ABSTRACT
Since Reformed philosophers hold that no common neutral ground exists between the believer and the unbeliever, but that no judgement of the unbeliever is possible unless common ground exists, they conclude that that common ground is Christianity itself. The unbeliever can legitimately be seen as a religious phenomenon. On the one hand, Reformed philosophers want to say that belief in God is foundational, but on the other hand, noetic structures which exclude God do not seem to be within the orbit of religious judgement. For Reformed philosophers, this admission would severely damage their claim that belief in God is foundational. This chapter argues that a comparison of Wittgenstein's treatment of basic propositions with the basic beliefs of religion is highly instructive and relevant to our present concerns. Speaking of the unbeliever from within a religious perspective, the believer may say that he is deceiving himself.
