Comparative Shiʿi Theology

The Argument from Fiṭrah in Islamic Theology and Contemporary Epistemology: From Disposition to Affirmation and Its Relation to Reformed Epistemology

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Seyyed Hatam Mahdavinoor 1
Abdolvahid Vafaei 2

1 Department of Islamic Studies, Yadgar-e-Imam Khomeini (RA) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

2 Islamic Azad University

https://doi.org/10.22054/jcst.2025.89076.1261
Abstract
In Imami Islamic theology, the “proof of nature” relies on the innate desire for God and theology of man. The question is how this proof proceeds from the innate tendency to affirm the existence of God and what is its relation to “reformed epistemology.” The aim of explaining the Imami versions of the proof of nature and comparing it with the theory of “foundational belief” in reformed epistemology (especially in Plantinga) is to clarify the rationality of believing in God without a priori reliance on classical proofs. The research is descriptive-analytical and comparative with a library method; the Quranic, narrative and philosophical concepts of nature are extracted from Imami sources and systematically compared with the components of reformed epistemology. The research findings show that the proof of nature is based on two components: (1) the innate tendency to absolute perfection and the sacred (love of goodness, truth and worship), (2) the innate insight/affirmation of the origin of existence. Thinkers such as Mulla Sadra, Allama Tabataba'i, Imam Khomeini (RA), and Javadi Amoli consider this tendency/insight to be a sign of the real existence of its subject. In reformed epistemology, too, belief in God can be a basic and reasonable belief and arise from the correct functioning of the sense of theology.

Keywords

Fiṭrah
Argument from Innate Nature
Reformed Epistemology
Properly Basic Belief
Sensus Divinitatis
Islamic Theology
Imamiyya
Alvin Plantinga
Subjects
Qurʾān al-Karīm
Alston, William P. Perceiving God: The Epistemology of Religious Experience. Ithaca. NY: Cornell University Press, 1991.
Barrett, Justin, and Believers Lorn. The Science of Children’s Religious Belief. New York: Free Press, 2012.
Bolos, Anthony, and Kyle Scott. "Reformed Epistemology." Internet En of Philosophy (IEP). n.d. https://iep.utm.edu/ref-epis/ (accessed October 22, 2025).
Calvin, John. Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book I. Translated by F. Battles. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1989.
DePoe, John, and Tyler D. McNabb,. Debating Christian Religious Epistemology: An Introduction to Five Views on the Knowledge of God. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2020.
Fuqua, Jonathan, and John Greco. The Cambridge Handbook of Religious Epistemology. Edited by Tyler McNabb. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023.
Kelemen, Deborah. "Are Children ‘Intuitive Theists’? Reasoning about Purpose and Design in Nature." Psychological Science 15, no. 5 (2004): 295–301.
Lewis, C. S. Mere Christianity (New ed.). San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2001.
Moon, Andrew. "Recent Work in Reformed Epistemology." Philosophy Compass 11, no. 22 (2016): 879–891.
Plantinga, Alvin. God and Other Minds. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1967.
—. Warranted Christian Belief. New York:: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Plantinga, Alvin, and Nicholas (Eds.) Wolterstorff. "Faith and Rationality: Reason and Belief." In God. Notre Dame. University of Notre Dame Press, 1983.
Plantinga, Alvin. warrant: The currrent Debate. New york: Oxfotd University press, 1993.
Van Eyghen, Hans. Arguing from Cognitive Science of Religion: Is Religious Belief Debunked? London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2020.
Comparative Shiʿi Theology
Volume 6, Issue 11
September 2026
Pages 293-327

Home

Guide for Authors

Editorial Boards

Submit Manuscript

Contact Us