PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY AS A TOOL FOR DEEPENING RELIGIOUS UNDERSTANDING IN EDUCATION
Keywords:
Philosophical inquiry, religious education, critical thinking,, interfaith dialogue, hermeneutics, pedagogyAbstract
Discourse in education has been informed by the intersection of philosophy and religion, producing tools for deeper comprehension, respect, and mental connectivity. The rational and reflective and dialogically critical aspects of philosophical inquiry strengthen and enrich the methodology of education in religion. The development of critical thinking, moral reasoning, and hermeneutic sensitivity shows learners ways of studying a religious tradition and texts beyond mere doctrinal transmission. This study uses philosophical inquiry in deepening a learner understands of a religion. It considers the early ideas, history, and contemporary approaches and implications for teaching the religion. It is posited that teaching religion with a philosophy of religion will strengthen inter- religious relations, and a sophisticated understanding of religions, and will encourage civil appreciation of the multi- religious and culturally diverse world we live in today.
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