Camus and Christianity
By Drew Anderson
Albert Camus had an extremely complex stance on religion, especially Christianity. Camus was a self-proclaimed non-Christian and non-Atheist, but nobody was too sure of what his beliefs were. So, what was Camus’s religion? Well, there are definitely more religious practices than Christianity and Atheism, but the complexity begins here. The reason for Camus’s complex position on religion is due to the fact that he was definitely not a Christian, but the religion influenced his personal life, and there are a ton of parallels between his works and the stories in The Bible.
This might not seem like a topic of great importance, but people need to begin to understand Camus’s relationship with Christianity to fully comprehend his writing and a lot of characters that he created, particularly Meursault, in The Stranger.
The Christian and biblical references are quite prevalent at times, but often they are strategically and discretely incorporated into The Stranger. The reason for the discretion is because Camus did not fully agree with all of the beliefs and teachings of Christianity, so he manipulates some context of The Bible to form his version of a complete religion. Camus uses almost exact parallels between Meursault and Christ, except for one or two differences, which make Meursault seem more human as an effort to excuse some of his behaviors.
Another importance of Christianity is that before Camus was killed in an accident, he went to a priest, Howard Mumma, and wished to be baptized. This event tells people researching Camus that even though he was a devout non-Christian for most of his life, he was always extremely knowledgeable about Christianity and remained interested in the religion. Camus’s complex, ongoing intrigue with Christianity was a defining factor of his life, and was on great display in his novel The Stranger.
Works Cited
Hanna, Thomas L. Albert Camus and the Christian Faith, The Journal of Religion, Vol. 36, No. 4 (Oct., 1956), pp. 224-233. Print.
Mumma, Howard. "Conversations with Camus." www.religion-online.org. Web. 25 Apr. 2015.
Peyre, Henri. Camus the Pagan, Yale French Studies, No. 25, Albert Camus (1960), pp. 20-25. Print.
Scherr, Arthur. Christianity and Literature Vol. 58, No.2 (2009) Meursault's Dinner with Raymond: A Christian Theme in Albert Camus's L’Etranger, pp. 184-210. Print.Camus
This might not seem like a topic of great importance, but people need to begin to understand Camus’s relationship with Christianity to fully comprehend his writing and a lot of characters that he created, particularly Meursault, in The Stranger.
The Christian and biblical references are quite prevalent at times, but often they are strategically and discretely incorporated into The Stranger. The reason for the discretion is because Camus did not fully agree with all of the beliefs and teachings of Christianity, so he manipulates some context of The Bible to form his version of a complete religion. Camus uses almost exact parallels between Meursault and Christ, except for one or two differences, which make Meursault seem more human as an effort to excuse some of his behaviors.
Another importance of Christianity is that before Camus was killed in an accident, he went to a priest, Howard Mumma, and wished to be baptized. This event tells people researching Camus that even though he was a devout non-Christian for most of his life, he was always extremely knowledgeable about Christianity and remained interested in the religion. Camus’s complex, ongoing intrigue with Christianity was a defining factor of his life, and was on great display in his novel The Stranger.
Works Cited
Hanna, Thomas L. Albert Camus and the Christian Faith, The Journal of Religion, Vol. 36, No. 4 (Oct., 1956), pp. 224-233. Print.
Mumma, Howard. "Conversations with Camus." www.religion-online.org. Web. 25 Apr. 2015.
Peyre, Henri. Camus the Pagan, Yale French Studies, No. 25, Albert Camus (1960), pp. 20-25. Print.
Scherr, Arthur. Christianity and Literature Vol. 58, No.2 (2009) Meursault's Dinner with Raymond: A Christian Theme in Albert Camus's L’Etranger, pp. 184-210. Print.Camus