Atheism, religion, and philosophical "availability'' in Gabriel Marcel

The dramatic change in the focus and overall project of French philosophy since World War I has become increasingly apparent, with one of the resultant developments being, as Geroulanos (An atheism that is not humanist emerges in French thought, 2010) has identified, the emergence of "an atheism that is not humanist.'' This article discusses parallels between the philosophical methodology of Gabriel Marcel (1889-1973) and this new form of atheism. In so doing, it explores connections between Marcel and French philosophy's more recent "(re)turn to religion,'' and uses these to demonstrate how Marcel's notion of disponibilite or "availability'' operates with respect to Marcel's conception of philosophy itself.