Without Authority

"Without authority," a phrase Kierkegaard repeatedly applied to himself & his writings, is an appropriate title for this volume of five short works that in various ways deal with the concept & practice of authority. "The Lily in the Field & the Bird of the Air" contemplates the teaching authority of these creatures based on three different passages in the Gospels. The first of "Two Ethical-Religious Essays" mediates on the ethics of Jesus' martyrdom; the second contrasts the authority of the genius with that of the apostle. The remaining works--"Three Discourses at the Communion on Fridays" (1849), "An Upbuilding Discourse" (1850), & "Two Discourses at the Communion on Fridays" (1851)--are meditations on sin, forgiveness & the power of love.