The Incarnation of Life: the Phenomenology of Birth in Henry and Merleau-Ponty

Only a phenomenology of birth can take into real account the essence of manifestation of the radical immanence revealed by naissance. Birth can effectively be more radically thought as the coming of Life to itself through Incarnation. To do so, a new phenomenology is required; a radical phenomenology of Life such as Michel Henry’s material phenomenology. For this reason, Henry’s ‘overturning’ of traditional phenomenology will be considered in order to think the essence of birth. But, at the same time, while accepting the gain of a phenomenology of Life as absolute immanence, we will pass judgment on certain consequences of his phenomenology of the invisible. At this point we will have recourse to Merleau-Ponty’s philosophy trying to demonstrate the fallacy of Henry’s violent critique of his thought and the inner resources of his last and unfinished works.