Ideas and Challenges
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universal structure of the human spirit, such that the inf luence of histo-rical life marked by diversity somehow drops away. Humans live within historical traditions; each of us is shaped by a host of cultural and religious A theological humanist also insists that there is no ahistorical access to a
symbols, narratives, rituals, and the stream of their interpretations that exert powerful inf luence on thinking. Theological humanism, then, is mindful of the human entanglement in all dimensions of historical reli-gion and culture. It intends to fathom these inf luences, rather than to
become stuck in or to f lee from them. In the following chapters we show that the central ideas of theological humanism, especially the integrity of life, resonate with profound spiritual longings. The integrity of life is not revealed from on high but is an idea and norm for theological humanism
that arises from dogged ref lection on human individual and social existence in its diversity within the wider compass of life on this planet.theological humanism is related to and yet different from other forms of One way we are changing the terms of debate is by showing how
religious humanism. Theological humanism as presented in this essay is drawn from Christian and Western sources even if its outlook is global and cosmopolitan. That should not be surprising. We can only use, and use critically, the resources of the traditions of which we are a part. We agree
with Kwame Anthony Appiah, who writes about “rooted One adopts a vision of the human adventure, an inclusive concern for human and non-human life, but rooted in some distinctive cultural, social, and religious resources. cosmopolitans.”^23
is that we insist on “third-way” thinking which acknowledges the internal complexity of the very tradition in which our thought is rooted. One is rooted not in a block-like “tradition,” because, as Christian humanists Here too our position is different. Part of the novelty of this argument
have long understood, a tradition is multiple and internally complex and contested. Christianity, for instance, arises in the dynamics and explosive intersection of ancient Semitic, Greek, and Roman forces, among others. What then is Christian “identity?” This means one must think beyond the
conf lict between (say) biblical sources, theological ref lection, and Western philosophy because these helped to constitute the tradition itself. Unlike some churchly theologies, as explored later, we do not seek to isolate Christian beliefs from other speculative and critical resources for thought
and life. Ours is not an argument for Christian particularism. However, we also reject the wholesale deconstruction and denial of particular religious claims too often found among forms of contemporary theology and ethics. By probing particular religious and cultural resources we aim to discover