Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion

300 Terms Thinkers Clearly Concisely Defined

C. Stephen Evans

• Publisher: IVP Academic
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9780830867011
• Topic: Theologie & Religion
• Subtopic: Christliche Theologie

For philosophers, the pursuit of truth travels on precise definitions. For Christian apologists, the defense of the faith is founded on the defining Word. And for beginning students of either discipline, the difference between success and frustration begins with understanding the terms and ideas and identifying the thinkers and movements.The Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics Philosophy of Religion is designed to be a companion to your study of these two related disciplines. Among its 300 entries are- terms, from a posteriori to worldview- apologists, from Abelard to Van Til- philosophers of religion, from Alston to Wolterstorff- movements, from analytic philosophy to voluntarism- apologetic arguments, from the cosmological to the wager- theologies, from Arminianism to ZoroastrianismHere is an affordable and easily accessible "help key" for your readings, lectures, writing assignments and exam preparation. It's a must-have study aid for any student who expects to cogitate on coherentism or ruminate on Ricouer.Designed for students and pastors alike, the short and accessible volumes in the IVP Pocket Reference Series will help you tackle the study of biblical languages, church history, apologetics, world religions, Christian spirituality, ethics, theology, and more.

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a posteriori, a priori. Terms used to describe the logical status of propositions and arguments with respect to their dependence upon, or independence from, sense experience. An a posteriori proposition is one that is known on the basis of sense experience. An a priori proposition is one that can be determined to be true independently of sense experience. Most philosophers agree that analytic propositions such as “All bachelors are unmarried” can be known a priori, because their truth cannot be affected by any empirical observations. However, the status of mathematical and metaphysical propositions (such as “Whatever has a beginning has a cause”) is debated.

Abelard, Peter (1079-1142). French Scholastic philosopher and theologian who made important contributions to logic and philosophy of language, and offered notable explications of such Christian doctrines as the Trinity and the atonement. Abelard is also famous for a celebrated, tragic love affair with Héloïse (c. 1117). He was the first Western medieval philosopher to make use of Aristotle’s On Interpretation.

action (divine and human). A special type of event originated by persons understood as “agents,” that is, conscious beings with intentions. Thus, when the event that constitutes my arm being raised is brought about by my raising my arm, the change constitutes an act or action. (Having one’s arm raised against one’s will by a rope attached to it would not constitute an action.) Many actions are performed by doing other actions. For example, I turn on the light by flipping the switch. However, not all actions are of this sort; some are “basic actions,” since if I must always perform one action to carry out another, an infinite regress would ensue. Philosophers debate whether basic actions are a type of bodily movement or whether such bodily movements are the result of something still more basic—a volition or mental act of willing. Actions are typically done for a reason, and there is also controversy as to how actions are to be explained. Are reasons to be understood as causes? Debate also rages as to whether all actions are causally determined. (See determinism; free will.) To think of God as a personal agent is to attribute to God the power to act as well. Debates here link up with disputes about whether God is atemporal or everlasting; does God do all he does in one eternal action, or is he capable of sequential acts? (See eternity/everlasting.) How are God’s actions related to the divine will and intellect? God’s actions must be understood in relation to creation and providence and in connection with special acts such as miracles. See also divine action.

Advaita Vedanta. A nondualistic form of Hindu theology, or Vedanta. According to Advaita Vedanta, ultimate reality is one—the absolute divine unity of Brahman that is beyond description in language. The human soul, or Atman, is identical with this absolute reality, and enlightenment or deliverance involves a realization of this oneness. At the level of appearance, objects in the world seem to be distinct from such things as the self and a personal deity. According to Advaita Vedanta, the sacred Hindu writings the Upanishads teach that such distinctions are not metaphysically ultimate. See also Hinduism; monism.

afterlife. See life after death.

agapism. A type of ethical tradition that centers on the Christian understanding of love as agape (self-giving love of the “neighbor”) in distinction from philia (friendship love) and eros (love involving desire, such as romantic love). Agapism focuses on the great love commandments of Matthew 22:37-40 as well as the centrality of love in other New Testament writings. Though there is a long tradition of Christian reflection on this theme, Anders Nygren’s Agape and Eros (1930) is a seminal, though much-criticized, twentieth-century presentation of agapism in ethics.

agnosticism. The position that neither affirms belief in God (theism) nor denies the existence of God (atheism) but instead suspends judgment. It is helpful to distinguish the “modest agnostic,” who merely claims to be unable to decide the question of God’s reality, from the “aggressive agnostic,” who claims that no one can decide the question and that suspension of judgment is the only reasonable stance. See also belief; doubt.

