Epistemology in Philosophy of Religion [Excerpt]

In our debate, Plantinga and I did not exchange views about the problem of religious diversity, but it is clear that we share the view that it is a source of potential defeaters for properly basic theistic belief for those who are sufficiently aware of it. Nontheistic religions such as Theravada Buddhism and Advaita Hinduism seem to be no less well supported than theistic religions by experiential grounds and philosophical arguments. In the absence of independent reasons for thinking one’s own theistic religion is epistemically superior to such non-theistic rivals, they remain uneliminated competitors to any theistic religion. Their core non-theistic beliefs are therefore potential defeaters for theistic beliefs.