Religionsphilosophische Aspekte der kantischen Ethik: Die Funktion der Postulatenlehre1

Die Aufbewahrerin dieser Wissenschaft muss nach Kant jederzeit die Philosophie bleiben, »an deren subtiler Untersuchung das Publikum keinen Anteil, wohl aber an den Lehren zu nehmen hat, die ihm nach einer solchen Bearbeitung allererst recht hell einleuchten können«.78 Hoffen wir, dass Kant damit Recht behält. SUMMARY Kant's doctrine of the postulates of the immortality of the soul and the existence of God has not always been appreciated in modern times; easily one can incline to the opinion that this doctrine is a throw-back into dogmatic metaphysics or an attempt to harmonize Kant's ethics with central tenets of the Christian religion. In the article it is argued that the postulates mentioned are not superfluous in ethical respect but an integral part of Kant's moral philosophy. If there were no reason of believing in the possibility of virtue rewarded after death, one could not understand oneself as a rational actor in following strictly the rigid command of duty how perilous the situation might be without any prospect of advantage neither for oneself nor for other human beings.