Alston, William (1921-2009). North American Christian philosopher who has done important work in epistemology, philosophy of language, philosophy of perception and philosophy of religion. Alston was part of the group (along with Alvin Plantinga and Nicholas Wolterstorff) that developed Reformed Epistemology. He was also the prime mover behind the founding of the Society of Christian Philosophers. He served as the first president of that organization as well as the first editor of its journal, Faith and Philosophy.

analogical predication. Language used to describe God that is between univocal language, in which terms applied to two or more objects have precisely the same sense, and equivocal language, in which the same term is applied to two or more things in completely unrelated senses. Philosophers such as Thomas Aquinas have claimed that positive language derived from our experience of the finite world cannot be applied univocally to God but that terms such as “goodness” and “knowledge” can be applied analogically to God, meaning that God possesses in an unrestricted fashion the perfections the terms designate.

analogy of being. The view that, though God is infinite and the created world is finite, the being of the world reflects enough of its Creator so that the language used to describe it can be applied analogically to God. This view is usually associated with philosophical arguments for the existence of God. (See theistic arguments.) The analogical similarity is usually thought to be particularly valid for human beings since they are created in the image of God. The analogy of being has been rejected by Karl Barth and others who are critical of natural theology. See also analogical predication.

analogy of faith. The view that interpretation of the Scriptures should be governed by faith. For Augustine, this meant that the Scriptures should be interpreted in terms of the “rule of faith”—the teachings of the church as embedded in the creeds. For Martin Luther, the analogy of faith was linked to the person of Christ—specifically, all of Scripture should be interpreted as testifying to Christ. For John Calvin, the principle implied that interpretation must be shaped by the Spirit who inspired the writing of the Scriptures. In all these cases, some parts of the Scriptures are regarded as clearer and more definitive than others and are to be used to interpret those less clear passages. See also hermeneutics.

analytic philosophy. The type of philosophy that has been dominant in England since about 1930 and in North America since World War II. Influential early analytic philosophers included Bertrand Russell and Ludwig Wittgenstein. Analytic philosophers have no shared body of philosophical views but are distinguished by a style of philosophizing that emphasizes precise language analysis and the use of logical techniques to analyze arguments. (see logical positivism.) Analytic philosophy of religion includes vigorous debates about the existence of God, the problem of evil, the evidential value of religious experience and even such specific Christian doctrines as the Trinity, the incarnation and the atonement.

angels. Powerful spiritual creatures who serve as messengers and agents of God. Though angels may take bodily form, many philosophers who believe in their reality think of them as immaterial beings. Many who accept the reality of angels as personal beings also believe in fallen angels, or demons, who have rebelled against divine authority, with Satan as their leader.

animism. A perspective on the world that sees spiritual powers or forces as residing in and controlling all of the natural world. Thus an animist would recognize not only spirits in animals and humans but also the spirits of trees, rivers and other natural entities.

Anselm, St. (1033-1109). Anselm was an archbishop of Canterbury who is noted for his invention of the ontological argument for God’s existence (in his Proslogion) and his classical formulation of a doctrine of the atonement that sees Christ’s sacrifice as providing satisfaction for human sin (in his Cur Deus homo, or Why God Became Man). Anselm was a follower of Augustine and continued the tradition of “faith seeking understanding.”

anthropomorphism. The human tendency to see other things as analogous to ourselves. Thus people sometimes see their pets in overly anthropomorphic terms. In philosophy of religion, the term anthropomorphism is often used critically, to refer to views of God that make God seem too similar to finite human persons. Ludwig Feuerbach claimed that all theology is anthropomorphic, since God is essentially a projection of unfulfilled human potential.

antirealism. A philosophical theory that denies the mind-independent existence of some type of being or of being in general. The former type of antirealism may be called regional antirealism; the latter may be called global antirealism. Examples of regional antirealists would be philosophers who reject the independent reality of numbers, abstract entities in general, and unobservable theoretical entities in science. Global antirealists, influenced by Immanuel Kant, typically argue that humans cannot know reality as it is in itself, independent of our human concepts. See also idealism; realism.

antithesis. A term often used in popular expositions of G. W. F. Hegel’s dialectical logic, though it was rarely used by Hegel himself. Hegel’s dialectical logic makes heavy use of triads, in which the second element of the triad in some way undermines or negates the first element, or “thesis,” thereby becoming its “antithesis.” This opposition is in turn overcome in the third element, or “synthesis,” which is supposed to capture the truth that is one-sidedly expressed by each of the first two elements while overcoming their one-sidedness. (See dialectic.) The term is also used in Reformed theology by followers of the Dutch theologian and statesman Abraham Kuyper to denote the sharp opposition between patterns of thinking that are faithful to God and those that are shaped by sinful rebellion.

apologetics. The rational defense of Christian faith. Historically, apologetic arguments of various types have been given: philosophical arguments for the existence of God; arguments that the existence of God is compatible with suffering and evil; historical arguments, such as arguments from miracles and fulfilled prophecies; and arguments from religious experience, including mystical experience. (See argument from prophecy; evil, problem of; mysticism; theistic arguments.) Some distinguish positive apologetics, which attempts to argue for the truth of Christianity, from negative apologetics, which merely attempts to remove barriers to faith by responding to critical attacks.

Aquinas, St. Thomas (1225-1274). The most famous and influential of the medieval philosopher-theologians. Aquinas is noted for his synthesis of Christian theology with the philosophy of Aristotle. His general approach is summarized in the memorable dictum that “grace presupposes nature and perfects it.” He is most famous for the Five Ways, by which he demonstrated the existence of God as the First Cause of such things as motion and design and as the necessary being that is the cause of the contingent beings in the natural world. Aquin...