Re-Visions of God. A Sketch About Julian Stryjkowski's Works

Abstract

The sketch presents images of God emerging from J. Stryjkowski's works. The divine subject could be contained between the image of a domineering dwarf that is formed by man's fear and desires (such is the demonic Jahu in the drama Sodoma) and the picture of impersonal Law, a strict and ruthless Code (this, in turn, is JHWH in Odpowiedź «Reply»). The central vision is an image of a deity being an absolute plenitude, good and evil, but with emphasis on anxiety, darkness, silence and injustice. A search for a milder version of Judaism leads the writer to the vicinity of Christianity: e.g. Amos, the protagonist of the novel Juda Makabi is equipped with evangelical traits of personality. Ultimately, however, in Stryjkowski's works a denominational “fusion of horizons” is not effected (like e.g. in works by R. Brandstaetter), and the postulate (found as soon as at the beginning of his career) to remain faithful to the Jewish nation remains the writer's basic inner obligation.