This unit explores the philosophical underpinnings of some key theological turns in Christian history. Variants of Platonism provide the background against which the Hellenistic elements in the New Testament can be interpreted; subsequent Platonist developments inform Augustine s thought and thereby, much later, Luther’s. Similarly, Aristotle sets the scene for Thomas Aquinas; Kant for Schleiermacher and the nineteenth century liberal theologians; Hegel, in a different way, for Kierkegaard and Barth; Heidegger for Bultmann and Rahner. Roundedness is considered important: reformist perspectives on reason are appreciated, in their ultimately complementary contribution to Catholic understandings of natural theology. Throughout, the student is given an engagement with the philosophers concerned, both in their own right and as they provide a background for scriptural and theological contemporaries and successors. With exploration of a contemporary philosophy with theological implications, the unit broaches René Girard's anthropological theology, and its addressing inter alia of philosophico-theological perspectives on current questions, including issues of gender. The student is challenged to address critically the question of whether there exists a theoretical limit to fruitful engagement between philosophical and theological approaches to discovering ultimate meaning.
Unit code: AP8000P
Unit status: Approved (Major revision)
Points: 24.0
Unit level: Postgraduate Foundational
Unit discipline: Philosophy
Delivery Mode: Face to Face
Proposing College: Pilgrim Theological College
Show when this unit is running| 1. | Explain the difference between philosophical and theological approaches to exploring truth |
| 2. | Analyse the ways in which the particular philosophers studied have extensions of their philosophical claims that are essentially theological |
| 3. | Recognise the issues involved in assessing the theological merits and demerits of the various philosophical positions studied |
| 4. | Critically evaluate, with reference to original texts, the coherence of the philosophical positions studied as these bid to inform theological positions |
| 5. | Demonstrate critical understanding, through focus on a particular philosopher or philosophy, of the deeper issues uniting and dividing secular-philosophical and religious-theological approaches |
Lecturing, with discussion and a weekly tutorial. Within the semester, a postgraduate seminar at which the student presents a draft essay, and leads discussion aimed at its improvement towards a final version.
| Type | Description | Word count | Weight (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay 1 (3000 words), following prior presentation at seminar of a draft of the essay*. *Seminar presentation of draft (clarity of presentation and leadership of discussion to be assessed), followed by the written-up essay |
3000 | 50.0 |
| Essay | Essay 2 (3000 words) |
3000 | 50.0 |
Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Prof Albert Haddad on 16 Aug, 2024
Unit record last updated: 2024-08-16 12:58:37 +1000