How do philosophers see theology? How do theologians see philosophy? How do Christian philosophers and theologians differ from secular philosophers and theologians? Do philosophers and theologians practice their disciplines differently? Do philosophy and theology complement one another?
Definitions
I have continued to define theology as the study of God’s revelation for our edification. Not unlike theology, philosophy has various ways of being defined. The etymology of “philosophy” is the love (philo) of wisdom (sophia). Hence, a philosopher is literally someone who loves wisdom.
Alvin Plantinga defines philosophy as thinking hard about something. This way of defining philosophy sheds light on its true meaning: at its core, philosophy is not about religion, but about critical thinking. And it shows how expansive and encompassing philosophy actually is.
To avoid making philosophy seem too broad, I define philosophy as the study of the totality of reality and being. Its branches include logic, epistemology (knowledge), ontology (being), ethics, aesthetics, and metaphysics (reality).
Polemics
Very few theologians have believed in the literal incompatibility of philosophy and theology (called the “Conflict” view). Even seemingly fervent opponents of philosophical exploration, like Karl Barth, upon further glance, only mean to say that philosophy is a separate discipline, biblical truths cannot be validated by philosophical inquiry, and human reason should never be elevated to that of Scripture, since Scripture is a direct revelation from God and philosophy is not. This is much closer to what is called the “Disjunctive” view, which denies significant overlap between theological and philosophical studies. It is unlike the Christian tradition to suggest that theological truths and human reasoning literally conflict. Therefore, the question for the vast majority of theologians is not if philosophy and theology are integrated, but to what extent they are integrated.
Secular polemics against theology is not such a minority view. Secular philosophers who reject theology as a field of philosophical inquiry likely do so out of a mischaracterized distinction between faith and reason. They may define faith as blind faith, and theology as subjective religious experience. In actuality, reason is inherent to theology (hence, “the study of,” in my definition); and faith is not the absence of reason, but trusting with good reason. Luke writes, “As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead” (Ac 17:2-3).
Integration View
Standing completely opposite is the “Integration” view, which teaches that philosophy and theology are not separate activities. Instead, the pursuit of rational truth about God is a process which includes both Scripture and philosophy (and any other form of knowledge). This was the predominant view through at least the first millennium of Christianity and still has a following today.
Since the very beginning of Christianity, theology and philosophy were not seen as opposing one another, in fact, the early Christian thinkers did not even use such dividing terms. If anything, they would have considered their “theological” work as philosophy! They saw their philosophical arguments as fruits of spiritual growth and Christian virtue.
The problem with this view in modernity is that the discipline of philosophy has become almost completely secularized, Christianity no longer dominates the field. Secular philosophers would certainly not accept this view of integration. Moreover, contemporary theologians are reluctant to uphold this view because it apparently blurs the boundaries of authority. Suppose that the study of metaphysics is not on equal authority with Scripture, we should therefore not synonymize philosophy and theology into a single discipline.
Philosophy in Theology
So how should we actually view the connection between philosophy and theology? The view that most accurately reflects the relation, which was also held by Thomas Aquinas, is called the “Cooperation” view. It teaches that while philosophy and theology are separate, they serve in mutually supporting roles, denying any apparent conflict.
In general practice, philosophy and theology operate on different foundations of authority. Theology functions on the basis of biblical and divine revelation, whereas philosophy does so through human reason alone. Notwithstanding, themes and content undoubtedly overlap.
Consider philosophical questions like, “what is the meaning and purpose of life?” “does the supernatural exist?” “where does morality come from?” “why does anything exist rather than nothing?” “can we know if a god exists?” All of these have unavoidable theological implications.
Now consider these theological questions: “What is God like?” “why did God create us?” what does God desire for us?” “is God the standard for morality or did he simply create an arbitrary moral code?” “what are ways God has revealed himself?” Philosophy will help illuminate our responses to these questions.
Although, there is plenty of content that does not overlap. Whether Christ died for our sins or not is a matter of relative indifference for secular philosophers. Likewise, whether time is tensed or tenseless is typically unimportant to theologians. Consequently, philosophy and theology can be distinguished both in practice and in content, but these differences are not antithetical. From a Christian perspective, both aim for truth and are ultimately sourced from God, and thus, cannot conflict.
Theologians seeking to construct, refine, or analyze Christian doctrine will inevitably ask philosophical questions. So much so that today, philosophical theology is a highly regarded field of theological studies. In fact, I am convinced that, whether by ignorance or practice, all branches of theology utilize philosophy to an extent.
Consider inerrancy: everything the Bible teaches is true, it does not teach falsehoods, and there are no actual logical contradictions. This is a philosophical model or formulation of a theological idea derived in Scripture. Again, consider Christology: Christ has two natures, one human and one divine. This is a biblical doctrine in terms of it being taught in Scripture, but its formulation is done through philosophical tools, such as logic and analysis. The early church used the same tools of philosophy to organized and structure creedal statements in response to philosophical disputes. Accordingly, philosophy serves its complementary role in theology by shedding light on Christian doctrine.
I hope this essay provided a thought-provoking discussion on the fascinating interconnection between the fields of philosophy and theology.
Christian A. Meister
Source: Wood, William, "Philosophy and Christian Theology", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2022 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.).
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