Religious or theological knowledge (from the Greek: Theos, meaning God and logos, speech/treatise), consists in the study of God, investigates everything that concerns God and faith.
It is a knowledge that presents a set of truths accepted by men from the divine revelation and what is revealed is the will of God, in which the believer trusts and whose purpose he must fulfill.
Theological knowledge presents answers to questions not answered by other forms of knowledge. It relies on doctrines, whose propositions are sacred because they have been revealed by the supernatural. They are considered infallible truths, evidences never doubted by those who have faith.
Within the context of Western culture, to compete with philosophy and supplant it, religion had to offer itself in the form of rational proofs, concepts, theses and theories. It became theology, science about God. Therefore, it transformed the texts of sacred history into doctrine (CHAUÍ, 1995, p. 312).
Theological knowledge is based on the assumption that sacred texts, which need not necessarily be Christian, constitute a set of truths to which men have come by divine revelation. People’s adherence becomes an act of faith arising from the revelation of a creator.
Generally, these sacred texts not only explain the order of the natural world, but also human as the work of the creator, presenting origin, meaning, purpose and destiny.
By divine law the order of the natural and human world is instituted. And this law was usually revealed to man by the divine being, through intermediaries: prophets, seers, etc.
The subjective operative principles that direct the philosopher or scientist are the senses of intelligence or natural reason; different happens to the theologian or the faithful who operate with enlightened reason, elevated by supernatural gift and faith, as taught by theology itself. Where the scientist or philosopher sees a text similar to countless other texts, the faithful, the believer, sees the word divine; and in accepting the sacred texts as expression of the mind or of divine science, the faithful embrace the doctrine of faith (RUIZ, 1996, p. 103-104).
Thus, theological knowledge seeks answers in the divine entity for questions that, not always, philosophical, vulgar or scientific knowledge, can answer.
If scientific knowledge is based on the evidence of observed and experimentally controlled facts, and the philosophical knowledge of their statements, on the evidence of logic, making it so that in both modes of knowledge must the evidence result from the research of the facts or the analysis of the contents of the utterances, in the case of theological knowledge the faithful, the believer does not stop at them in search of evidence, because the taking of the first cause, that is, of divine revelation (LAKATOS; MARCONI, 1991, p. 79).
Currently, several truths of theological knowledge have been questioned by science and society which has led theological knowledge to review its teachings and adapt to the contemporary world.
Characteristics of theological knowledge are:
a) inspirational: the subjective principles that direct the faithful and the believer occur from enlightened reason, elevated by supernatural gift and faith, based on the divine word of sacred texts;
b) systematic: sacred texts consist of a set of revealed truths, which not only explain the order of the natural world, but also human as the work of the creator, presenting origin, meaning, purpose and destiny;
c) not verifiable: it is formed by a set of truths to which men have come by divine revelation. People’s adherence becomes an act of faith arising from the revelation of a creator. He is not concerned with putting revealed truths to the test;
d) uncritical: there is no concern of the critic to question what has been revealed, to prove experimentally and in a controlled way the truth of revealed truth; truth is given by faith and by accepting the sacred texts as expression of divine revelation, the believer embraces the doctrine of the faith;
e) infallible: divine revelations cannot be demonstrated experimentally. They are truths of faith and, as such, mysteries. They are unquestionable truths, infallible truths and never doubted by those who have faith. Therefore, it is by revelation and faith that the explanation is given.
Authorship of the text
Auro de Jesus Rodrigues
References used
CHAUI, Marilena. Invitation to philosophy. 3. ed. São Paulo: Ática, 1995.
MARCONI, Marina de Andrade. Foundations of scientific methodology. 3. ed. rev. e ampl. São Paulo: Atlas, 1991.
RUIZ, João Álvaro. Scientific methodology: guide to efficiency in studies. 4. ed. São Paulo: Atlas, 1996.