Believing after Nietzsche

“It is through our virtues that we are most severely punished.” - Nietzsche

Nietzsche approaches his criticism of religion from a moral or ethical standpoint, understanding that morality does not derive from true human nature, but rather from a religion that prevents man from being happy. It is our own virtues, or the effort we make to embody them, that punish us and make us unhappy.

Biography of Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
Nietzsche made morality and religion the target of his battles, considering his personal war against both as his greatest victory. "Beyond Good and Evil" is at the heart of this war, marking the beginning of his critical and negative writings, as he himself declares in Ecce Homo (1888), published posthumously.

Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was born in Röcken, Germany, on October 15, 1844. He was the son, grandson, and great-grandson of Protestant pastors. At the age of five, he lost his father and was raised by his mother, grandmother, and older sister. In 1869, at the age of 25, he was hired by the University of Basel as professor of Classical Philology.

Master Morality vs. Slave Morality
In his books, On Genealogy of the Morality and Beyond Good and Evil, Friedrich Nietzsche demonstrates that morality is neither innate, immutable, nor derived from human nature, but rather a product of history. In prehistoric times, when the line between human and animal was not yet well defined, some men subjugated others according to the law of the strongest, a rule that also prevailed among animals. The victors became masters, while the defeated became slaves.

The masters, upon triumphing, judged reality based on themselves and their actions, due to the privileged position they gained after their victory. For them, “good” was everything that represented their way of being and acting: violence, war, adventure, risk, power, pleasure, cruelty, physical strength, action, freedom, and autonomy. These values placed them in a position of superiority over others.

The masters, those who can, want, and are in charge, externalize all their instincts, acting without limitations. They may kill, steal, violate, gorge on food and get drunk because no one questions them — they set the law. An example of this, even today, is the boss, who has more freedom to express his instincts than the employee.

The priests, resentful of their defeat and eager for revenge, unable to physically overcome the nobles, devise a plan to surpass them mentally. Like the fox that unable to reach the grapes, declares them sour, so do the priests with the master morality.

In this way, the slave morality is born. Unable to impose themselves on the real world, they invented an ideal, ascetic, spiritual world — God. They retreat to monasteries and deny real life, calling it a “vale of tears”, in order to focus on the afterlife, where they will be happy again. They deny earth in order to affirm heaven, transferring the value of life outside of their own existence.

In the name of God and the afterlife, they renounce this life, their sexual instincts, power, pleasure, and everything they once possessed when they were masters. Values now become pacifism, humility, obedience, poverty, prudence, fasting, abstinence, equality, and fraternity.

Nietzsche identifies the Jews as a “priestly people”, and slave morality is indeed the morality of Judeo-Christianity, which gradually took hold. Both Judaism and Christianity were born out of slavery: the Jews were slaves in Egypt, and the Christians, for centuries, were the poorest class, persecuted by the Roman Empire until they ultimately prevailed over it.

Master morality is autonomous, with values defined from individual experience; while slave morality is heteronomous, with values imposed externally, stemming from norms like “God said” or “the Bible commands”. Master morality is vital, based on the body and its needs and appetites, while slave morality is abstract, denying and sacrificing real life.

A critique to Nietzsche´s genesis of morality
Nietzsche’s dichotomy between master and slave morality is undeniably original and thought-provoking, shedding light on the historical dynamics of human ethics. However, it also risks oversimplifying the complexity and richness of moral systems. His association of slave morality with values like humility, altruism, and meekness—which he claims arise from ressentiment, a reactive and vengeful stance against the powerful—may unfairly diminish the genuine and proactive motivations behind these virtues. These values are often rooted not in weakness or resentment but in a deep recognition of human interconnectedness and shared vulnerability.

The origins of these so-called "slave morality" values might be better explained by human nature itself rather than a reactionary moral framework. Empathy, cooperation, and the desire for fairness are traits deeply embedded in human evolution, vital for the survival and flourishing of communities. Nietzsche’s critique overlooks these natural and constructive aspects of moral development.

