This document is a thesis submitted by Alexander Christopher Karolis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the Australian National University in September 2014. The thesis examines the role of religion in understanding the material world through an analysis of Jean-Luc Nancy's project of deconstructing Christianity. It engages with Nancy's work through the ontological question of the meaning of being and draws out intersections with broader ethical, ontological and political aspects of his thought. The thesis is organized around six themes: the secular, globalization, community, abandonment, the body, and touch.

1.
ON
THE
DECONSTRUCTION
OF
CHRISTIANITY:
TECHNĒ
AND
TOUCHING—ABANDONED
BODIES
IN
THE
PHILOSOPHY
OF
JEAN-­‐LUC
NANCY
ALEXANDER
CHRISTOPHER
KAROLIS
Australian
National
University
A
thesis
submitted
for
the
degree
of
Doctor
of
Philosophy
of
The
Australian
National
University
September
2014

3.
The
work
contained
in
this
thesis
submission
is
wholly
my
own
Alexander
Christopher
Karolis

5.
In
memory
of
my
father
Christopher
Karolis
Born
Nicosia
Cyprus
20th
April
1947
Died
Sydney
Australia
31st
August
2001

7.
dedicated
to
my
mother
and
father

9. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
While
this
list
is
far
from
exhaustive,
and
I
am
grateful
to
the
many
people
who
have
touched
my
heart
as
I
wrote
this
doctoral
dissertation,
I
would
like
to
especially
thank
the
following
people
for
their
love,
support,
and
inspiration.
To
my
mother
Sue
Karolis,
for
the
bright
light
cast
by
her
unwavering
love,
without
which
I
would
have
lost
my
way.
To
my
partner
Jessie
Levens,
for
her
love
and
selflessness
each
and
every
day,
and
for
more
than
could
ever
be
expressed
in
mere
words.
To
my
brother
Antony
Karolis,
for
his
love
and
friendship—and
for
his
timely
support
and
encouragement
when
it
was
dearly
needed.
To
my
sister
Christina
Karolis
for
her
love
and
kindness.
To
Fiona
Jenkins,
my
supervisor
and
mentor,
for
her
continuous
support
and
steadfast
confidence.
A
person
of
exceptional
personal
integrity,
she
provided
guidance
and
tirelessly
read
and
commented
on
my
work
while
also
giving
me
space
to
roam
and
wonder.
The
many
lessons
I
continue
to
learn
as
her
student,
have
not
only
inspired
and
shaped
this
work,
but
will
also
stay
with
me
for
the
rest
of
my
life.
To
William
McClure
for
his
constant
encouragement
and
friendship.
To
Adriana
Siddle
and
Andrew
Fitzgerald,
for
their
friendship—and
the
many
nights
spent
discussing
(among
other
topics)
philosophy,
politics,
and
mathematics.
To
Giles
and
Heidi
Cornelia,
for
their
friendship,
and
for
opening
their
hearts
and
their
home.
To
Sensei
Neil
Phillips,
for
his
spiritual
guidance,
friendship,
and
support—and
to
all
the
seniors,
for
their
friendship
both
on
and
off
the
mat.
To
Sensei
Hunter
‘Chip’
Armstrong,
for
sharing
his
knowledge
and
hospitality.
To
William
McClure,
Erturk
Demirel,
Mathew
Abbott,
Jessica
Whyte,
Barbara
Clare,
Amelia
Searle
and
Nicolas
Lema
for
both
their
friendship
and
comments
on
my
thoughts
and
work.
To
the
three
anonymous
referees,
who
commented
on
an
early
version
of
what
is
now
part
of
chapter
one,
in
the
process
of
its
submission
to
Sophia:
International
Journal
of
Philosophy
and
Tradition.
To
the
participants
at
the
Peter
Herbst
Colloquium
on
“abandoned
being
in
the
philosophy
of
Jean-­‐Luc
Nancy,”
that
took
place
at
the
ANU
in
2012,
especially
Fiona
Jenkins,
Desmond
Manderson,
Alison
Ross,
Jessica
Whyte,
and
Charles
Barbour.

11. ABSTRACT
The
question
posed
by
this
dissertation
is
what
role,
if
any,
does
religion
continue
to
play
in
understanding
the
material
world?
The
direction
taken
by
human
thought
in
the
Western
world
since
the
enlightenment
has
shaped,
and
continues
to
shape,
a
multifarious
habitat
of
interconnected
materiality.
There
are
two
intertwined
and
seemingly
competing
aspects
to
this,
the
secular
and
the
religious.
As
the
capacity
of
religious
political
power
to
direct
thought
declined,
and
the
counter-­‐balance
of
secularism
increased,
human
endeavor
directed
its
energy
toward
the
path
of
“reasoned”
thinking.
This
had,
roughly
speaking,
two
consequences:
an
ever
intensifying
influence
of
technology
in
shaping
the
“world”,
and
the
envelopment
of
economies
of
exchange
over
the
globe.
What
relation
is
there
between,
on
the
one
hand,
the
spread
of
economic-­‐rationalism
and
technology,
and
on
the
other
hand,
the
continued
pervasive
influence
of
religion
in
the
world?
I
approach
these
questions
through
the
work
of
Jean-­‐Luc
Nancy
in
his
project,
the
deconstruction
of
Christianity.
In
so
doing,
I
engage
Nancy’s
project
through
the
ontological
question
of
the
meaning
of
being,
and
draw
out
the
intersection
that
Nancy’s
ruminations
on
Christianity
have
with
the
broader
ethical,
ontological
and
political,
aspects
of
his
thought.
Six
themes
form
the
basis
of
the
chapters:
the
secular,
globalization,
community,
abandonment,
the
body,
and
touch.
Nancy’s
thought
reveals
a
continuous
interplay
and
synergy
between
secularization,
the
impact
of
secularization
in
technology
and
economic
rationalization,
and
the
“decline”
of
Christianity.
In
following
Nancy’s
thought,
I
consider
how
his
philosophy
intersects
with
a
number
of
key
influences,
and
I
draw
heavily
on
aspects
of
the
work
of
Hegel,
Nietzsche,
Heidegger,
and
Derrida.
I
also
discuss
the
interplay
between
Nancy’s
thought
and
interlocutors,
obvious
and
otherwise,
such
as
Charles
Taylor
and
Catherine
Malabou.
What
I
demonstrate
in
this
dissertation
is
the
ever-­‐present
role
Christianity
plays
in
shaping
the
world;
and,
by
citing
the
deconstruction
of
Christianity
as
an
intrinsic
facet
of
his
broader
ontological
project,
I
claim
that
Nancy
provides
a
novel
and
convincing
understanding
of
existence
that
draws
upon
how
being
shares
the
world
with
others.