Kevin S Diller PhD thesis.pdf - University of St Andrews

235 Pages·2008·1.82 MB·English

THE THEOLOGY OF REVELATION AND THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF
CHRISTIAN BELIEF : THE COMPATIBILITY AND
COMPLEMENTARITY OF THE THEOLOGICAL EPISTEMOLOGIES
OF KARL BARTH AND ALVIN PLANTINGA
Kevin S. Diller
A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of PhD
at the
University of St. Andrews
2008
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UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS

ST MARY’S COLLEGE

❧

THE THEOLOGY OF REVELATION AND
THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF CHRISTIAN
BELIEF:

THE COMPATIBILITY AND COMPLEMENTARITY OF
THE THEOLOGICAL EPISTEMOLOGIES OF
KARL BARTH AND ALVIN PLANTINGA

A THESIS SUBMITTED BY

KEVIN S. DILLER

TO THE FACULTY OF DIVINITY

IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND

MARCH 2008
ii

DECLARATIONS

I, Kevin Diller, hereby certify that this thesis, which is approximately
80,000 words in length, has been written by me, that it is the record of
work carried out by me and that it has not been submitted in any
previous application for a higher degree.

date signature of candidate

I was admitted as a research student in January, 2005 and as a
candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in April, 2006; the
higher study for which this is a record was carried out in the University
of St Andrews between 2005 and 2008.

date signature of candidate

I hereby certify that the candidate has fulfilled the conditions of the
Resolution and Regulations appropriate for the degree of Doctor of
Philosophy in the University of St Andrews and that the candidate is
qualified to submit this thesis in application for that degree.

date signature of supervisor
iii

COPYRIGHT

In submitting this thesis to the University of St Andrews I understand
that I am giving permission for it to be made available for use in
accordance with the regulations of the University Library for the time
being in force, subject to any copyright vested in the work not being
affected thereby. I also understand that the title and abstract will be
published, and that a copy of the work may be made and supplied to
any bona fide library or research worker, that my thesis will be
electronically accessible for personal or research use, and that the
library has the right to migrate my thesis into new electronic forms as
required to ensure continued access to the thesis. I have obtained any
third-party copyright permissions that may be required in order to
allow such access and migration.

date signature of candidate
iv

ABSTRACT

This study brings Christian theology and Christian analytic philosophy into dialogue
through an examination of the compatibility and complementarity of Karl Barth’s
theology of revelation, and Alvin Plantinga’s epistemology of Christian belief.
The first two chapters are aimed at elucidating the central features of Karl Barth’s
theology of revelation and clarifying his attitude toward the place of philosophy in
theology. We establish that, for Barth, human knowledge of God is objective, personal,
cognitive knowing, enabled by the Spirit’s transforming gift of participation in revelation.
We dispel the notion that Barth is hostile to philosophy per se and chart the boundaries he
gives for its interface with theology.
In chapters 3 and 4, we focus on Alvin Plantinga’s Christian epistemology of
warranted belief, and its relationship to Barth’s theology of revelation. A general
alignment emerges in their shared inductive approach and agreed rejection of the
necessity and sufficiency of human arguments for warranted Christian belief. Their
contributions are complementary, with Barth providing what Plantinga lacks in
theological depth, and Plantinga providing what Barth lacks in philosophical clarity and
defense. Despite their general compatibility, two areas of significant potential
incompatibility are flagged for closer analysis in the final two chapters.
In chapter 5, we consider their views on natural theology. We extend our thesis of
complementarity with respect to negative apologetics, and argue for a harmonizing
interpretation of their views with respect to a potential positive contribution from natural
theology. The final chapter addresses the role of faith and the constitution of a genuine
human knowledge of God. We conclude that Barth and Plantinga do not disagree about
the personal and propositional character of revelation, but may disagree about the
possibility of a generically theistic de re knowledge of God independent of the Spirit’s
gift of faith.
v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Scotland and more particularly St Andrews has provided in many ways an idyllic setting
for thinking theologically about and engaging philosophically with the gift of Christian
faith. To a large degree, this is because of the relationships we have enjoyed with
extraordinary people. In addition to the tremendous support of family, a number of people
deserve recognition for providing the support, illumination and encouragement that have
made the time working on this project in St Andrews so enjoyable.

