The Perception of Religious Exclusivism in Reformed Epistemology: A Critical Assessment

Öz

The phenomenon of religious diversity is much more intense than in the past. The existence of these religious traditions, each with its own set of metaphysical and theological claims, raises the question of which of them contains the real truth. For it is undeniable that the truth conceptions of these different religions have an epistemic equality in terms of verifiability. On the other hand, the questions raised by the phenomenon of religious diversity have naturally led to the emergence of different epistemic approaches to the issue. This article focuses on how one of these different epistemic approaches, the exclusivist perspective, has been defended by reformed epistemologists such as William P. Alston and Alvin Plantinga. They recognize that the claim that any religious tradition can be the only rational choice over other religious or non-religious counterparts lacks objective evidence that is noncircular. Nevertheless, they claim that it is not unreasonable for a believer to feel that his faith is uniquely true when compared to other religions. However, it is evident that reaching such a conclusion is not as simple as one might expect. The article assesses the two thinkers' perceptions of religious exclusivism, which are shaped in parallel with their overall grasp of religious epistemology, and the main criticisms directed against them in this context.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Religious Diversity
• Reformed Epistemology
• Religious Exclusivism
• Alston
• Plantinga

Reformcu Epistemolojide Dinî Dışlayıcılık Algısı: Eleştirel Bir Değerlendirme

Öz

Dinî çeşitlilik olgusu, geçmişle kıyaslandığında çok daha yoğun şekilde tecrübe edilmektedir. Birbirinden oldukça farklı metafizik ve teolojik iddialara sahip dinî geleneklerin varlığı onların hangisinin gerçek hakikati içerdiği sorusunu gündeme getirmektedir. Çünkü birbirinden farklı dinlerin hakikat anlayışlarının doğrulanabilirlik açısından epistemik bir eşitliğe sahip oldukları yadsınamaz. Fakat diğer taraftan dinî çeşitlilik olgusunun ürettiği sorular, doğal olarak meseleye dair birbirinden farklı epistemik yaklaşımların ortaya çıkışına vesile olmuştur. Bu makale bu farklı epistemik yaklaşımlardan biri olan dışlayıcı perspektifin William P. Alston ve Alvin Plantinga gibi reformcu epistemologlar tarafından ne şekilde savunulduğuna odaklanmıştır. Onlar herhangi bir dinî geleneğin diğer dinî veya dinî olmayan muarızları karşısında tek rasyonel tercih olabileceği iddiasının kısır döngü içermeyen objektif delillerinin olmadığının farkındadır. Fakat buna rağmen Alston ve Plantinga bir mü’minin, mensubu olduğu dinîn başka dinlerle kıyaslandığında eşsiz bir biçimde hakikat içerdiğine inanmasının irrasyonel olmadığını iddia eder. Ancak böyle bir sonuca ulaşmanın zannedildiği kadar kolay olmadığı açıktır. Makale bu iki düşünürün genel dinî epistemoloji anlayışlarına paralel bir biçimde şekillenen dinî dışlayıcılık algıları ve bu bağlamda onlara yöneltilen temel eleştirileri değerlendirmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Din Felsefesi
• Dinî Çeşitlilik
• Reformcu Epistemoloji
• Dinî Dışlayıcılık
• Alston
• Plantinga

The Perception of Religious Exclusionism in Reformed Epistemology: A Critical Assessment

Abstract

The phenomenon of religious diversity is much more intense than in the past. The existence of these religious traditions, each with its own set of metaphysical and theological claims, raises the question of which contains the absolute truth. Undeniably, the truth conceptions of these different religions have epistemic equality in verifiability. On the other hand, the questions raised by the phenomenon of religious diversity have naturally led to the emergence of different epistemic approaches to the issue. This article focuses on how one of these different epistemic approaches, the exclusivist perspective, has been defended by reformed epistemologists such as William P. Alston and Alvin Plantinga. They recognize that the claim that any religious tradition can be the only rational choice over other religious or non-religious counterparts lacks objective evidence that is noncircular. Nevertheless, they claim that it is not unreasonable for a believer to feel that his faith is uniquely true compared to other religions. However, it is evident that reaching such a conclusion is more complex than one might expect. The article assesses the two thinkers' perceptions of religious exclusivism, which are shaped in parallel with their overall grasp of religious epistemology, and the main criticisms directed against them in this context.

Keywords

• Philosophy of Religion
• Religious Diversity
• Reformed Epistemology
• Religious Exclusivism
• Alston
• Plantinga

Kaynakça

1. Akdemir, Ferhat. Alvin Plantinga ve Analitik Din Felsefesi. Ankara: Elis Yayınları, 2007.
2. Akdemir, Ferhat. “Tanrı İnancının Temellendirilmesi ve William Alston’ın Algı Tecrübesi”. Ondokuz Mayıs Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 22 (2007), 167-178.
3. Alston, William P. Perceiving God: The Epistemology of Religious Experience. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1991.
4. Alston, William P. “Religious Diversity and Perceptual Knowledge of God”. The Philosophical Challenge of Religious Diversity. ed. Kevin Meeker - Philip L. Quinn. 193-207. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
5. Alston, William P. “Religious Experience and Religious Belief”. Noûs 16/1 (1982), 3-12.
6. Alston, William P. “Response to Hick”. Faith and Philosophy 14/3 (1997), 87-88.
7. Baker, Deane-Peter. “Perceiving God?: A Critical Analysis of William Alston’s Reformed Epistemology”. Scriptura 94 (2007), 115-127.
8. Baker, Deane-Peter. “Plantinga’s Reformed Epistemology: What’s the Question?” International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 57 (2005), 77-103.

