Christian Philosophy in John Deely's Four Ages of Understanding

New Blackfriar ( the "Journal"), 2018

Fr. Lawrence Dewan O.P. and Etienne Gilson: Christian Philosophy as Interdisciplinary Pursuit of Wisdom Abstract This paper continues as the second part of my study of the relationship of Fr. Lawrence Dewan OP and Etienne Gilson. My first paper explored their metaphysical differences, while this second paper explores their common commitment to Christian philosophy and to St. Thomas Aquinas’ seminal work on the interrelationship of faith and reason as manifest most clearly in the interrelationship of revealed theology and philosophy. This leads us into a closer examination of Gilson’s sustained treatment of this topic. However, we must acknowledge that this topic is often susceptible to unproductive philosophical and metaphysical abstraction. In order to avoid this, we depart from the standard method of treatment through an interdisciplinary appeal to the theological, philosophical, and historical implications of the bodily resurrection of Christ. We argue that though this topic of the resurrection is usually addressed in and limited to sacred theology, and is received as a matter of religious hope and faith, the crucial point of my paper is that in Gilson’s view, as in Fr. Dewan’s and St. Thomas’, as I hope to argue, this topic is not to be reduced by the disciplines of philosophy and history to a marginal and even fanciful afterthought with little connection to reality. On the contrary, this topic is a matter of profound reality and importance with all its mystery and problems, and so is well suited for reflection by a robust and vigorous Christian philosophy in pursuit of wisdom and in virtue of this discipline’s complex but necessary interrelationship with the disciplines of sacred theology and history. Hugh Williams Debec, NB April 13, 2017

New Blackfriars: A Review, 2020

This paper continues as the second part of my study of the relationship of Fr. Lawrence Dewan OP and Etienne Gilson. My first paper explored their metaphysical differences, while this second paper explores their common commitment to Christian philosophy and to St. Thomas Aquinas' seminal work on the interrelationship of faith and reason as manifest most clearly in the interrelationship of revealed theology and philosophy. This leads us into a closer examination of Gilson's sustained treatment of this topic. However, we must acknowledge that this topic is often susceptible to unproductive philosophical and metaphysical abstraction. In order to avoid this, we depart from the standard method of treatment through an interdisciplinary appeal to the theological, philosophical, and historical implications of the resurrection of Christ.

2014

Christianity has, of course, a long history, as do the discussions of that relationship. To promote the possibility of “Christian philosophy” is also to comment on this “and” which in the end is understood as that “love” which defines philosophy as the “love of wisdom” (and finally, the wisdom of love). The position of Towards a Christian Philosophy is thus not dissimilar to that of many of the early Church Fathers, though that position is elaborated differently, being enriched by attention to the history of Western philosophy. Surprisingly for many, the texts of Martin Heidegger, Jacques Derrida, and Paul Ricoeur lend assistance. While on the one hand, the historical, orthodox, and catholic understanding of Christianity is affirmed, on the other, the specifically philosophical pertinence of this understanding emerges from the texts of the “philosophers” considered. Attending to a (Christian) philosophical reflection on (Christian) philosophy offers further elaborations of inherited doctrines, both Christian and philosophical, including a way to read and think unique to the outcome. Such is the adventure of this current work.

Forum Philosophicum, 2021

In this paper, I demarcate the three main stages of development of Étienne Gilson's doctrine concerning Christian philosophy through an examination of some of his key works, treated in chronological order. Thus, I proceed to explicate how Gilson's doctrine developed from its gestational stage in the 1920s, through the first Christian philosophy debate of the 1930s, into its second phase of birth and infancy from the 1930s through the early 1950s, ending with its third period, that of maturity, in the later 1950s and 1960s. Furthermore, I note that implicit throughout those three stages are conceptions of Christian philosophy as existing in two modes: one as the philosophical component present within theology, and the other as, properly speaking, outside of theology-though by no means outside of the influence of Christianity. Additionally, Gilson's influence upon St. John Paul II's treatment of Christian philosophy in Fides et Ratio is addressed. The paper culminates in a demonstration of how Gilson's mature doctrine regarding Christian philosophy is relevant as a guide for the pursuit of Christian philosophy in this, our Third Christian Millennium.

