The Moment

“Every moment is the moment of possible decision.”

Definition

The Moment (kairos) is the qualitatively charged instant where decision and transformation become possible. Unlike chronos (quantitative, measurable time), the moment is the rupture in continuous time where action can change everything.

Key Aspects

  • Kairos vs Chronos: Qualitative vs quantitative time
  • Decision: The moment demands response
  • Rupture: Breaks the continuity of “homogeneous, empty time”
  • Revolutionary Potential: Each moment contains possibility

Connection to Benjamin

Benjamin’s concept of Jetztzeit (now-time) names the moment when it becomes charged with messianic possibility. The monad is a crystallized moment where past and present illuminate each other.


“The present, which, as a model of Messianic time, comprises the entire history of mankind in an enormous abridgement.” — Walter Benjamin