Karen Armstrong, And Paul Tillich's Analysis

In the discussion concerning the nature of religion in philosophy, the most prominent names include John Hick, Michael Goulder, John Herman Randall, Karen Armstrong, and Paul Tillich. Two primary vantage points exist in this discussion: the theistic view, in which the individual believes in an ultimate, transcendent being called “God,” and the non-theistic view, in which the individual sees “God” as a hypothesis rather than another Holy Being. To draw focus toward three particular names-- John Herman Randall, Karen Armstrong, and Paul Tillich-- is to draw specific attention to a compelling perspective regarding religion.
To begin, John Herman Randall champions a point about religious symbols: “All ideas of God… are religious symbols… Such
“ but rather they urge an individual to see “something about our experience.” Similarly, Armstrong affirms that “God” is “transcendent” and “beyond human orthodoxy;” Tillich asserts that he sees “God” as an “infinite and inexhaustible depth.” Evidently, all three quotes, which ultimately summarize the views of the speakers, suggest and even encourage a non-theistic view concerning “God.” Randall, Armstrong, and Tillich propose that something more exists beyond the surface level idea of “God” for humanity. Theistic religions such as Christianity should not be scrutinized in a fundamentalist or literal sense, lest the individual loses the spirituality that ought to come with living a life filled with
Symbols, by nature, represent something more, something else, something other than itself. Randall believes that symbols are “instruments of insight and revelation” and therefore, religious symbols reveal important ideas of God when seen in an abstract light. Typically, the religious symbols are narratives and myths, and myths often divulge imperative truths that help an individual become more ware and attentive to abstract ideas, as in the case of symbolism in poetry. Additionally, religious symbols, according to Randall, possess several functions-- not only do they represent the literal functions of objects themselves, but they also encourage individuals to act with the “holy” values such as compassion, urge others to communicate “shared” experiences, and disclose something about the world. For example, take the analogy of the Wheel of Dharma in Buddhism. Literally, it is an image of a wheel with eight spokes; while there is not much to do with this information in an objective sense, by analyzing the wheel abstractly, a lesson lies in its midst. The eight spokes on the Wheel of Dharma represents the Noble Eightfold Path outlined in the teachings of Buddha and additionally refers to the endless cycle of rebirth which can only