Religious Language

What does the common-sense literal view claim

Religious claims are meant literally and are true or false - means what it says

Example of the literal view

A priest saying "The Blood of Christ" literally means the wine has become Jesus's blood

Strength of the literal view

Easily accessible, since it doesn't require interpretation

Weakness of the literal view

It leaves religious language open to the verification/falsification challenge

Who came up with the concept of a blik

R.M. Hare

What is a blik

An unfalsifiable assumption that shapes how someone interprets all experience

Example of a blik

A student convinced all professors want to kill him, unmoved by counter-evidence

Strength of the blik theory

Shows a statement can be meaningful even if it isn't objectively verifiable

Weakness of the blik theory

Hare himself admits some bliks can be insane

Who came up with the language-game theory

Wittgenstein

What does the language-game theory claim

Words get their meaning from the shared rules of the community using them

Example of the language-game theory

"God forgives me" only makes sense within religious practice

Strength of the language-game theory

Avoids the problems of verification

Weakness of the language-game theory

Unclear how evangelism can work if you need to be inside the language-game to understand it

Who came up with the doctrine of analogy

Thomas Aquinas

What does the analogy theory claim

Words about God are neither univocal nor equivocal, but analogical

Example of the analogy of attribution

We call a body healthy and urine healthy despite it meaning different things so saying God is good is not the same as saying good dog

Example of the analogy of proportionality

"Powerful" applies proportionally to God, a human, and an ant

Strength of the analogy theory

Avoids reducing God to a human level, unlike univocal language

Weakness of the analogy theory

Analogy relies on some similarity between God and creatures, but Aquinas also insists God is radically transcendent and unlike creatures

Who came up with the symbolic theory

Paul Tillich

What does the symbolic theory claim

Religious claims must be made through symbols since God transcends ordinary experience

Example of a symbol (vs a sign)

A flag is a sign of a country but also participates in the power and dignity of that country

The only literal statement Tillich says we can make about God

That God is Being-Itself

Strength of the symbolic theory

Preserves God's transcendence while still allowing meaningful religious communication

Weakness of the symbolic theory

Hick argues that if all language is symbolic, we cannot make any factual claims about God

Who is associated with the Via Negativa

Mystics, captured in Wittgenstein's line "Whereof we cannot speak, thereof we must remain silent"

What does the Via Negativa claim

We can only meaningfully describe what God is not, not what God is

Example of the Via Negativa

Saying God is "not limited," "not mortal," and "not evil"

Strength of the Via Negativa

Intellectually honest about God's transcendence, avoiding anthropomorphism

Weakness of the Via Negativa

If we can only say what God is not, religious language loses its ability to inspire or connect believers to God