Preliminary communication
https://doi.org/10.31823/d.33.1.6
The Fear of Death: “The King of Terrors” and the Source of Mental Illnesses
Boris Vulić
orcid.org/0000-0002-3517-2502
; Catholic Faculty of Theology in Đakovo, J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek, Đakovo, Croatia
Abstract
The fear of death is a fundamental and universal human fear that is most often revealed as a fear of nothingness, loss of control, and ultimate meaninglessness. Modern science recognizes the presence of this fear as the basis of all human fears, and thus also of certain mental disorders (anxiety, depression, panic attacks, etc.). The paper analyzes and interprets the main theses of the phenomenology of the fear of death in the following authors: Lj. Erić, K. Katinić, I. D. Yalom, and St. Ambrose. The final part presents the theological meaning of the fear of death as both a gift and a task, particularly in light of the insights of I. Raguž. The fear of death is not part of God’s original plan; it is a punishment for the sins of our first parents that all people inherit. However, like death, fear is also a gift – if it returns a person to the original fear, the greatest fear, which is the fear of God.
Keywords
fear of death; mental illnesses; phobias; anxiety; depression; fear of God
Hrčak ID:
331330
URI
Publication date:
29.5.2025.
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