Table Of Contenti
Debating
Christian
Religious
Epistemology
ii
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iii
Debating
Christian
Religious
Epistemology
An Introduction to
Five Views on the
Knowledge of God
Edited by
John M. DePoe and
Tyler Dalton McNabb
iv
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First published in Great Britain 2020
Copyright © John M. DePoe, Tyler Dalton McNabb and Contributors, 2020
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v
This book is dedicated to our teachers who have instructed and
inspired us to think maturely about religious epistemology, Timothy
McGrew (for John) and Victoria Harrison (for Tyler). Additionally,
we dedicate this book to our families who have patiently endured
our absences while we have worked to bring it to fruition. Thank
you for your love and support!
vi
vii
Contents
Preface ix
Introduction to Religious Epistemology
John M. DePoe and Tyler Dalton McNabb
1
1 Classical Evidentialism John M. DePoe
15
Responses to John M. DePoe 34
Logan Paul Gage and Blake McAllister 34
Tyler Dalton McNabb 39
K.Scott Oliphint 43
Erik Baldwin 47
Response to Critics John M. DePoe 52
2 Phenomenal Conservatism Logan Paul Gage
and Blake McAllister
61
Responses to Logan Paul Gage and Blake McAllister 82
John M. DePoe 82
Tyler Dalton McNabb 86
K.Scott Oliphint 89
Erik Baldwin 93
Response to Critics Logan Paul Gage and Blake McAllister 98
3 Proper Functionalism Tyler Dalton McNabb
107
Response to Tyler Dalton McNabb 123
John M. DePoe 123
Logan Paul Gage and Blake McAllister 128
K.Scott Oliphint 133
Erik Baldwin 136
Response to Critics Tyler Dalton McNabb 141
viii
viii Contents
4 Covenantal Epistemology K. Scott Oliphint
149
Response to K. Scott Oliphint 165
John M. DePoe 165
Logan Paul Gage and Blake McAllister 170
Tyler Dalton McNabb 175
Erik Baldwin 177
Response to Critics K. Scott Oliphint 182
5 Tradition-Based
Perspectivalism Erik Baldwin
191
Response to Erik Baldwin 208
John M. DePoe 208
Logan Paul Gage and Blake McAllister 213
Tyler Dalton McNabb 217
K.Scott Oliphint 220
Response to Critics Erik Baldwin 225
Works Cited 235
List of Contributors 249
Index 251
ix
Preface
The genesis of this book can be traced to many stimulating debates that
we (Tyler and John) have had in recent years as our paths crossed at
academic conferences. Both of us passionately advocate for our distinctive
approaches, especially lobbying our views before up-and-coming graduate
students. In these exchanges, we discovered that much was misunderstood
about our positions—commonly repeated inaccuracies about our positions
or ignorance of answers given to standard objections. Furthermore, we both
expressed frustrations in finding a suitable text for a course on religious
epistemology. It seemed that virtually every available text was either too
specialized or failed to represent multiple views (especially our own) in
a fair or teachably accessible way. Moreover, through these exchanges we
developed a strong friendship and admiration for one another. In a short
time, it occurred to us to rectify this situation by producing our own volume
that would serve the purposes that we perceived were currently absent.
Rather than attempting to write a standard introductory textbook
coauthored by the two of us, we believe that a text authored by representatives
from multiple views on religious epistemology gives readers a fairer
representation of each view and creates a format that is more engaging for
readers. In addition to ourselves, we rounded up the other contributors
to help us bring this vision to life. The primary criteria in selecting these
contributors were that each one represents an important approach to
religious epistemology, has a history of talented and spirited philosophical
writing, and is someone we respect as philosopher, especially in the realm
of religious epistemology. We believe we have succeeded in meeting
contributors who meet these guidelines.
However, we are aware that some readers may be concerned that our
book fails to include some perspective or represent a particular tradition. All
we wish to say to concerns of this sort is that no conscious effort was made
to exclude any points of view, and it is inherent to making any selections
that regrettably others must be excluded. This collection is not intended, for
instance, to be a comprehensive survey of Christian religious epistemologies.
