eschatological verification

• eschatological verification is a theory presented by Hick
• Hick claimed 2 things for religious language

  • its claims are cognitive
  • they are therefore subject to verification
• Parable of the Celestial City

  • 2 men travel together along a road - one believes it leads to a Celestial City, the other believes it leads nowhere
  • one sees the journey as greatly meaningful, prepared by the king of that city + designed to make him a worthy citizen of the place when he arrives there
  • the other sees the journey as unavoidable + aimless
  • when they do turn the last corner, it will be apparent that one of them has been right all the time + the other wrong
• Parable of the Celestial City - explanation

  • while there is no evidence, the beliefs held by either of the men influences the way they encounter + deal with various events along the way
  • this is meaningful, regardless of whether it is true or false
  • eventually, at the end of time, it will be shown one way or another
  • Hick makes the point that there is a truth to know + that it will be revealed after death
• strengths:

  • Hick's claim that heaven is a real possibility
  • it gives good support to the view that religious claims are cognitive as if we do 'wake up' in a resurrected body, then we shall know that many other claims made by Christianity are ture
  • the previous point is supported by Hick's claim that whenever we describe an experience, we are at the same time interpreting it
• weaknesses (+ counter responses)

  • Hick's claim about heaven does not make it true or even a strong possibility -> BUT there is evidence for life after death: near-death experiences; memories of reincarnation
  • view that religious claims are cognitive does not work like standard falsification -> Hick states that statements in mathematics cannot be falsified, as well as claims of atheists about life after death