Comprehending the Principle of Flexibility of Methodological Rationality in the Context of the Formation of Theology as a Science

Aim. The formation of any science is a difficult and often thorny path, starting with its official recognition both at the state level and among the academic community, and ending with the definition of its subject field, as well as the development of a special research methodology. Even more difficult is the formation of theology as a science, the subject field of which is not easy to define, since its object goes far beyond rational understanding, and the methods of cognition of the Ultimate often cross the demarcation line between the scientific and metaphysical. One of the ways of convergence of the secular and sacred, in our opinion, is the possibility of incorporating the main components of the “Principle of Flexibility of Methodological Rationality” proposed by Paul Tillich in his three-volume book “Systematic Theology” into the scientific field of theology, which will allow us to resolve not only the issues of scientificity / unscientificity of theology, but also to overcome the disagreements within the theological community, observed between “theological philosophers” and “highly educated preachers”.

Methodology. On the basis of the analysis of the “Principle of methodological rationality”, the present article attempts to identify and systematize the indicators of flexibility of methodological rationality, divided by us into two groups singled out on the basis of their semantic orientation.

Results. The first group includes indicators concerning the role and place of reason in theology and its specific features, among which are: the presence of different levels of consciousness, including levels of interiority, the highest of which indicates the possibility of the theologian to reach his meta-level; several types of reason – formal (technical), involved in the construction of theological systems and ontological (ecstatic), the reason inherent in faith and having a special dimension of depth - the foundation of reason, thanks to which the union of cognitive and aesthetic is possible. The second group of indicators is identified on the basis of analyzing the concepts of P. Tillich, B. Lonergan and D. V. Shmonin. This group includes the representation of groups of theologians who are in the same theological circle, but who fulfill somewhat different functions, which is reflected in the predominance of one or another level of consciousness and type of reason in the representatives of each group, as well as types of theology, the first of which is given the role of carrying “living knowledge of the transcendent”, the second is assigned the role of preserving and disseminating dogmatics and ritualism, the third is related to the correlation of theological concepts with modern scientific knowledge.

Research implications. Based on the conducted research, the article concludes that the inclusion of the “Principle of Flexibility of Methodological Rationality” in theological research contributes not only to the resolution of the problem of scientificity / unscientificity of theological knowledge, but also contributes to the removal of some of the contradictions observed in the contemporary theological space.

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