La prova fisico-teologica dell'esistenza di Dio nelle Lezioni sulla filosofia della religione di Hegel

Hegel’s critique of the theological discourse put forward by traditional metaphysics underpins the philosopher’s conceptualization of religion. The present article examines the way by which Hegel expounds the teleological proof for God’s existence in his 1827 Lectures on the Philosophy of Religion, taking this as an example of Hegel’s critical position. Following and elaborating upon Kant’s view, Hegel argues that such a proof is not demonstrative and proposes a new formulation centered around the notion of “elevation of spirit to God”. By analysing the new elements that the Hegelian proof introduces, this article has two aims: to shed light on the relationship between this very proof and the philosopher’s conceptualization of religion, and to demonstrate the logical presuppositions behind the notion of “elevation” and the concept of finalism implied in the proof’s theoretical framework.