Rudolf Bultmann: The Existence and Essence of Man

The article analyzes the concept of personality in the works of Rudolf Bultmann. Sources for the development of the theory of personality for Bultmann are the Judeo-Christian sacred texts, the legacy of the Protestant Reformation and the existential philosophy of the 20th century. Bultmann's concept of personality is closely connected with his general hermeneutical program, which aims to actualize the Christian proclamation in modern conditions. According to Bultmann, an analysis of the concept "existence" is also an analysis of the essence of Dasein so that an examination of existence can also be an examination of the essence of man. The principle of relationship constitutes the being of Dasein, reaching the very essence of human existence and wholly defining it. Being in relationship, understood as the being of Dasein, is not some kind of a general principle of everything, but it is precisely the concrete being of Dasein. Prior to any free decision and position of a particular person, human being, as a concrete human being, according to Bultmann, is "being-in", "being-with and for", "being-of", and "being-to-self'. Human existence is not something that a person can observe from outside, but they themselves. Although no man can act differently from their being, this being never stands directly behind their actions and is not their unchanging foundation. Man's behavior and actions constitute human being. The concept "essence" does not describe the inherent properties of man, because, following Bultmann, the essence of man is not something static and amenable to an unambiguous interpretation. Bultmann asserts that the essence of man is their will. Will is not about arbitrary voluntarism since Bultmann only notes the dialectical structure of the relationship between being and human action. Will, as an intention, never exists without reason, and desires and plans are impossible without knowledge and understanding. But if the driving force of life is decisions, then will must be designated as its determining factor. Man always lives from what they are a result of and always goes to what they live for. Understanding of personality, in contrast to the idealistic idea of the formation of an ideal person, emphasizes the paradoxical-dialectical nature of human existence in the absence of its unchanging foundation. The existence of human being is determined by the extent to which a person took their being upon themselves and, being a temporal and historical creature, transmitted it to the future through their decisions. Therefore, being is never given, but is always a project of the future.

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