Philosophical theology is the application of philosophical methods and insights to theological questions and issues. It seeks to use reason and arguments to analyze and articulate matters of Christian doctrine and belief. Some key aspects of philosophical theology include:
- Examining the coherence and logic of theological claims
- Analyzing the language and concepts used to describe God and theological truths
- Exploring the relationship between faith and reason
- Defending theological beliefs against objections and critiques
- Interpreting biblical texts through philosophical frameworks
- Connecting theological ideas to broader philosophical systems and questions
Philosophical theology is distinguished from revealed theology, which draws primarily from scripture and religious tradition. It is also different than philosophers doing philosophy of religion, which may or may not be done within a theological framework. As a discipline, philosophical theology has a long history in Christian thought, going back to the Patristic period with thinkers like Augustine and Origen who were influenced by Platonic philosophy. It was further developed in the Middle Ages by giants like Thomas Aquinas and Duns Scotus who utilized Aristotelian philosophy. In the modern period, philosophical theology intersected with rapid developments in epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. Today it remains a vibrant field, enriched by the work of contemporary Christian philosophers.
Some major areas addressed in philosophical theology include:
The Doctrine of God
One of the most central uses of philosophical theology is examining the coherence and conceptual adequacy of the Christian understanding of God. This includes formulating doctrines like God’s omniscience, omnipotence, and eternity using philosophical precision. It also involves defending these doctrines against paradoxes, like how can an all-loving God allow evil and suffering. Further it looks at how God’s attributes intersect with one another and fit together into a consistent overarching concept of who God is. Metaphysical questions around divine simplicity, personhood, and God’s relationship to time are also philosophically unpacked. Beyond analyzing God’s nature, attributes and characteristics, philosophical theology also clarifies the distinctive roles of the three persons of the Trinity and how they relate to the one Godhead. While keeping scripture as its source and guide, philosophical theology aims to articulate Christian doctrines about God’s existence, activities, and relationships in philosophically clear and persuasive ways.
Faith and Reason
A core area of examination in philosophical theology is analyzing the relationship between faith and reason. Questions here include: Is religious belief rational? How much can reason prove when it comes to theological claims? Are faith and reason compatible or opposed? Different philosophical models have been proposed, like faith seeking understanding, believing in order to understand, reason serving as handmaiden to theology, and theology as queen of the sciences. Key arguments around theistic proofs, religious experience, revelation, and fideism all fit under examining the intersection of faith and reason. Overall, philosophical theology offers systematic study of how far reason can take someone in theology, whether Christian belief is logically warranted, and what the healthiest relationship looks like between human rationality and divine revelation.
Metaphysics
Looking at core metaphysical topics through a philosophical theology lens is also significant. This includes philosophical analysis of doctrines like divine providence, human freedom, evil, sin, salvation, and the afterlife. Unpacking these doctrines involves wrestling with deep metaphysical questions around God’s sovereignty, human free will, ethics, and how an immaterial soul might survive death. Looking at the incarnation also raises metaphysical puzzles like how Christ can be fully God and fully human. And examining creation involves metaphysical reflection on ex nihilo, fine tuning arguments, divine action in the world, and the relationship between the natural and supernatural. Philosophical theology dives into metaphysical issues like ontology, causation, identity, modality, mind, and more – but all centered around core Christian theological claims.
Epistemology
The branch of philosophy focused on knowledge, belief, and truth intersects closely with philosophical theology. Looking at religious language, the aim is examining whether words used to describe God are cognitive or analogical, and how theological language functions to point to truths beyond human comprehension. Analyzing revelation, inspiration, and biblical authority also involves epistemic concepts. Questions around how the Holy Spirit illuminates reason, or what rational warrant believers have for core doctrines, requires epistemological examination. Topics like natural theology, Reformed epistemology, and theological compatibilism emerge as important areas of exploration when faith interfaces with theories of knowledge and justified belief. While keeping scripture foundational, philosophical theology utilizes epistemological frameworks to better understand how Christians can rationally hold and argue for theological beliefs.
