Conceptual enquiry and the experience of “the transcendent”: John Hick’s contribution to the dialogue

John Hick (1922–2012), an influential philosopher of religion and liberal Christian theologian, developed a theory of religious knowledge centered on religious experience. This paper critically examines Hick's views on religious epistemology, his pluralistic account of world religions, and his criterion of religious truth. It explores the role of religious concepts in shaping experience and reviews Hick's engagement with neuroscience and philosophy of mind. The analysis also considers how Hick's ideas relate to empirical psychology of religion studies on experiences of transcendent reality.

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Abstract

ABSTRACT John Hick (1922–2012) was an influential analytical philosopher of religion and liberal Christian philosophical theologian who taught in Britain and the United States. His work on religious epistemology, the theology of religions and, to some extent, eschatology has close links with his understanding of the philosophy of religious experience. This paper offers a detailed analysis and critical evaluation of these significant elements of Hick’s philosophical and theological thought, focusing in particular on his theory of religious knowledge and the role played by religious concepts within religious experience, and the relevance of these reflections for his pluralistic account of the variety of religions and his criterion of religious truth. Hick’s response to the challenges of contemporary neuroscience and the philosophy of mind is also reviewed. The paper reflects on the relevance of these views to accounts of an experience of transcendent reality collected through the empirical psychology of religion.