On the other hand, the master morality Nietzsche celebrates, with its emphasis on dominance, strength, and self-assertion, appears to mimic the “law of the jungle” or the survival of the fittest. This perspective is problematic as it could be used to justify oppressive systems or behaviors, prioritizing the powerful over the vulnerable. Such valorization risks promoting a worldview that dehumanizes those perceived as weak and legitimizes exploitation, undermining the moral progress that has sought to secure dignity, equality, and justice for all.

Moreover, Nietzsche’s emphasis on individualism in the master morality over communal values reveals a blind spot in his philosophy. His famous proclamation of the “death of God” and celebration of the Übermensch (Superman) reflect his rejection of traditional morality and communal obligations. Yet, this rejection seems detached from the realities of human interdependence, where societies thrive on mutual support and collective responsibility.

Nevertheless, Nietzsche’s critique remains valuable for its originality and its challenge to unquestioned moral assumptions. He rightly identifies the dangers of moral systems that portray the natural world as a “vale of tears” and discourage human agency. However, a more balanced approach might seek to harmonize the strengths of both master and slave moralities, emphasizing individual flourishing alongside collective well-being. Such an integration would honor Nietzsche’s insights while addressing the broader and richer dimensions of human ethics.

Theism and Atheism
Regarding the existence of God, Nietzsche follows in the footsteps of his atheist predecessors. For him, faith in God stems from a feeling of impotence that man experiences in relation to the realities around him.

Feuerbach, Marx, and Freud, for example, all had links to Christianity, either through their theological training or their parents’ conversion. It seems that atheism is born from theism, or it is a kind of inverted theism, a dialectic similar to the relationship between matter and antimatter in the universe.

The atheist thrives in dissatisfaction, always haunted by doubt, seeking more proof to convince themselves that God does not exist. The theist also doubts, but this doubt culminates in a cogito ergo sum. The theist chooses to believe, finding in faith a meaning for the universe, the world, and his own life, while the atheist settles into the emptiness, which can cause torment and suffering.

Nietzsche, for example, ended his days in madness. Other atheists fill this void with the pursuit of power, pleasure, beauty, or money, dedicating themselves almost religiously to these causes. Many atheists, in fact, could be considered more polytheistic than truly atheistic.

Conclusion - Contrary to Nietzsche's proposal, master morality—rooted in the exaltation of instincts and unchecked individualism—fails to bring true happiness, instead it may foster social injustice and conflict. In contrast, Christian morality, far from being about submission, is grounded in love and values that uplift human dignity. As the cornerstone of Christian ethics, love offers a path to transcendence, guiding individuals beyond mere survival to a life of authentic meaning and purpose.

Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC

Annunciation

In the First Joyful Mystery, we contemplate the angel's annunciation to the Virgin Mary.

From the Gospel of Luke (1:26-31):
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one, the Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.’

From the Acts of the Council of Ephesus:
The word we pronounce and use in dialogue is incorporeal, impossible to be grasped by sight or touch. However, when it is dressed in letters and external forms, it becomes visible and accessible to sight and touch. In the same way, the Word of God, which by nature is invisible, became visible; being incorporeal by essence, He assumed a tangible body.

Meditation 1
As the letter to the Hebrews tells us (1:1-2): Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds.

The communications of the prophets in ancient times were always imprecise, imperfect, and incomplete. That is why God decided to intervene directly in human history, as he did so many times throughout Israel's history. Jesus of Nazareth reveals both the true nature of God and the true nature of humanity, teaching how God relates to man and how man should relate to God.

Meditation 2
When Mary appeared pregnant after visiting her cousin Elizabeth, she had to face her parents, Joseph, and the people of her village alone. The miraculous conception, the work of the Holy Spirit, was a unique event in history, without precedent, which would have sounded far-fetched to the people of that village.

