In contrast to the popular image of Kierkegaard as ‘the gloomy Dane’, these essays argue that joy is at the heart of Kierkegaard’s enterprise. He is in the true sense an evangelist, seeking to bring the joy of the truth of Christianity to those who persist in misunderstanding it as either a moral code or as one philosophical option. A central tenet of the book is that Kierkegaard’s most original thought arises from his struggle with biblical passages that he found puzzling or offensive. The seminal psychology of belief and doubt in his work is born out of his attempt to comprehend the exceptional experiences of biblical characters. His understanding of his own authorship is also founded on biblical models.

The book contains previously unpublished work as well as making available in a convenient form scattered published essays. Described by George Pattison, Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at Oxford University, as ‘fiercely original and, often pointedly, humorous,’ the essays draw on the expertise of a biblical scholar to convey the joy to be found in reading Kierkegaard, as well as the joy which underpins Kierkegaard’s profound explorations of spiritual alienation.

Hugh Pyper lectures in Biblical Studies at the University of Sheffield. After some years as a school biology teacher, he took up biblical studies at the University of Glasgow and subsequently taught at the University of Leeds. Kierkegaard has been a part of his life since his teenage years.