Abstract:
The Dutch Roman Catholic theologian Erik Borgman (1957), who developed a cultural
theology, was appointed as a visiting professor at the liberal Protestant theological Mennonite
Seminary in Amsterdam. In this article, his progressive Roman Catholic theology is compared
to a liberal Protestant approach. The historical backgrounds of these different types of theology
are expounded, all the way back to Aquinas and Scotus, in order to clarify their specific
character for the sake of a better mutual understanding. Next, the convergence of these two
types of theology in the twentieth century is explained with reference to the philosophy of
Heidegger. Finally, the difficulties posed by postmodern philosophies to both a progressive
Roman Catholic theology and a liberal Protestant theology are shown. It is asserted that both
types of theology claim that the insights of their particular tradition can be relevant beyond
this tradition to modern and postmodern humans.
Description:
Prof. Dr Benjamins is
participating in the research
project, ‘Religious Experience
from an evolutionary
perspective’, directed by Prof.
Dr Danie Veldsman,
Department Dogmatics and
Christian Ethics, Faculty of
Theology, University of
Pretoria.
