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Title: Why Are Theologians Annoyed by John Hick?
Author(s): MOYAERT, Marianne
Journal: Studies in Interreligious Dialogue
Volume: 22    Issue: 2   Date: 2012   
Pages: 191-208
DOI: 10.2143/SID.22.2.2965153

Abstract :
The pluralist hypothesis popularised by John Hick, which postulates the general equality of religious traditions, has gained wide approval especially within interreligious circles. Nonetheless, Hick remains one of the most contested philosophers of religion of the 20th century. Theologians especially have been highly critical; their polemical reactions to his pluralist hypothesis reveal their irritation. The question is: from where does this irritation arise? Why are these theologians so offended by a philosopher? How are we to understand the polemics that have arisen in response to Hick’s pluralism? In this article the author suggests that the controversy surrounding Hick’s pluralist hypothesis relates to the way he develops his philosophical reflections in a theological direction. There is something wrong with the way he divides the roles between philosophy and theology. I regard the discussion, which emerged from Hick’s philosophy of religion as a prototype for a reflection on the complex relation between both disciplines.

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