The beginning of the end, or the end of the beginning?

The relation of Scripture, Tradition, Reason and Experience to Revelation is diverse and interdependent. The saving character of revelation is seen in Christ: as he is revealed in the Scriptures; as the head of the Church and its tradition; as the ordering principle that makes reason function; and as the One who meets us in our experience. The gracious self-disclosure of God in the person and work of Christ is specifically salvific in nature, and is sufficient for those who exercise faith in the power of the Spirit. Hence, authentic “[c]hristian faith and life are inseparable from reliable knowledge of the character and purpose of God”[1].

However, “for eschatological reasons, we may wish to hold that because all our knowledge is provisional there are necessary limits to its completeness”[2]. Christians look forward to the coming revelation in the appearance of Christ in the parousia (1 Cor 1:7, Col 3:4). At that time, what is unknown shall be made fully known, and the person and nature of the triune God will be explored and enjoyed by humanity for all eternity.

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[1] Migliore, Faith Seeking Understanding, 23.

[2] Gunton, “Historical and systematic theology”, 12.