Essay
To what extent does a theologically pluralist approach undermine the central doctrines of Christianity?
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This was written in year 13, achieving full marks, thus an A* grade and discussing pluralism
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To what extent does a theologically pluralist approach undermine the central doctrines of Christianity?A theological pluralist takes the view that there are many ways to achieve salvation through different
religious traditions; Christianity is merely one way in which this can be attained. Thus the
compatibility between Christianity and pluralism has to be questioned. Pluralism presents a serious
challenge to the belief that Jesus’ death and resurrection were unique events through which God made
salvation possible. Despite this, the central doctrines of Christianity are ultimately love and
forgiveness, both of which are completely compatible with pluralism. Therefore, it is through
exploring John Hick’s theocentric pluralism, and in particular his demythologising of Christ that
subsequently mean that a theologically pluralist approach does not, to any extent, undermine the
central doctrines of Christianity. Moreover, this line of argument will include a variety of scholarly
opinions to both corroborate and challenge this stream of thinking.
John Hick began his theological journey as an exclusivist, the view that only one religion, in this case
Christianity, offers the complete means of salvation. His stance on Christianity and its significance in
the path to salvation changed after being part of a multi-faith society in Birmingham, where he met
and observed genuinely good people who practised a different faith than him. From such an
experience, Hick became a strong advocate for theological pluralism and corroborated his reasoning
for taking such an approach, with the Islamic parable of blind men each touching a different part of an
elephant. Each man thinks that he understands what an elephant is, but in reality only has a grasp of a
portion of the truth. For Hick, all religions grasp a portion of the truth of the Real - all are valid, but
none has the whole truth. Hick’s utilisation of this analogy presents his pluralist approach to be
coherent; he is entirely reasonable to suggest that differences between religions are merely cultural, as
opposed to being fundamentally different and contrasting. Hick’s stream of thinking is challenged,
however, by David Hume, who contends that all religions cannot be true as they make contradictory
truth claims. Hume argues that categorically, Jesus either was the son of God, or he wasn’t; there is no
middle ground or other option. The scholar furthers this line of reasoning by stating that if Jesus was
the son of God, Christianity is true but if he wasn’t, then the other five world religions could be true.
Hume makes the sagacious assertion that Hindu and ancient Greek religions believe in multiple Gods,
whereas the Abrahamic religions believe in just one. Hume thought these multiple claims cancel each
other out and make it more likely that none of the religions are true since they cannot all be right, but
can all be wrong. Hick responds to the challenge made by Hume and sustains his line of argument that
all religions can be right. Hick argues that those particular theological details such as the divinity of
Jesus or number of Gods believed in are part of the ‘conceptual lens’ that different cultures project
onto reality. Hick claims that all religions can be right in that they all point to the same divine reality
which exists and is true. It is clear that Hick presents a more convincing argument than that of David
Hume. The pluralist approach recognises the central element to religions of people opening their
minds to a higher, personal and good, divine reality that demands righteousness and love. All of these
factors, as Hick evidenced, to no extent, undermine the central doctrines of Christianity.
Another compelling component to Hick’s theological pluralist approach is his demythologising of
Christ; it is this element of the pluralist approach where some may argue that it undermines the central
doctrines of Christianity. Hick’s plural theology advocates that revelation emanates from God, not
Christ. After taking this approach on revelation, Hick asserts that Christianity should be
theocentric, meaning to be focused on God, rather than Christocentric, centred around Christ. The
scholar argues that in order to reach the core messages of the Gospels, it is essential to demythologise
the stories around Christ. For Hick, it should therefore be a priority for theologians to reinterpret the
doctrines of the incarnation, judgement, atonement and resurrection as myths and not facts. The basis
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