At that time, Mary ran the risk of being seen as an adulteress, since she was already betrothed to Joseph, and the punishment for adultery was stoning, as we know from the episode of the adulterous woman presented to Jesus to be stoned. Surely Jesus remembered his mother at that moment.

Mary suffered silently from slander throughout her life, something that is hinted at in various passages of the Gospel. For many at the time, Jesus was seen as the son of an unknown father, which was a source of shame for both Him and Mary, especially in a patriarchal society. Mark refers to Jesus as the "son of Mary," while Matthew says he is Joseph’s son. Luke decides not to call him either.

Prayer
Lord God,
You who chose Mary, a humble servant,
to be the Mother of Your Son,
teach us to have the same trust and faith
that she showed when she heard Your call.

Give us the courage to say "Yes" to Your will,
even when we do not understand Your plans,
just as Mary accepted with humility and surrender
the divine plan that would change the history of humanity.

Lord, as the angel Gabriel greeted her with grace,
we too ask for Your blessing,
that we may be bearers of Your presence and love in the world,
and like Mary, we may bring Your light
and testify to Your Son, Jesus.

Help us, Lord, to face the adversities
and misunderstandings that arise on our path
with the same patience and silence of Mary,
who knew how to suffer with resilience
and kept everything in her heart, fully trusting in You.

May we, like Joseph, act with justice and mercy,
avoiding hasty judgment
and welcoming others with love and understanding.

O Father, teach us to follow the example of Jesus,
who did not seek to condemn,
but to bring reconciliation and the hope of new life.
May we also be instruments of Your restorative justice,
always desiring the conversion
and life of the sinner, not their downfall.

Lord, make us understand that just as Mary and Your Son
bore the weight of slander and suffering,
we too must persevere through difficulties,
trusting that You are always with us,
even when the world judges and condemns us.

We praise You, O God, for Your unconditional love
and the promise of salvation,
trusting in You today and always.
Amen.

Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC

Believing after Sigmund Freud

Religion and religious sentiment permeate all spheres of human thought and life. Karl Marx saw the effects of religion or a certain religion on the economy and the relationship between the rich and the poor. Freud saw this same religion from another perspective, from that of trauma, especially those of a sexual origin.

If, for Marx, religion alienates human beings from a sociological and economic perspective; for Freud, this alienation operates at an unconscious and psychic level. Religion, in this sense, is an ideology that prevents human beings from being free, from being themselves, from accepting reality and accepting themselves as they are.

Biography of Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
Sigmund Schlomo Freud was born in Freiberg, Moravia, then part of the Austrian Empire, on May 6, 1856. The son of Jacob Freud, a small-time merchant, and Amalie Nathanson, of Jewish origin, he was the eldest of seven children.

Like Marx's father, Freud's father was also a Christian convert from Judaism. In this regard, he went so far as to say that he had always considered himself a German, until the day the Jews began to be persecuted. Later, as a refugee in London, he considered himself a Jew.

At the age of four, his family moved to Vienna, where Jews had better social acceptance and economic prospects. Freud graduated in medicine from the University of Vienna, later earning a master's degree in neuropathology. From neurology, he moved to psychiatry, and from there to psychology, studying the unconscious until he dedicated himself exclusively to psychoanalysis.

Freud worked alone for ten years on the development of psychoanalysis. In 1906, he was joined by Adler, Jung, Jones, and Stekel, and in 1908, they all gathered at the First International Congress of Psychoanalysis in Salzburg.

Religion as an Obsessive Neurosis
Freud sees religion as a repression of man's basic instincts, especially sexual ones. This is because religion perverts the natural instincts of human beings, declaring them evil, impure, ugly, dirty, and animalistic, and as such, they must be repressed.

Religion is also a moral code that makes individuals feel guilty for experiencing and expressing their instincts. This topic would later be revisited by Nietzsche in his "slave morality" concept, contrasting Judaeo-Christian morality with the morality of the Lords, or, in other words, natural ethics.