The St Mary’s postgraduate community has sustained my family and me within an
extraordinarily supportive and intellectually vibrant Christian environment. Special
thanks to my Melville room colleagues and all those in the Roundel and at the pubs who
have sparked my thinking, gladdened my heart and encouraged my faith.

The St Mary’s teaching faculty have been enormously helpful in ways and to a degree
that they, no doubt, do not fully appreciate. I am particularly thankful for the interaction
afforded by the Theology Seminar and the Scripture and Theology Seminar.

The community of the Parish Church of the Holy Trinity has provided a place for us to
grow in faith and put theology into practice. Special thanks to the MacLeod family and
the other postgraduate families who have served and grown with us there.

The Ogilvys and the Rawlinsons offered tremendously valuable support both in their
contribution to the creation of a St Mary’s postgraduate research building (the Roundel)
and in the final stage of this project through the use of Wester Coates house in the East
Neuk of Fife.

In addition to their friendship and support for our family, a number of postgraduate
colleagues have been instrumental in ensuring that I received a well-rounded theological
education, most significantly Luke Tallon, Marc Cortez, Josh Moon, Daniel Driver,
Aaron Kuecker, Kelly Liebengood, Jason Goroncy, R. J. Matava, Amber Warhurst, and
Jeremy Gabrielson.

My thesis examiners, Professor Trevor Hart and Dr Oliver Crisp, were extremely helpful
in their critical remarks and provided a thorough and challenging engagement with my
arguments during the examination.

The reason we came to St Andrews, Professor Torrance, to whom this work must be
dedicated, has proven to be one of the most astonishingly inspirational figures in my
intellectual and spiritual development.

Finally, it must be said that Gwenael is the real heroine of this period of our lives. She not
only bore two sons in Scotland but propped up our family with countless acts of unfailing
love in the midst of the chaos of young children an erratic work schedule. I am extremely
thankful for the steadfastness of her love and encouragement.
vi

DEDICATION

To Professor Alan Torrance, in whose debt I will ever remain,
for his trenchant theological insight, tenacious encouragement
and unflagging demonstration of the most profound courage,
charity and generosity in the face of tremendous adversity.
vii

CONTENTS

Abbreviations ix

Introduction 1

Part I: KARL BARTH’S THEOLOGY OF REVELATION AND
PHILOSOPHICAL ENGAGEMENT

1. Barth’s Theology of Revelation: The Way Von Oben 7
Knowing in Reflection on Revelation 8
God as Object and Subject of His Personal, Cognitive Revelation 10
The Hiddenness of God in Revelation 17
Revelation as Whole Person Transformation 22
Conclusion 25

2. Barth’s Engagement with Philosophy: A Theo-foundational Epistemology 26
Why Theology is Not Philosophy 27
Contesting the Ontological Presupposition of the Enlightenment 33
The Obligation Assumption 35
The General Starting-Point Assumption 37
The Evidentialist Foundationalist Assumption 40
The Boundary of Philosophy 47
Conclusion 51

Part II: THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF ALVIN PLANTINGA IN DIALOGUE WITH
KARL BARTH

3. Plantinga’s Christian Philosophizing and Warrant 54
The Concern of the Christian Philosopher 55
On Christian Scholarship 56
Theology and Christian Scholarship 58
Christian Philosophy 61
The Nature of Truth and the Nature of Knowledge 65
Plantinga’s Epistemology and Warrant 70
Why Warrant 70
The Failure of Epistemic Justification 73
The Failure of Epistemic Justification: Degrees of Warrant 74
The Failure of Epistemic Justification: Insufficient Criteria 78
The Failure of Epistemic Justification: Unnecessary Criteria 80
The Design Plan 83
Conclusion 85

4. Plantinga’s Epistemology of Christian Belief: The Warrant of Revelation 87
Preliminary Cautions 87
viii
Caution 1: An Intentionally Under-Specified Proposal 87
Caution 2: What the Argument Is 89
Plantinga’s A/C Model of Theistic Belief 96
The A/C Model: Overview 97
The A/C Model: Acquired not Implanted Knowledge 98
The A/C Model: Is It Successful? 101
The A/C Model: Tensions with Barth’s Theology of Revelation 105
Plantinga’s Extended A/C Model of Christian Belief 106
The Extended A/C Model: Overview 106
The Extended A/C Model: Authentic Human Christian Belief 109
The Extended A/C Model: Individualism and the Community of Believers 112
The Extended A/C Model: Can Human Arguments Defeat Christian Belief? 116
Conclusion 121

