Hegel’s Lectures on the Philosophy of Religion, Volume I: Introduction and the Concept of Religion, as edited and translated by Peter C. Hodgson and his team, is a monumental work that explores the foundational and often controversial intersections between philosophy and religion. In these Berlin lectures, Hegel introduces his philosophy of religion as an essential discipline, positioned uniquely to address the theological, cultural, and philosophical quandaries of the 19th century—a period marked by deep intellectual transformation and religious re-evaluation. This volume, edited and separated into the independent lecture series of 1821, 1824, 1827, and 1831, represents not only the evolution of Hegel’s own thought but also his engagement with the pressing concerns of his time, especially his implicit and sometimes overt dialogue with contemporaries such as Schleiermacher.
Unlike prior editions that amalgamated various lectures, thereby obscuring Hegel’s logical progression, this edition reconstructs each year’s lectures independently, shedding new light on the nuances of Hegel’s evolving perspectives. This approach, painstakingly crafted by editor Walter Jaeschke and supported by Hodgson and his team, allows readers to trace Hegel’s dialectical method and recognize the philosophical progression that Hegel saw as integral to understanding the nature and concept of religion. The English translation aims to preserve Hegel’s dense, nuanced language, ensuring accuracy while making Hegel’s complex ideas accessible to a modern audience. Annotations enrich the text with insights into Hegel’s references, helping readers grasp the vast historical, philosophical, and theological exposition within which Hegel’s ideas are displayed.
At the core of Volume I lies Hegel’s “Introduction,” where he establishes the parameters of philosophy of religion. Here, Hegel argues that philosophy must engage with religion as a legitimate subject in its own right, rather than merely as an auxiliary to metaphysics or dogmatics. His groundbreaking notion is that religion embodies an evolving, speculative knowledge of God—a development that reflects the self-realization of Spirit (Geist) through human history. He contends that true philosophical inquiry into religion transcends both traditional dogmatism and superficial rationalism, offering a method that neither assumes nor negates religious truth outright but seeks to understand religion’s logical structure and historical development. By proposing philosophy as the ultimate discipline to comprehend the essence of religion, Hegel situates his lectures not only as a response to Enlightenment critiques of religion but also as a platform to reconstruct religious belief through the rigorous application of dialectical reason.
The volume’s “Concept of Religion” section is central to Hegel’s argument, as it introduces a speculative definition of religion that distinguishes between subjective religious feeling, the conceptual knowledge of God, and the manifestation of this knowledge in worship. Hegel posits that religion, understood in its full speculative sense, is the process through which individuals and communities attain a self-conscious relationship with the divine. He explores the epistemological and experiential dimensions of religion, arguing that faith is an evolving, rational engagement with divine reality, rather than an unchanging set of dogmas. This approach places Hegel at odds with many of his contemporaries, as he suggests that the essence of religion is its dynamic, historical unfolding—a self-revelation of Spirit that unfolds through the dialectic of human culture, knowledge, and spiritual practice.
Through these lectures, Hegel navigates the tension between faith and reason, considering whether religion and philosophy can genuinely reconcile or whether they remain inevitably distinct. By examining religious consciousness as part of a larger, speculative philosophy, Hegel contends that philosophy does not merely rationalize religion but fulfills its essence by bringing to light the rational structures implicit within religious belief. This volume, thus, becomes a meditation on the nature of God, humanity’s relationship to the divine, and the processes through which absolute knowledge and freedom become manifest in religious consciousness.
Hegel’s dialectical approach, which he applies to religion as a form of knowledge, reveals a structure that challenges conventional understandings of theology and metaphysics. Rather than reducing religion to an anthropological or psychological phenomenon, he perceives it as an expression of the absolute, an unfolding of the divine self-consciousness within the realm of human thought and society. The lectures reflect Hegel’s belief in a process-driven theology, one that emerges through historical, social, and individual development. This vision of religion is not fixed but becomes progressively actualized, evolving toward an increasingly clear articulation of God’s nature and humanity’s role within it. In this sense, Hegel’s work represents a radical rethinking of religion’s function, as he envisions it less as a static set of beliefs than as a dynamic, living process integral to human history.
With each lecture series, Hegel adjusted his approach, responding to new theological and philosophical currents and the criticisms his previous lectures had elicited. The editorial team has painstakingly preserved these variations, allowing readers to see Hegel’s philosophy of religion as a fluid and self-correcting project. Hegel’s engagement with both ancient and contemporary thinkers, along with his responses to student feedback and criticism, are documented in this critical edition, providing invaluable context and showing how his thought was shaped by continuous reflection and debate. This format enables scholars to engage with Hegel’s work on religion in the broader context of his philosophy, recognizing the ways in which Hegel’s ideas on religion both diverged from and converged with his more widely known works in logic, aesthetics, and political philosophy.
Lectures on the Philosophy of Religion, Volume I serves as an introduction to Hegel’s broader theological project while offering readers an in-depth view of his complex relationship with religion as both a philosopher and a believer. By confronting Hegel’s attempts to define religion in terms that align with his system, this volume opens a dialogue with contemporary philosophical, theological, and cultural debates, addressing the fundamental question of whether philosophy can ever adequately account for the spiritual dimensions of human life. This edition, therefore, is not only a scholarly achievement but an essential resource for anyone seeking to understand Hegel’s ambitious synthesis of reason and faith, or the intellectual landscape of the modern era that he helped to shape. Through Hodgson’s careful editing and translation, Hegel’s speculative philosophy of religion is finally accessible to a new generation of readers, offering them the tools to grapple with one of philosophy’s most profound and challenging engagements with the religious experience.
Simon Gros 
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