Читать книгу The Craft of Innovative Theology. Argument and Process онлайн
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What would be the use of discovering so-called objective truth, of working through all the systems of philosophy and of being able, if required, to review them all and show up the inconsistencies within each system […] what good would it do me if truth stood before me, cold and naked, not caring whether I recognised her or not, and producing in me a shudder of fear rather than a trusting devotion?11
Subjectivity is thus the tell-tale of religious truth, as Kierkegaard makes clear through his definition of truth as an “objective uncertainty held fast in an appropriation process of the most passionate inwardness.”12 However, to function as a general theory of truth, this subjectivity must be tested through negotiation and contestation within the relevant religious communities.13 These negotiated settlements shape subjective truth toward the ends valued by particular communities at particular times and places. Truth is thus at the same time the product of contingent, historical processes while being held fast to subjectivity with the greatest trust. It plays an essential and foundational role in the creation and maintenance of a religious community while at the same time continually arising from and responding to the needs, desires, best practices, and values of that dynamic, interactive community. Religious truth understood pragmatically is a continual work in progress, much as even the most established scientific theories are always provisional. Insofar as religious beliefs and practices continue to be effective in bringing about the forms of life cherished by communities, exemplified in their narratives, performed in their rituals, made relatively more permanent in their institutions, held fast to in subjectivity, they are thereby labeled “true.”