Part III: EVALUATING POTENTIAL DISCONTINUITIES BETWEEN BARTH
AND PLANTINGA

5. Natural Theology: What is the Reformed Objection? 125
Part I: Barth’s Driving Concerns and the Natural Theology he Rejects 127
Rejecting the Move from Below 127
Brunner, Roman Catholicism and Enlightenment Rationalism 130
Barth’s Insistence on the Direct Action of God in All Revelation 134
Assessment of Barth on Natural Theology 140
Part II: Plantinga on Natural Theology 143
The Natural Theology that Plantinga Rejects 144
Plantinga’s Role for Arguments and Inference 146
Plantinga and the Barthian Dilemma 150
Part III: The Relationship Between Barth and Plantinga on Natural Theology 154
Do Barth and Plantinga Agree on a Negative Role for Natural Theology? 155
Do Barth and Plantinga Agree on a Positive Role for Natural Theology? 157
Do Barth and Plantinga Agree About the Nature of the Sensus Divinitatis? 163
Conclusion 164

6. Faith and Knowledge: What Constitutes a Genuine Human Knowledge of God? 166
Barth and Three Aspects of the Knowledge of Faith 167
The Critiques of Evans, Helm and Wolterstorff 169
The Propositional Form and Content of the Knowledge of Faith 174
A Digression on Propositional Knowing 174
Barth and Propositional Knowing 176
De Dicto Assertion and De Re Belief 179
Hiddenness, Analogy and History 181
The Hiddenness of God Revisited 181
The Problem of Analogical Predication 184
The Significance of the Historical Character of Divine Self-Revealing 189
Plantinga and Barth on Faith and Knowing 194
Conclusion 198

Conclusion 200

Bibliography 203
ix

ABBREVIATIONS

Karl Barth:

BH “Ein Briefwechsel mit Adolf von Harnack,” in Theologische Fragen und
Antworten (Zollikon-Zürich: Evangelischer Verlag, 1957).
BHet H. Martin Rumscheidt, ed., Revelation and Theology: An Analysis of the
Barth-Harnack Correspondence of 1923 (Cambridge: University Press, 1972),
29–53.

DH “Die dogmatische Prinzipienlehre bei Wilhelm Herrmann,” (lectures delivered
to the Wissenschaftlichen Predigerverein in Hannover, May 1925) in Vorträge
und Kleinere Arbeiten 1922–1925, ed. Holger Finze (Zürich: Theologischer
Verlag, 1990), 545–603.
DHet “The Principles of Dogmatics According to Wilhelm Herrmann,” in Theology
and Church: Shorter Writings, 1920–1928, trans. Louise Pettibone Smith
(New York: Harper & Row, 1962), 238–271.

EI Ethik I: Vorlesung Münster, Sommersemester 1928, ed. Dietrich Braun
(Zürich: Theologischer Verlag, 1973)
Eet Ethics, ed. Dietrich Braun, trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Edinburgh: T & T
Clark, 1981), 1–260.

KD I/1 Die kirchliche Dogmatik: Die Lehre vom Wort Gottes. Teil I (München: Chr.
Kaiser Verlag, 1932).
CD I/1 Church Dogmatics: The Doctrine of the Word of God, pt. 1, eds. G. W.
Bromiley and T. F. Torrance, trans. G. W. Bromiley, 2nd ed. (Edinburgh: T &
T Clark, 1975).

PT Karl Barth, “Philosophie und Theologie,” in Philosophie und Christliche
Existenz: Festschrift für Heinrich Barth, ed. Gerhard Huber (Basel: Helbing &
Lichtenhahn, 1960), 93–106.
PTet “Philosophy and Theology,” in The Way of Theology in Karl Barth: Essays
and Comments, ed. H. Martin Rumscheidt (Allison Park, PA: Pickwick
Publications, 1986), 79–95.

SIT “Schicksal und Idee in Der Theologie,” (lectures delivered at the
Hochschulinstitut in Dortmund, February–March 1929) in Theologische
Fragen und Antworten (Zollikon-Zürich: Evangelischer Verlag, 1957), 54–92.
SITet “Fate and Idea in Theology,” trans. George Hunsinger, in The Way of
Theology in Karl Barth: Essays and Comments, ed. H. Martin Rumscheidt
(Allison Park, PA: Pickwick Publications, 1986), 25–61.