Liberalism versus Postliberalism: The Great Divide in Twentieth-Century Theology

326 Pages·2012·1.677 MB·English

by  John Allan Knight

Liberalism versus Postliberalism
ACADEMY SERIES
Series Editor
Aaron W. Hughes, University at Buffalo
A Publication Series of Th e American Academy of Religion and Oxford University Press
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An Evolutionary Th eology Th eology
Gloria L. Schaab John Allan Knight
Liberalism versus
Postliberalism
The Great Divide in
Twentieth-Century Theology
John Allan Knight
1
3

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Knight, John Allan.
Liberalism versus postliberalism : the great divide in twentieth-century theology /
John Allan Knight.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 978–0–19–996938–8 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Postliberal theology.
2. Liberalism (Religion) 3. Th eology—History—20th century. I. Title.
BT83.595.K55 2013
230′.046—dc23
2012026759
ISBN 978–0–19–996938–8
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
To my mother,
Justine Knight
And to the memory of my father,
John Allan Knight, Sr.
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
PART ONE: Liberal Th eology and the Falsification Challenge
1. Liberal Th eology in the Nineteenth and Early
Twentieth Centuries 19
2. Th e Falsification Challenge 37
3. Th e Liberal Response 53
4. A Purified Liberal Th eology 78
PART TWO: Postliberal Th eology and Ordinary Language Philosophy
5. Th e Barthian Project in Postliberal Perspective 125
6. Allies for Barth’s Heirs: Wittgenstein and Ordinary
Language Philosophy 139
7. Earlier Postliberalism: Narrative Th eology and Hans Frei’s
Synthesis of Wittgenstein and Barth 155
8. Postliberalism II: George Lindbeck and Frei’s Later Work 199
PART THREE: Problems and Prospects
9. A Tale of Two Dead Ends: Th e Linguistic Problems of Liberal
and Postliberal Th eology 227
10. Conclusion: Navigating the Divide between Liberal
and Postliberal Th eology 265
B ibliography 2 91
Index 305
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I am indebted to many people, whom I cannot adequately thank, for the
assistance and support they provided me as I completed this project. My
debt to David Tracy is especially deep. He has been a gracious and wise
mentor and friend who introduced me to a practice of reading theological
texts with generosity, care, and honesty. His careful and insightful read-
ing of these chapters kept the project from going astray at many points.
Chris Gamwell and Kathryn Tanner also provided wise advice and atten-
tive readings that were not only insightful, but also generous and patient.
Paul Griffi ths and Josef Stern also provided resources that were crucial in
the development of the analysis I present here. Still, of course, the book’s
characterization of the divide between liberalism and postliberalism is my
own. Any shortcomings in the argument or misreadings of texts are my
own responsibility and can only be the result of my failure to heed their
sage advice.
I am indebted to other colleagues as well, especially Cass Fisher and
Bill Wright, who generously read and commented on nearly every chapter.
Th eir insight, friendship, and support not only improved the project sub-
stantially, but made it immensely more enjoyable as well. Stephen Gunter
has been an especially important mentor, friend, and conversation part-
ner over several decades. His encouragement, support, and wise advice has
been formative, sustaining, and deeply enriching, and it was crucial to this
project. Matt Boulton and Andrei Buckareffhave been important conversa-
tion partners, whose insights and friendship have proven invaluable.
Earlier versions of portions of chapters 2 and 3 appeared in “Descriptivist
Reference and the Return of Classical Th eism,” in Models of God and Other
Ultimate Realities, ed. Jeanine Diller and Asa Kasher (Dordrecht: Springer,
forthcoming 2013), © Springer 2013, all rights reserved. An earlier ver-
sion of a section of chapter 4 appeared as a part of “Truth, Justified Belief,
and the Nature of Religious Claims: Schubert Ogden’s Transcendental
Criterion of Credibility,” A merican Journal of Th eology and Philosophy