Blackwell Reference Online

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In this chapter I trace changes in theories of human nature in the West, as consequences of philosophy, science, and Biblical studies. I claim that neither of the two major theories of human nature available in the modern period was successful. The radical dualism of René Descartes and his followers failed because of the problem of mind – body interaction. The reductive physicalism of Thomas Hobbes and his followers was unacceptable to Christians because its causal determinism left no room for human freedom, rationality, and morality.However, the development of resources for overcoming modern causal reduction-ism has recently created a third possibility among theories of human nature, namely non-reductive physicalism. This theory is compatible with current science, particularly the cognitive neurosciences. Furthermore, although dualism was the predominant view through much of Christian history, theologians and Biblical scholars over the past century have been arguing that physicalism is actually more consistent with the account of human nature in the Bible.In these three chapters I have been examining differences between modern and postmodern philosophical assumptions in the Anglo-American world. I first considered epistemological changes, and the difference they make for understanding the relations between theology and the sciences. Next I considered the shift from reductive to ... log in or subscribe to read full text