"...in Reformed theology 'presuppositionalism' is a striking novelty. Historically speaking, Reformed theology has been somewhat relaxed on the question of offering the arguments of natural theology to prove the existence of God. But presuppositionalism as an apologetic outlook is a complete novelty in the history of Reformed theology. It is strange, then, that the need to hold this outlook has come to be, for some, a test of orthodoxy, even in circles which uphold the Westminster Confession which perhaps is silent on the question but if anything appears to deny it."
I am aware that the novelty/antiquity of a particular position in the field of Apologetics has very little to do with the rightness or wrongness of that position. Nonetheless, as someone whose knowledge of the history of Apologetics and the history of doctrine is weak, I would like to know whether the claim Helm makes is a controversial one or something that everyone would happily concede.
Can some kind and learned soul throw light on this issue?
If there are some who make presuppositionalism “a test of orthodoxy” I very much doubt Helm’s statement is something everyone would happily concede. Within the Reformed camp presuppositionalism isn’t so much a matter of orthodoxy as it is a matter of orthopraxy, which is to say, one may hold to the fundamental tenants of “Reformed theology” (i.e., orthodoxy) while inconsistently practicing an “un-Reformed” apologetic; historically this may be the case. But one must remember that the historical development of a strictly “Reformed theology” is only about 500 years old, with approximately 1/5th that history (the last 100 years) containing a formalized presuppositional apologetic. Thus, from Helm’s perspective how could the WCF deny something that didn’t exist? Nonetheless, if the Biblical apologetic is formally presuppositional then its historical roots are far older in deed, which can be evidenced by presuppositional tendencies in church history.
ReplyDeleteSee my blog page (http://settingapartchrist.blogspot.com/search/label/Apologetics) for further resources on presuppositionalism, or order the Bahnsen/Sproul debate over apologetic methodology from CMF (http://www.cmfnow.com/thebahnsensprouldebateoverapologeticmethod.aspx).