Ethics
Exploring Christian moral theology and ethics philosophically is also an important project. This involves analyzing biblical texts that have moral instruction and unpacking principles like virtue, duty, consequences, character, and the role of the Holy Spirit and grace in ethical transformation. Comparing theological ethics to ethical philosophies like deontology, utilitarianism, and virtue ethics is also part of this examination. Questions around freedom, responsibility, law, justice, rights, dignity and how to live an ethical, Christ-honoring life from a philosophical viewpoint are wrestled with. And topics like the natural moral law, the relation between law and gospel, and the role of wisdom and discernment all come into focus when Scripture and ethics meet. By bringing philosophical insight to the study of biblical moral theology, philosophical theology aims to construct a rationally compelling framework for Christian moral thought and action.
Political Theology
Applying philosophical thought to political theology is another aspect of this discipline. This involves exploring philosophically the biblical themes of authority, government, justice, rights, social order, freedom, power, and righteousness. It develops philosophical accounts of church-state relations, the role of law, and what political ideologies or systems best reflect Christian values. Looking at theologically-grounded concepts like imago dei, sin, trust, cooperation, and the common good also requires philosophical articulation in order to translate into political realities. Political philosophies like liberalism, libertarianism, communitarianism, and Augustinian traditions carry theological assumptions that intersect with a Christian worldview. By using philosophical tools, political theology aims to understand how biblical revelation can inform and speak to social and institutional life.
Aesthetics
Philosophical theology can also dialogue with the world of aesthetics, art, beauty, and creativity. Examining philosophically the biblical affirmation that creation declares God’s glory involves wrestling with aesthetics. Questions around how art can deepen spiritual understanding, or how aesthetic experience might give glimpses of divine beauty are explored. Literature, music, architecture, and other art forms are studied as potential vehicles of theological truth and wonder. Christian faith has profoundly shaped the history of art, music, and literature, and philosophical theology analyzes how artistic expression can communicate transcendent realities. It develops aesthetic frameworks to explain the role of imagination, embodiment, ritual, and celebration for theological knowing and community. And it engages critically with culture and the arts to foster discernment in both appreciating and critiquing art and beauty.
Analytic Theology
One important modern development in philosophical theology is analytic theology. Applying the clarity and rigor of analytic philosophy to theology, this approach focuses on perfecting theological concepts and arguments. It utilizes logic, metaphysics, philosophy of language and other conceptual tools standard in contemporary analytic philosophy. Analytic theology aims to precisify key theological claims, reveal their logical inter-relations, clear up conceptual confusions around doctrine, and strengthen the coherence of theology as a system of thought. While respecting classical theological tradition, it employs current philosophical methods to sharpen the clarity and quality of theological reasoning and speech. This provides a creative new way for philosophical theology to keep strengthening the rational warrant for Christian truth claims.
Beyond these core areas, philosophical theology also dialogues with philosophy of science around questions of the relationship between theology and the natural sciences. It engages history and hermeneutics in biblical exegesis and textual interpretation. And it intersects with feminist thought, critical theory, pragmatism, and other philosophical traditions and methods that carry theological implications. The interdisciplinary breadth of philosophical theology displays the enduring richness that comes from applying rigorous philosophical thought to the divine revelation given in scripture and tradition.
In summary, philosophical theology is the disciplined use of philosophical reasoning and argumentation to analyze, defend, and articulate key Christian doctrines and beliefs. It builds bridges between revelation and intellectual reflection. It aims for deeper rational insight into the truth of God’s nature and activities. While philosophy without theology loses anchor and grounding, theology without philosophy lacks conceptual clarity, coherence and persuasiveness in communicating timeless biblical truth. By integrating the two, philosophical theology forges perennial resources to present the reasonableness and profound relevance of Christian theological claims for every age. It calls believers and skeptics alike to examine the intellectual substance and credibility of the biblical worldview, aiming to demonstrate that Christian faith flourishes when integrated with rigorous, honest and humble intellectual inquiry.