9. Batak, Kemal. Tanrıyı Bilmek: Alvin Plantinga’nın Din Felsefesinde Tanrı ve Epistemoloji. İstanbul: İZ Yayıncılık, 2022.
10. Beyter, Taner. “Reformcu Epistemoloji ve Tanrı İnancı”. Öncül. https://onculanalitikfelsefe.com/reformcu- epistemoloji-ve-tanri-inanci/
11. Dastmalchian, Amir. “The Epistemology of Religious Diversity in Contemporary Philosophy of Religion”. Philosophy Compass 8/3 (2013), 298-308.
12. Feldman, Richard. “Plantinga on Exclusivism”. Faith and Philosophy 20/1 (2003), 85-90.
13. Griffiths, Paul J. Problems of Religious Diversity. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers, 2001.
14. Hick, John. An Interpretation of Religion: Human Responses to the Transcendent. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.
15. Hick, John. “The Epistemological Challenge of Religious Pluralism”. Faith and Philosophy 14/3 (1997), 277-286.
16. Kim, Joseph. Reformed Epistemology and the Problem of Religious Diversity. Cambridge: James Clarke & Co, 2011.
17. King, Nathan L. “Religious Diversity and its Challenges to Religious Belief”. Philosophy Compass 3/4 (2008), 830-853.
18. Mehdiyev, Nebi. “Plantinga’nın Dinî Dışlayıcılık Savunusunun Eleştirisi”. İslâm Araştırmaları Dergisi 22 (2009), 95-108.
19. Mehdiyev, Nebi. Tanrı İnancın Rasyonelliği. İstanbul: İSAM Yayınları, 2020.
20. Netland, Harold A. “Natural Theology and Religious Diversity”. Faith and Philosophy 21/4 (2004), 503-517.
21. Plantinga, Alvin. “Ad Hick”. Faith and Philosophy 14/3 (1997), 295-298.
22. Plantinga, Alvin. “Pluralism: A Defense of Religious Exclusivism”. The Philosophical Challenge of Religious Diversity. ed. Philip L. Quinn - Kevin Meeker. 172-192. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
23. Plantinga, Alvin. “Reason and Belief in God”. Faith and Rationality: Reason in Belief in God. ed. Alvin Plantinga - Nicholas Wolterstorff. 16-93. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2004.
24. Plantinga, Alvin. Warranted Christian Belief. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
25. Quinn, Philip L. “Epistemology in Philosophy of Religion”. The Oxford Handbook of Epistemology. ed. Paul K. Moser. 513-538. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
26. Quinn, Philip L. “Religious Diversity and Religious Toleration”. International Journal for the Philosophy of Religion 50 (2001), 57-80.
27. Quinn, Philip L. “Toward Thinner Theologies: Hick and Alston on Religious Diversity”. The Philosophical Challenge of Religious Diversity. ed. Kevin Meeker - Philip L. Quinn. 226-243. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
28. Reçber, M. Sait. “Plantinga, Bilgi ve Doğru İşlevsellik”. Çağdaş Epistemolojiye Giriş. ed. Nebi Mehdiyev. 175-200. İstanbul: İnsan Yayınları, 2011.
29. Runzo, Joseph. “God, Commitment and Other Faiths: Pluralism vs. Relativism”. Faith and Philosophy 5/4 (1988), 343-364.
30. Tüzer, Abdüllatif. Dini Tecrübe ve Mistisizm. İstanbul: Dergah Yayınları, 2006.
31. Van Inwagen, Peter. “Abnormal Experience and Abnormal Belief”. Noûs 16/1 (1982), 13-14.
32. Wainwright, William J. “Religious Experience and Religious Pluralism”. The Philosophical Challenge of Religious Diversity. ed. Kevin Meeker - Philip L. Quinn. 218-225. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
33. Wainwright, William J. “Religious Language, Religious Experience, and Religious Pluralism”. The Rationality of Belief and the Plurality of Faith. ed. Thomas D. Senor. 170-188. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1995.
34. Willard, Julian. “Plantinga’s Epistemology of Religious Belief and The Problem of Religious Diversity”. The Heythrop Journal XLIV (2003), 275-293.
35. Wolterstorff, Nicholas. “Reformed Epistemology”. Philosophy of Religion in the 21st Century. ed. D. Z. Phillips - Timothy Tessin. 39-63. New York: Palgrave, 2001.
36. Yanık, Musa. Dini Epistemoloji Nedir? İstanbul: Düşün Yayıncılık, 2022.
37. Zagzebski, Linda. “Religious Knowledge and the Virtues of the Mind”. Rational Faith: Catholic Responses to Reformed Epistemology. ed. Linda Zagzebski. 199-225. Notre Dame, IN: Notre Dame University Press, 1993.