

* "Causality and Perception," ''The Journal of Philosophy'', Vol. 47, No. 11 (May 25, 1950), pp. 319–324 * "The Nobility of Sight," ''Philosophy and Phenomenological Research'', Vol. 14, No. 4 (Jun., 1954), pp. 507–519. (also in ''The Phenomenon of Life'')The influence of

Alfred North Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead (15 February 1861 – 30 December 1947) was an English mathematician and philosopher. He created the philosophical school known as process philosophy, which has been applied in a wide variety of disciplines, inclu ...

is plain. Cf. Michel Weber and Will Desmond (eds.).
Handbook of Whiteheadian Process Thought
' (Frankfurt / Lancaster, Ontos Verlag, Process Thought X1 & X2, 2008) * "Immortality and the Modern Temper: The Ingersoll Lecture, 1961" ''The Harvard Theological Review'', volume 55, number 1 (January 1962), pp. 1–20. (also in ''The Phenomenon of Life'') * "The Secret Books of the Egyptian Gnostics," ''The Journal of Religion'', Vol. 42, No. 4 (Oct., 1962), pp. 262–273. * "Myth and Mysticism: A Study of Objectification and Interiorization in Religious Thought," ''The Journal of Religion'', Vol. 49, No. 4 (October 1969), pp. 315–329 * "Freedom of Scientific Inquiry and the Public Interest," ''The Hastings Center Report'', volume 6, number 4 (August 1976), pp. 15–17.

References

External links

*
Hans-Jonas-Center Berlin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jonas, Hans 1903 births 1993 deaths 20th-century German philosophers Bioethicists Academic staff of Carleton University Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany German philosophers of technology Existentialists Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to Mandatory Palestine German ethicists Historians of Gnosticism Jewish existentialists Jewish philosophers Writers from New Rochelle, New York People from Mönchengladbach The New School faculty University of Marburg alumni 20th-century American historians German male writers German Zionists 20th-century German male writers Jewish Brigade personnel Jewish ethicists Environmental ethicists Scholars of Mandaeism Fellows of the Hastings Center Israeli military personnel of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War