| In 1870 the Roman Catholic Church defined the dogma of papal infallibility at the First Vatican Council. Since that time, Catholic theologians have differed over the exact interpretation and application of the doctrine, and the doctrine has become a major point of division in ecumenical dialogue. This work argues that papal infallibility has inevitable shortcomings as a proposal in religious epistemology. After an introduction to the doctrine of papal infallibility, the epistemic shortcomings of the doctrine are illustrated by analyzing the writings of four prominent Catholic theologians, Henry Edward Cardinal Manning (1808-1892), John Henry Cardinal Newman (1801-1890), Avery Cardinal Dulles (1918- ), and Hans Küng (1928- ). A new proposal for conceiving religious epistemology and ecclesial authority is proposed in an attempt to overcome the deficiencies of the doctrine of papal infallibility, as well as similar epistemic proposals in Protestant theology, and to aid the progress of ecumenical dialogue. |
