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Wittgenstein links religious language to ordinary life

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A stack of books with an orange apple balanced on top, arranged on a dark textured surface against a muted blue-gray background, photographed in close-up.
Research area:Arts and HumanitiesPhilosophyWittgensteinian philosophy and applications

What the study found

The study argues that Wittgenstein’s later view treats religious language as part of ordinary language-games, where such expressions have established uses and contexts. It also presents religion as a way of renewing one’s attention to everyday life.

Why the authors say this matters

The authors conclude that philosophy and religion meet in the effort to recover words that speak for us and give them depth again. They suggest this matters because it allows language to return people, moment by moment, to ordinary life.

What the researchers tested

The paper examines Wittgenstein’s changing engagement with religion, beginning with the early Tractatus and moving to his later work. It analyzes later Wittgenstein’s account of ordinary language-games, forms of life, and the personal use of words.

What worked and what didn't

The analysis finds that religious expressions are intelligible within ordinary patterns of talk and observation that are not themselves religious. It also finds that words can gain a stronger personal inflection through individual use, though this use is exposed to the possibility of acknowledgment or failure.

What to keep in mind

The abstract does not describe empirical testing or formal limitations. The summary is limited to the paper’s interpretation of Wittgenstein and does not state broader claims beyond that scope.

Key points

  • The paper traces Wittgenstein’s engagement with religion from the Tractatus to his later work.
  • It presents religious expressions as functioning within ordinary language-games.
  • The paper says these expressions make sense against a background of non-religious talk and observation.
  • It also describes personal use of words as able to intensify their meaning, with possible success or failure.
  • The authors link philosophy and religion through the recovery of words that speak for us.

Disclosure

Research title:
Wittgenstein links religious language to ordinary life
Authors:
Piergiorgio Donatelli
Institutions:
Sapienza University of Rome
Publication date:
2026-02-02
DOI:
10.3390/rel17020181
OpenAlex record:
View
AI provenance: This post was generated by gpt-5.4-mini (OpenAI). The original authors did not write or review this post.