Pluralism

Is Jesus the Only Savior

Part 2
 

II.  Pluralism

A.  Early Life of John Hick

1.  Profession of Faith

2.  "All religions have salvific value."

B.  First Stage

1.  Copernican Revolution in Religion

2.  God-centered view of human salvation

3.  Hick appeals to a loving God - Universalism

4.  Implied that God was a personal God - created problems

5.  Epicycles

6.  Modifications

a.  "God is both personal and impersonal."

b.  "God is unknowable."

C.  Second Stage

1.  Salvation-centered view of the world religions

2.  Immanuel Kant

a.  Phenomenal God

b.  Real God

3.  Five Blind Men and the Elephant

4.  No religion has the whole truth about God.

5.  God as Ultimate Reality

6.  What if God really is personal?

D.  Eschatological Verification

E.  Criticisms

1.  Anything can function as a religion.

2.  Salvation is different for different people.

3.  Contradicts himself.

F.  Two Desperate Measures

1.  Essential vs. Nonessential

2.  Belief about Jesus

G.  Other Issues

1.  Geographical/Cultural Conditioning

2.  Tolerance