Date

7-15-2024

Department

Rawlings School of Divinity

Degree

Master of Arts in Christian Apologetics (MA)

Chair

Joshua Waltman

Keywords

divine hiddenness, J. L. Schellenberg, beings-in-becoming, formation, christian apologetics, formative critique, liminal space, liminal being, infraliminal, problem of divine hiddenness, social imaginary, nonresistant nonbelief, belief, belief psychology

Disciplines

Christianity | Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion

Abstract

This thesis aims to show that Schellenberg's problem of divine hiddenness fails as an argument for atheism because his assumptions about, and understanding of, what constitutes belief does not account for the nuanced and complex understanding of belief formation presented in contemporary psychology and recently developed dynamic liminal-belief frameworks. This paper argues that Schellenberg has been immodest in his robust claims regarding the existence of a cognitive state of nonresistant unbelief. In other words, he has misdiagnosed the human condition of doubt by unnecessarily holding to a narrow definition of belief. The complexity of belief formation necessitates a holistic credence structure that accounts for the dynamic, active, diachronic, and ultimately teleological nature of human experience.

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