Contemporary theology grapples with the fundamental question of whether religious language functions cognitively, asserting facts about reality, or non-cognitively, expressing emotions, moral commitments, or symbolic truths. While some argue that religious utterances are primarily non-cognitive, traditional Abrahamic faiths inherently understand their core statements about God as referring to an objectively existing, transcendent being. This understanding anchors the debate on the factual truth of religious claims, including God's existence and involvement in the world.
Regarding the problem of evil, one perspective, the "Irenaean" theodicy, proposes that the world is a "soul-making" environment. In this view, challenges and suffering are instrumental in fostering human moral and spiritual development, suggesting a divine purpose that ultimately aims for universal fulfillment rather than eternal damnation. The nature of God is characterized as "factually necessary" – meaning self-existent, uncaused, and eternal – a distinction from logical necessity that addresses philosophical critiques.
A significant transformation in understanding global faiths, termed a "Copernican revolution," is advocated. This shifts from a self-centric (e.g., Christianity-centric) view to a God-centric one, proposing that all major religious traditions are genuine, culturally conditioned encounters with the same infinite divine reality. Consequently, the traditional doctrine of the Incarnation, particularly the deification of Jesus, is reinterpreted as a "religious myth." This myth serves as a powerful symbolic expression of Jesus' profound mediation of divine love and his saving impact, rather than a literal metaphysical assertion, and does not inherently imply that Christianity is the sole path to salvation. Finally, belief in personal survival after death is affirmed as an integral component of Christian faith, stemming from Jesus' teachings and the inherent nature of God's universal love and purpose for humanity.
3. Religious Faith As Experiencing
4. God, Evil, And Mystery: The Problem Of Evil In First And Last Things
6. The Reconstruction And Essence Of Christian Belief
7. Theology's Copernican Revolution And The Universe Of Faiths