Introduction
5
of skepticism dictated that we write an essay. As a kind of trial, one does not accept reigning ideas and beliefs but puts them to test, mindful of the limits of human understanding. Granting proper skepticism about getting hold of “The Truth,” the demand to understand and to orient human existence
nevertheless remains. The smallness of human intelligence and the fallibility of judgments ought not to dissuade one from asking about and trying to use big ideas. Through reflection human life is understood, enriched, and enlarged.
How then will we write this It might help our readers if we briefly outline it at the outset of this journey The Journey Aheadessay? The argument of this book is complex.
of thought.of reflection. After clarifying the basic challenges and some leading ideas (chapter 1), Part I moves in three steps. We turn initially to engage the Part I presents the “shape” of theological humanism along several lines
legacies of humanism (chapter 2) and theology (chapter 3). These chapters are not meant to be extensive accounts of the history of thought, although some history is involved. More importantly, we mean to isolate the flaws in humanism and Western theism which appear on the global scene and
in fact endanger the human future. If religion is to contribute to the human future these flaws must be addressed. In order to respond to those flaws, the chapters also explore what we judge to be some of the main metaphors of the human and of the divine deep within the legacies of
humanism and tual tools needed to underand theological humanism.theistic belief, but also, as the reader finds, to develop our case for theism. These metaphors are the imaginative and concep-stand the flaws and criticisms of humanism
humanism. We do so for the obvious reason that our own thought is rooted in the Christian tradition and also Western sources. Our interest and exper-tise is not in providing a history of thought or thinkers. The aim is to artic-Chapter 4 turns to a specific form of religious humanism, that is, Christian
ulate what we believe to be the inner logic of Christian humanism, even if historians might quibble with aspects of our account. Christian humanists always sought to surmount the clash between religion and humanistic com-mitments; that is also our agenda. In our case, theological humanism is an
extension of but also a revolution in the legacy of Christian humanism for the sake of our global age. The revolution comes from making the integrity