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Alister McGrath, Christian Theology: An Introduction. Chapter 7 Knowledge of God: Natural and Revealed. Introduction The Idea of Revelation An issue from the Bible, or from modern philosophy? The seeds of revelation in the Bible Models of Revelation Revelation as doctrine
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Alister McGrath, Christian Theology: An Introduction Chapter 7 Knowledge of God: Natural and Revealed Wiley-Blackwell 2010
Introduction • The Idea of Revelation • An issue from the Bible, or from modern philosophy? • The seeds of revelation in the Bible • Models of Revelation • Revelation as doctrine • Scripture: conversative evangelicalism • Carl F.H. Henry, God, Revelation, and Authority • Tradition: Catholic neo-scholasticism • Critiques • George Lindbeck • Karl Barth Wiley-Blackwell 2010
Revelation as presence • Martin Buber (1878-1965) • Emil Brunner, Truth as Encounter • Revelation as experience • F.D.E. Schleiermacher (1768-1834) • On Religion: Speeches to its Cultured Despisers • The Christian Faith • Revelation as history • Wolfhart Pannenberg (born 1928) • God’s self-revelation occurred through acts of God in history • Revelation is apprehended at the end, not the beginning • God’s revelation in history is publicly and universal accessible • God’s universal revelation is fully realized in the destiny of Jesus • The Christ-event is set in the context of Israel Wiley-Blackwell 2010
Natural Theology: Its Scope and Limits • Thomas Aquinas on natural theology • Causality • God’s perfection • John Calvin on natural theology • Subjective ground of knowledge: “sense of divinity” • Objective ground of knowledge: inspection of the created order • The role of revelation and Scripture • Knowledge of God as creator; knowledge of God as redeemer • The Reformed tradition on natural theology • Two modes of knowing God: natural order and Scripture • God’s two books: nature and Scripture Wiley-Blackwell 2010
Approaches to Discerning God in Nature • Human reason • Augustine, On the Trinity • The ordering of the world • John Polkinghorne (b. 1930) • The beauty of the world • Jonathan Edwards (1703-58) • Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905-88) Wiley-Blackwell 2010
Objections to Natural Theology • A theological objection: Karl Barth • Attempt to undermine the necessity and uniqueness of divine revelation • Criticisms of Barth’s position • Inadequate biblical foundations • Departure from the Reformed tradition • Potential for disinterest in natural sciences • A theological response: Thomas F. Torrance • Barth’s objection: autonomous and independent natural theology • Attempt to bridge disjunction between God and the world • A philosophical objection: Alvin Plantinga • Belief in God as basic, rather than grounded on another more basic belief • Attempts to prove God’s existence rejected • A philosophical response: William P. Alston • Convergence between natural theology and traditional arguments for God’s existence • A debate: Karl Barth vs. Emil Brunner (1934) • Brunner: “point of contact” for divine revelation within human nature • Barth: rejection of the analogia entis Wiley-Blackwell 2010
The Natural Sciences and Christian Theology: Models of Interaction • The continuity between science and theology • Liberal Protestantism • Process theology • Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955) • The distinctiveness of science and theology • Neo-orthodoxy • Langdon Gilkey (1919-2004) • Karl Rahner (1904-84) • The convergence of science and theology • Thomas F. Torrance • Alister McGrath • The opposition of science and theology • The “New Atheism” • Scientific creationism Wiley-Blackwell 2010