LE3 .A278 1999

1999

Forsman, Rodger

Acadia University

Master of Arts

Masters

Theology

Acadia Divinity College

This paper offers an analysis of John Hick's Theology of Religions. The introduction establishes the need for Christian theologians in North America to engage in inter-religious dialogue. The first chapter traces the experiences which gave rise to Hick's hypotheses, and brings out the salient points by showing how he has relied on the work of five scholars in particular: Wilfred Cantwell Smith, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Thomas Aquinas, William James, and Immanuel Kant. The second chapter describes Hick's treatment of religious truth claims as a sound foundation for discussion of the conflicts between the different propositions put forward by the great world faiths. The third chapter provides an overview of Hick's Christology, and looks at his attempt to recast the ways in which religious myth and metaphor are understood. In the conclusion, the argument is made that Hick's Theology of Religions is ultimately based in a Christian conception of the divine; and that this makes his work as important for ecumenical Christian dialogue as it is provocative regarding the relationships between the great world faiths.

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