The Epistemic Status of Christian Beliefs

Author: (American) Plantinga / Xing Taotao et al.
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2004-10-01
Features: This book is the final installment of Plantinga's trilogy on warranted belief, where he distinguishes knowledge from mere true belief. The first two books focus on the problem of warranted belief within the realm of strict epistemology. This book further explores whether theistic beliefs, particularly Christian beliefs, are warranted. Can Christian beliefs be accepted on an intellectual level? Can they be accepted by intelligent and well-read people in the early 21st century? Plantinga addresses these questions directly, examining whether Christian beliefs are rational and defensible; thus, if they are true, they constitute knowledge. Plantinga argues that people not only possess ordinary natural cognitive faculties, such as perception, memory, and reasoning, which enable us to acquire knowledge about objects, but also have a special natural cognitive faculty that allows us to form warranted Christian beliefs. He describes how this faculty can be corrupted and damaged by sin, yet repaired by faith, producing warranted Christian beliefs in the hearts of believers. He then explores a view shared by Aquinas and Calvin, namely that Christian beliefs have a very natural resource, which Aquinas calls "the inner impulse of the Holy Spirit" and Calvin names "the inner testimony of the Holy Spirit." This book showcases the unparalleled academic strength of one of today's finest epistemologists, captivating philosophers and theologians alike and posing a significant challenge.