Religious liberalism

Religious liberalism (also called liberal religion and, in theistic religion, liberal theology) is a broad approach to religion that emphasizes the authority of individual reason and experience over tradition, dogma, or scripture interpreted literally. Rather than treating inherited doctrines as fixed and binding, religious liberals seek to reinterpret their traditions in light of modern knowledge, including the findings of the natural sciences, historical criticism, and moral philosophy.

It is an attitude towards one's own religion, taken by people who remain committed to a religious tradition while seeking to reform it from within, contrasting with both a traditionalist or orthodox approach on the one hand and criticism of religion from a secular position on the other. It is directly opposed by trends of religious fundamentalism.

Religious liberalism is related to but distinct from religious liberty, which refers to the political principle of tolerating diverse religious beliefs and practices. As the philosopher Jay Newman noted, "Many people who think that religious liberty is basically a good thing that ought to be promoted do not wish to be regarded as advocates of religious liberalism; some of them even feel that many of those who call themselves 'religious liberals' are enemies of religious liberty." However, in some traditions, particularly Islam, the theological and political dimensions of liberalism are closely intertwined, with reform movements simultaneously addressing questions of doctrine and of civil rights, democracy, and pluralism.

Although the term originated in Protestant Christianity and the phenomenon has been most extensively studied in that context, analogous liberal movements have developed in Judaism, Islam, and other religious traditions, particularly in response to the challenges posed by the Enlightenment and modernity.

Origins and characteristics

Many of the thinkers of the 18th-century Age of Enlightenment who emphasized freedom of thought and who are now associated with liberal philosophy—such as Locke, Hume, Kant, Lessing, and Paine—also contributed to philosophy of religion. Usage of the term liberal in the context of religious philosophy appeared as early as the mid-19th century—when the term was also associated with generosity, gentility, and dignity—and became established by the first part of the 20th century.

In 1936, philosophy professor and Disciples of Christ minister Edward Scribner Ames, in his article "Liberalism in Religion", described liberalism as "a general movement of Western culture" characterized by "the critical quest for liberty, for freedom, for growth in the capacity and power of individuals and societies to achieve more satisfying ways of living", and he described the emerging sense of liberalism in religion:

The term "liberalism" seems to be developing a religious usage which gives it growing significance.