1999

Studies in Religion, 2020

Nancey Murphy (Fuller Theological Seminary) is a Christian philosopher best known for her "nonreductive physicalist" account of human nature, put forth in numerous publications. In A Philosophy of the Christian Religion, Murphy restates this position, but she does so as part of a much broader project. Here her intention is to offer a text that deals with the traditional questions of "faith and reason." She does this in a way that situates such questions firmly within the Christian tradition (as opposed to a generalized "philosophy of religion" approach) and takes into account the particular developments of late modernity. Murphy provides an expansive and interesting survey of the Western philosophical tradition in the process. The book consists of two parts. Part I, "A Brief History of Reason," surveys various ways that reason has been conceived in ancient, medieval, modern, and late modern contexts. In this section, Murphy sketches the situated and contextual nature of what counts as "reason," even while she argues that "the fact of historical change in knowledge does not entail that there is no knowledge at all" (6). She focuses on issues like early Christian appropriations of Greek thought, Aquinas' synthesis of the Aristotelian and Augustinian traditions, Descartes' epistemological revolution, and post-foundationalist approaches to reason in the twentieth century. One of the unique features of this survey is the way that Murphy highlights how particular metaphysical frameworks condition our understandings of reason. Part II, "Crises in Modern Christianity," explores the intellectual crises presented to the Christian tradition by modernity, as well as the ways that the tradition has succeed or failed at answering these questions. These include challenges like shifting theories of knowledge, the critical study of scripture, religious plurality, the problem of special divine action, the problem of evil and suffering, and various challenges to Christianity from the sciences. Murphy states that "in a sense, the whole of this text is an attempt to provide the best account that can be offered. .. of the rationality of the Western Tradition" (182). Murphy relies heavily on Alasdair MacIntyre's account of "large-scale traditions" of human reasoning. According to her reading of MacIntyre, "Traditions develop by means Studies in Religion / Sciences Religieuses 1-3 ª The Author(s) / Le(s) auteur(s), 2020 Article reuse guidelines/ Directives de réutilisation des articles: sagepub.com/journals-permissions

2014

Convinced that those who fail to learn from history are doomed<br> to repeat it, this paper looks at the history of the interaction between<br> Christian faith and culture in the Western tradition. Presenting two<br> millennia of history in such limited space is bound to be fragmentary.<br> But it serves the limited purpose of uncovering the dynamics of the<br> interaction between faith and culture. It is seen that faith flourished as <br> long as it remained faithful to this dynamics and it declined when it<br> failed to do so, i.e., from the modem period to the present. The latter can<br> be seen as a failure of wisdom inasmuch as wisdom consists in creatively<br> responding to a given situation. This realization, in turn, prompts another<br> look at Aquinas to see if he can function as an exemplar for integrating<br> reason and faith in the contemporary world.<br>

Journal for Christian Scholarship, 2019

In 1936, the task fell to Herman Dooyeweerd, one of the Editorial Board of Philosophia Reformata, to introduce the journal to members of the Vereeniging 1 voor Calvinistische Wijsbegeerte and to subscribers. In this inaugural article for the new journal, Dooyeweerd sets forth some basic theses that characterise " this still youthful philosophical movement 2 ". This article examines the first four or so pages of that initial article, which sets the direction for the subsequent discussion and then, for the subsequent contribution of the philosophical association's scholarly journal.

Establishing a new philosophical school of thought in the course of its development naturally generates the need for understandable introductions. The new philosophical movement, initially known as " De Wijsbegeerte der Wetdsidee " (the Philosophy of the Cosmonomic Idea), is no exception. After its main contours took shape during the twenties and thirties of the previous century, its innovating and penetrating systematic analyses inspired first of all J.M. Spier to write such an Introduction. The fourth edition of a largely expanded version appeared in 1950 and the second edition of its English translation in 1976. After establishing special chairs in Reformational Philosophy at various state universities, the respective professors each wrote their own orientations in this philosophy (Popma, Mekkes, and Van Riessen). This process was continued in the appearance of a new generation of Introductions (Kalsbeek, Strauss and Hommes). Soon introductory texts, providing an opportunity for their authors to introduce new insights and developments, entered the scene as well. Hart published a work on " Understanding our World " and Jan Dengerink one on the meaning of reality. Roy Clouser wrote his The Myth of Religious Neutrality and Strauss published a work on Philosophy: Discipline of the Disciplines. Recently we witnessed the appearance of a number of 21 st century Introductions, published by Troost, Bartholomew and Goheen and Ouweneel. While appreciating these new efforts the main focus of this article is directed at demonstrating that