According to Freud, this repression inevitably leads to an obsessive neurosis: the body begs something, the mind does not grant it, the latter ends up short-circuiting and the fuses blow. Just as Marx saw socialism and communism as solutions to the alienation of religion, Freud believed psychoanalysis would resolve this issue—by removing the past traumas, the person reconciles with himself and his true nature.

Like Marx, Freud also knew very little about religion, focusing more on its role in a repressive and puritanical society. His theory was more than anything a reaction to puritanism, just as Marx's was a reaction to the inhumane capitalism of the time, stemming from England's first industrial revolution, where even children worked in factories from dawn to dusk.

So far, the only one to address the subject of religion from a theoretical perspective was Feuerbach in his work, The Essence of Religion. To paraphrase the title of this work, Marx and Freud dealt with the subject of religion from an existential perspective, in other words, how religion served as a weapon of the rich against the poor (Marx) or as a repression of human nature by Puritan ideology to control basic instincts.

Religion as an Infantile Illusion
For Freud, religious sentiment is an infantile illusion, something like believing in Santa Claus. Human maturity occurs when the child abandons the Pleasure Principle and embraces the Reality Principle. Religion keeps human beings in an eternal state of childishness because it is an illusion and thus not real.

In his work, The Future of an Illusion, Freud is convinced that religion is nothing more than a chimera that had its function in ancient times, but which we must now get rid of in order to find truth. As science advances, the future of this illusion becomes increasingly uncertain.

His Protestant pastor friend Pfister, probably with Pascal in mind, responds to this work by saying: “If reality boils down to a materialistic and random view of life, what future can we hope for? On the other hand, if a God of wisdom and love has come into this cold and materialistic world, we can wish for happiness here and now, and hope for a brighter future.

The donkey hopes that it will be able to nibble on the carrot; hope is what motivates it, hope is what gives it a reason to live. It is the hope that it will be able to eat the carrot that motivates its present and makes it trot towards the future. The present act of trotting forward to reach the carrot is motivated by the hope of reaching it. Without this hope, the present would be stagnant and meaningless.

Whoever has no future, whoever has no hope, walks in circles. They revolve around themselves, and in this way fall easily into monotony and, the nausea that the philosophers of nothingness, Nietzsche and Sartre, talk about. Without a future, the present is nauseating no matter how pleasant it may seem. Sartre experienced this, as did Nietzsche before him and Camus after him: "If you come from nothing, there is no Faith; if you go towards nothing, there is no Hope, and most likely there is no Charity, making life meaningless and nauseating."

The life of an atheist who says that he comes from nothing and goes to nothing is meaningless. Those who live immersed in pure worldliness live in a present without a past or future, as the philosophies and spiritualities of the Far East like Buddhism recommend. Only animals have no past, no historical memory and no future purpose in life. Humans are only human if they live all three times -- past, present, and future -- in harmony.

Faith in God the Father opens us up to the Hope we find in the Son through his resurrection, and this motivates a present of Charity, leading us to see Christ in every person. And whoever sees the Son sees the Father, as Jesus said to Philip. Hope is the only begotten child of mother Faith, just as Christ is the Son of God the Father, and just as the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, so Charity proceeds from Faith and Hope.

The three virtues work in our lives like a GPS: Faith connects us with God, our guiding star or satellite, telling us where we are and what we are, that is, sinners. Hope tells us where we want to go and what we want to be, that is, saints. Charity is the only way and roadmap to holiness.

