“Christian Philosophy”

Abstract

In this chapter, Jean-Luc Marion offers a sweeping account of the history of recent Christian philosophy (especially in light of the debates between Émile Bréhier and Étienne Gilson). Arguing that the majority of Christian philosophy has functioned according to a “hermeneutic” approach, Marion suggests that far from being marginalized in recent history, Christian philosophy has been quite prominent. Despite the substantial pedigree of hermeneutic Christian philosophy, Marion considers three objections to it as the best way forward. Proposing instead a “heuristic” approach that allows for a specifically phenomenological conception of revelation and charity, Marion attempts to open new spaces for thinking about Christian philosophy in ways that are both philosophically substantive and theologically responsible.