The Fields Of Philosophy And Theology - 1523 Words

The fields of philosophy and theology are often grounds of debate. While some hold these two to be relevant and dependent on each other, others find them to be completely independent of each other. In John D. Caputo’s work, Philosophy and Theology, he expresses his view of these fields as companions. Caputo states, â€Å"Think of philosophers and theologians as fellow sailors on [the] ocean,† depicting his view of the interdependence of these two fields (Caputo 69). Through his illustration we can find the influence philosophy and theology can have on each other in facilitating our toleration of such a mysterious future and world. By definition, these two fields cover different horizons, with the exception of a few topics. Theology refers to†¦show more content†¦If we consider the sciences, arts, politics, and religions their own â€Å"language†, we can grasp the concept that one cannot understand every â€Å"language,† just as we do not understan d every one of the natural languages. For example, as an english speaking american student, I am fluent in English with a background in Spanish, but if someone were to start speaking Arabic to me, I would have no idea what they are trying to say. We must take this idea and correlate it to the fields of religion and philosophy. In Caputo’s words, â€Å"[Theology and Philosophy both] constitute an irreducible paradigm of [their] own, a language of [their] own, a perspective of [their] own† (Caputo 53). Taken in this light, we find the independent nature of philosophy and theology, and we must dive deeper to see otherwise. John D. Caputo chooses to write about many prominent philosophers and theologians, all possessing different beliefs. He mentions the studies and beliefs of people such as Soren Kierkegaard, Thomas Aquinas, St. augustine, and Jacques Derrida. At first glance, one may think these men all hold different beliefs, but as Caputo begins to break down their bel iefs, one may find otherwise. For example, Caputo compares the beliefs of Jacques Derrida, an atheist, and Augustine of Hippo, a canonized Saint of christian religions. These two men are the complete opposite on the cover, but caputo starts to unveil how many similarities they really have in belief and its practice. He