Two Kinds of 'Christian Philosophy'

Abstract

It is controversial whether ‘Christian Philosophy’ is a useful or even consistent notion. After providing some historical background to the problem, I will distinguish and explicate two possible understandings of ‘Christian Philosophy’ which should be kept apart: a ‘Thomistic’ and an ‘Augustinian’ one, of which the latter has garnered more attention in the recent literature. A sketch of the most prominent current ‘Augustinian’ position (Alvin Plantinga’s ‘reformed epistemology’) leads to some considerations for why a ‘Thomistic’ understanding of ‘Christian Philosophy’ has more to recommend it, if the term is regarded as useful at all.