Freud Does Not Seem to Know that Dreams Command Life
They do not know that dreaming
is a constant in life
as concrete and outlined
as any other thing,
like this grayish stone
where I sit to rest,
like this calm creek
in its easy startles,
like these high pine trees
that in green and gold sway,
like these birds that crow
in drunkenness of blue.
They do not know that dreaming
is wine, is foam, is yeast,
a joyous thirsty little animal
whose sharp snout
pokes through everywhere
in endless restlessness.
(…) They do not know, nor dream of,
that dreaming commands life.
That whenever a man dreams
the world leaps forth
like a colourful ball
into a child’s little hands.—António Gedeão

As António Gedeão says in the excerpt of his poetry quoted above, dreams command life. Illusion is in fact dream; in Spanish, illusion does not have the same sense as a chimera, of imagining something false, but rather the sense of dreaming of a better future by already doing something in the present to make that dream come true.

Human beings do not pose problems that do not have a solution; if a problem exists, it is because there is a solution to it, because as the people say, what does not have a solution is already solved. Likewise, humans do not dream of the impossible; they would not dream of water if water did not exist.

Einstein's theory of relativity was a dream, an intuition. In this sense, dreams are the antechamber of reality. A dream is a utopia in the Greek sense of the word, something that is not reality now but can be, and often becomes so, in the future.

The Best is Yet to Come
The Lord likely created hope on the same day he created spring. —Bern Williams

We are not walking towards the sunset of our lives but towards the dawn of eternal life. Therefore, no matter how happy we are, the best is yet to come; no matter how much suffering we have to endure, decrepit, limited, sick, and old, the best is always yet to come. It is not in the circumstances and vicissitudes of the here and now that we place our trust, because we know that we have no permanent city here, but we seek the one that is to come (Hebrews 13:14).

It is said that a parishioner, a woman of great faith and hope in eternal life, was suffering from an incurable disease, leaving her with very little time to live. She prepared her own funeral so that it would be a lesson to everyone on the faith and hope that animated her. When she died, in the coffin, between the fingers of her hands, instead of a Rosary, were a knife and a fork.

The priest explained to the congregation, shocked by her boldness, saying that during her life, she had never missed a parish gala dinner and that whenever she returned her plate with the cutlery, she was told to keep the fork and knife because the best was yet to come.

Death is, therefore, not the end, but the passage to the best that is to come. This motivates the Christian's life, no matter how painful or limited his or her present may be.

Conclusion - Freud says religion is an infantile illusion, like believing in Santa Claus... But the Santa Claus that children believe in really does exist... He is the image of God the Father who loved the world so much that He sent His Son and it was Christmas.

Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC

Contemplating the twenty mysteries of the Holy Rosary

"Pray the Rosary every day to bring peace to the world and an end to the war."
(May 13, 1917 – Apparition of Our Lady in Fatima)

What is the Rosary
Our Lady did not request the daily recitation of the Rosary only during her first apparition; she insisted on this request in all subsequent apparitions until the last one. The Rosary and Fatima are inseparable, but the Rosary is also inseparable from other Marian apparitions.

The term "Rosary" comes from the 150 (now 200) Hail Marys divided in groups of 10 with the Our Father and the Glory Be prayers, alongside meditations on the mysteries of Jesus’ life and our redemption, thus forming a "crown of roses" offered to Mary, Mother of the Lord and our Mother.

The twenty mysteries of Christ's life are divided into four sets of five mysteries each. In each Rosary, only one of these sets is prayed, which are: the Joyful Mysteries, related to Jesus’ birth and childhood; the Luminous Mysteries, which reflect Jesus as the light of the world during His ministry; the Sorrowful Mysteries, focusing on Christ’s Passion and death; and finally, the Glorious Mysteries, which contemplate Jesus’ Resurrection and Ascension into Heaven.

Inspired by chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation, which refers to Mary wearing a crown of 12 stars, I conceived 12 Marian mysteries, reflecting on how Mary's life is intertwined with her Son's, from her conception to her Assumption and coronation in Heaven. Like the mysteries of the Holy Rosary, these Marian mysteries also contemplate Jesus’ life, but through the perspective of His Mother.

The Importance of the Rosary in Our Spiritual Life
Praying the Rosary allows Mary to guide us in meditating on the mysteries of her Son's life. This practice helps keep our hearts and minds focused on the Gospel teachings, strengthening our faith in God and His presence in our daily lives.

