The Priest in Nietzsche: Rival and Model

Fredrick Nietzsche was a self-proclaimed 'Anti-Christ' who depicted 'the priest' as his great enemy. Recent Nietzsche studies have uncovered nuances to Nietzsche's overall approach to 'priesthood'; the complex, indeed, respectful notes that Nietzsche maintains towards his enemy are now more broadly appreciated. What has not yet been explored, is the extent Nietzsche replicates many of the strategies of his priestly rival, and, in like manner, continues the hunt for existential meaning, value-creation, and a 'mystical' escape from nihilism. Viewing Nietzsche's philosophical project through this lens will not only open up new points of contract with other quasi-religious, Romanticist, philosophical projects of the nineteenth century but also its influence upon currents within contemporary humanism. This will be the first systematic treatment of the priest in Nietzsche, its context, its argument, and its philosophical influence.