Can a religious believer be a philosopher?

By Dr Viliem Kurtulaj

In this provocative piece, Viliem examines the uneasy relationship between religion and philosophy, arguing that a commitment to unquestioned belief sits in tension with the philosophical pursuit of truth.

Viliem is an Albanian lecturer, researcher and former diplomat, whose work focuses on politics, philosophy and education.

Religion and philosophy meet in metaphysics – the study of the fundamental nature of reality – but beyond this, they often pull in very different directions. Religion claims to possess revealed universal truths in books such as the Bible and the Quran, and its followers are often discouraged from questioning them. For believers, the truths claimed by their religion are usually held to be absolute, final and universal. They cannot be questioned, let alone rejected. In this sense, religion has more or less reached the ‘end of history’ because of its claim to know all truths absolutely.

Use of the term ‘end of history’ reminds us of Francis Fukuyama’s book entitled The End of History and the Last Man (1992). In this book, Fukuyama advanced the idea that humanity had reached the end-point of its ideological development in political and economic terms, with Western liberal democracy emerging as the final form of government. Fukuyama presented this as a far-reaching conclusion, though he later revised and qualified aspects of his argument in the light of subsequent events and criticisms.

ChatGPT collage of philosophers and theologians

Philosophy and religion rarely agree with one another, since the former is always searching for truth while the latter often claims to possess immutable truths. Philosophers are encouraged to doubt everything while religious people are expected to have faith in their scriptures and holy books. Philosophy, through doubt and the endless search for truth, is thereby a contributor to the development of the world. Religion, on the other hand, with its claims to absolute, final and universal truths, has hindered the world’s development.

The German philosopher Immanuel Kant, in his essay What is Enlightenment? (1784), advanced the view that no generation has the right to bind its successors to unquestionable religious doctrines:

‘But it is absolutely impermissible to agree, even for a single lifetime, to a permanent religious constitution not to be doubted publicly by anyone and thereby, as it were, to nullify a period of time in the progress of humanity toward improvement and make it fruitless and hence detrimental to posterity.’

In other words, religion, when it claims to possess unquestionable truths and resists public criticism, can become an obstacle to human progress. Kant therefore rejected any attempt to fix religious doctrines permanently beyond doubt, even though he did not deny the existence of God.

As long as philosophy and religion are in this kind of tension, it becomes difficult for a person to be both a committed believer and a philosopher in the fullest sense. One may be religious and a scholar of philosophy, but one cannot properly engage in philosophy without a willingness to question beliefs found in the Quran, the Bible, and other texts considered holy.

A religious believer who claims to possess final truths and does not dare to question them cannot fully adopt the philosophical stance, which is grounded in doubt and the continual pursuit of truth. Of course, there have been religious figures who have written works with philosophical claims. Examples include Augustine of Hippo (4th–5th century), Al-Farabi (10th century), Al-Ghazali (11th–12th century) and Thomas Aquinas (13th century). In their writings, there is often a genuine philosophical dimension. But such thinkers frequently used philosophical tools and methods to explain or defend religious doctrines. In such cases, the aim was not always to discover new truths, but to interpret and justify truths already taken to be revealed in religious texts. This situation can, in a limited sense, be compared to the communist regime in Albania, where in many fields truths were determined by the party, and scientists were expected to confirm them.

A religious person may be familiar with philosophy, but that does not make them a philosopher. Likewise, a philosopher may be well versed in one or several religions without being religious. A theologian, meanwhile, may or may not be a believer: they may study religion from within a faith or from a more detached standpoint. A theologian can also be a philosopher, and may even be a cleric at the same time. However, these roles involve different responsibilities.

As Immanuel Kant argues in What is Enlightenment?,  a clergyman has a duty when speaking to a congregation that differs from the freedom he enjoys as a scholar addressing the wider public. In the former role, he is bound to represent established doctrine; in the latter, he is free to use reason openly and critically. This distinction helps clarify the difference between a religious role and a philosophical one. When reason is used in a restricted way, in service of doctrine, the individual remains an interpreter or defender of a given faith. When reason is used freely and publicly, there is the possibility of moving beyond these constraints – towards theology in a more critical sense, or even philosophy.

In conclusion, one can fully adopt the philosophical stance only when they are willing to question all claims, including those of religion. But as long as religious beliefs are held to be beyond question, philosophy in this stronger sense is not possible, for in the absence of doubt, there can be no philosophy.

Further reading

• Al-Farabi, The Political Writings (2001)

• Al-Ghazali, The Beginning of Guidance (2009)

• Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica (1948 ed.)

• Thomas Aquinas, The Disputed Questions on Truth (1952 ed.)

• Francis Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man (1992)

• Francis Fukuyama, “Second Thoughts: The End of History 10 Years Later” (1999)

• Francis Fukuyama, “Second Thoughts: The Last Man in a Bottle” (1999)

• Francis Fukuyama, “The ‘End of History’ 20 Years Later” (2013)

• Immanuel Kant, What is Enlightenment? (1784)

• Augustine, Confessions (2006 ed.)

• Augustine, The City of God (2012 ed.)