ABSTRACT
John Hick's clarity of style is such that his work is accessible to a wide audience and this will extend his importance beyond a purely academic arena. The future success of Hick's work will largely depend on the future of religious liberalism. Whilst powerful intellectual forces are persuading many towards postmodern or postliberal interpretations, Hick is committed to a liberal vision which extends itself beyond 'tradition-specific' boundaries. Being a liberal, he borrows from many different disciplines: scientific, psychological, sociological, historical, philosophical and from all the major world faiths as well. His work seems to treat religious experience, including revelatory experience, as raw data in a journey towards truth. For Hick, truth results from a cumulative amassing of data and experience, it does not arrive like a bolt of lightning. Don Cupitt, a non-realist, uses language to describe religious discourse which is strikingly similar to Hick's own. As an intellectual traveller, Hick has changed in his attitudes to his own work.
