'n Werkgroep vir teologie, filosofie en ander vakdissiplines

Abstract

Die voorstel dat ’n werkgroep tussen teoloë, filosowe en ander vakspesialiste op die been gebring word, hang nou saam met die insig dat grondslaekwessies in alle fakulteite en studierigtings bestaan. Die skrywer beweeg weg van die onderskeid dat teologie “sakrale geloofswetenskap” en filosofie “sekulêre rasionele diskoers” is. Teologie en filosofie kan nie sonder “geloof” en grondslaekwessies beoefen word nie. Daarom kan bona fides en grondslaekwessies interdissiplinêr deurlopend in ’n werkgroep aandag kry. Vanuit die meerdimensionele opset van wetenskap (empiriese, metodologiese en dimensies van metakwessies) beredeneer die skrywer dat wetenskaplike dissiplines simbioties aan grondslaekwessies verbind is. Beperkings en voordele van logiese, transendentale en transformasionele kritiek word gebruik om opsetlike samewerking tussen betrokke vakgeleerdes te bevorder oor gemeenskaplike sake en oor nodige én onwenslike verskille tussen die dissiplines. Verskeie aannames kom ter sprake, soos dat die eie vakrigting nie alles oor sogenaamde gemeenskaplike kwessies te sê het nie; dat die onderskeie vakgenote by mekaar kan leer; dat Christelike teologie nié ’n Christelike denke in ander dissiplines soos taalwetenskappe en filosofie oorbodig maak nie. Vakspesialiste verarm hulleself indien hulle ontslae wil raak van hulle vak-inherente grondslaekwessies, daaroor swyg of dit aan filosowe afstaan.

The proposal to start a workshop among theologians, philosophers and other specialists is connected to the view that foundational issues exist in every faculty and in every field of study. A distinction between theology as “divinity knowledge” and philosophy as “secular rational discourse” is set aside by explaining that both theology and philosophy are “sciences of faith”. Not one single discipline is without its bona fides and its foundational issues. Hence, the suggestion to pay continual attention to foundational issues in theology, philosophy and other concerned disciplines in an interdisciplinary workshop. Using the so-called multidimensional scope of science (empirical, methodological and dimension of meta-issues) the author argues that any scientific discipline is inextricably bound up with foundational issues. Some limitations and some advantages of scientific inquiries like logical critique, transcendental critique, and transforming of elements of truths serve as to deliberately further co-operation between specialists on common fundamental issues, on inadmissible/ undesirable differences and on indispensable diversity. Several assumptions are presented, for example one’s own specialist field does not have the final word about common issues; that various specialists can learn from one another; Christian theology does not render Christian scholarship redundant in other scientific disciplines such as languages or philosophy. Special disciplines deteriorate in scientific quality whenever specialists tend to get rid of their inherent foundational issues, tend to keep quiet about them, or pass them on to philosophers.