What is God’s purpose for human reason?
About 2000 years ago, the crucifier of the truth, asked Jesus, “What is truth”? (John 18:38). Such questions are fundamental to human life and include: “How can we know what is true?” and “Can we be certain of anything?” These questions make up the field of epistemology– the study of how we know what we know. It reminds us that there is a human being between us and God.
In recent years epistemology has been a hot topic in Christian theology because of how our postmodern culture has questioned the very foundations of knowledge and truth. It is also an important part of a systematic theology as it is helpful to understand how we know what is true, before deciding what is true. This is why John Calvin began his Institutes discussing the knowledge of our self, before the knowledge of God. Accordingly, Thomas Oden has said, “No study of God is complete without dealing with the limits and resources of human reasoning in God’s presence.”
While many modern Christian philosophers are neglecting the God-given place of human reason in the process of divine revelation, we defend it here, and offer several critiques of popular epistemological views.
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