The repetitive and meditative rhythm of the prayers brings calm and introspection. Many people find inner peace and comfort when praying the Rosary, especially in times of difficulty, anxiety, or distress.

In the Most Holy Rosary, repeating the Hail Marys 50 times (10 times per mystery) serves to prevent the mind from being distracted from contemplating the mystery. The aim is not to focus on each Hail Mary and Our Father, but to use these prayers as mantras, allowing the mind to reach a state of contemplation of the divine.

How the Rosary is Prayed in Fatima
While making the sign of the cross, one says:
God, come to our assistance. / Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. / As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

• Proclamation of the mystery of Christ's life to be contemplated.
• Proclamation of the biblical text related to the mystery.
• Pause for an appropriate period of time.
• Recitation of 1 Our Father and 10 Hail Marys.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. / As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

O Mary, conceived without sin, /pray for us who have recourse to thee.

O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell; lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy.

At the end of the fifth mystery, 3 Hail Marys are prayed for the intentions of the Pope.

Hail Holy Queen
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Amen.

Distribution of the Mysteries of Christ throughout the Week

• Sunday and Wednesday: Glorious Mysteries.
• Monday and Saturday: Joyful Mysteries.
• Tuesday and Friday: Sorrowful Mysteries.
• Thursday: Luminous Mysteries.
• Saturday: Marian Mysteries.

Joyful Mysteries
We meditate on the beginning of humanity’s redemption, from the Annunciation to Mary and the incarnation of the Son of God to Jesus' adolescence.

Luminous Mysteries
The Luminous Mysteries, introduced by Pope John Paul II in 2002, aim to fill the gap between the Joyful and Sorrowful Mysteries, but they end up leaving out an essential part of Jesus' life, where He reveals Himself as a model of Humanity, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is the one with whom we must measure ourselves to be authentic and genuinely human, and at the same time, He is our salvation, the source of our spiritual health here and now, as well as the way to the Father.

The life of Jesus can be summarized in the miracles He performed and the teachings He delivered, with the Kingdom of God as the primary purpose of His coming. Therefore, I propose, in the third mystery, to replace the “Proclamation of the Kingdom of God” with “The Kingdom of God in the words and miracles of Jesus.”

Indeed, Jesus not only proclaimed the coming of the Kingdom but also demonstrated that it is already present among us through His teachings and miracles. The Kingdom of God began with the coming of Jesus into the world; it is among us, though not yet in its fullness. It is up to us, His disciples, to carry on His mission of transforming this world into the Kingdom of God.

This adjustment in the third Luminous Mystery offers a more complete vision of the public life of Jesus and is aligned with the original purpose of the Luminous Mysteries.

Sorrowful Mysteries
We meditate on the process of Jesus’ Passion and Death, from the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane to His last breath on the Cross. When we say that Jesus died for our sins, we understand that He paid the debt we could not settle, reflecting the sin of all humanity.

Glorious Mysteries
We meditate on Jesus' triumph over death through His Resurrection. Death has been defeated, as has the sin that caused it. Now death is a passage to eternal life, and the life of Jesus, which began with Mary's "yes," culminates in the glorification of the one who is an example of Christian life for all of us.

Marian Mysteries
We meditate on how Jesus' life is reflected in Mary’s life, which begins before her Son’s and continues after His Ascension.

Note – In the following articles, one for each of the 20 mysteries, I present material to help with the meditation of each mystery. This material, to be used after the proclamation of each mystery and before the recitation of the 10 Hail Marys, consists of the following:

• The biblical text relating to each mystery
• A meditation from the Church Fathers
• A personal meditation
• A prayer inspired in all the texts

Depending on the time available, the person leading the recitation may choose just the biblical text, the text from the Church Fathers, one of the two meditations, the prayer, or all of them when time permits.

Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC