Summary AQA RS Revision: Religious Language – Cognitive & Non-Cognitive Theories

Religious Language – Full Top
Revision Sheet
Cognitive vs Non-Cognitive
Language
Cognitive Language
The belief that religious language
makes truth-apt claims (true or false).

• Treated like scientific or historical
assertions.
Example: “God is good” = a factual claim about the world.

Non-Cognitive Language​
The belief that religious language expresses feelings, value
moral commitments.​

• Not testable or verifiable.​

Example: “God is love” = a statement of faith, not a literal



Cognitive Non-Cognitive
Scholars Scholars
• Ayer • Hare
• Flew • Wittgenstein
• Hick • Tillich
• Aquinas

, Religious Language – Full Top
Revision Sheet
The Verification
Principle – A.J. Ayer
Key Ideas -
Originates from Logical Positivism
(Vienna Circle).

A statement is meaningful only if it is:​
o Analytic (true by definition)​
or​
o Synthetic and empirically verifiable (testable by observa

Application to Religious Language​​
“God exists” is neither analytic nor observable.​​
Therefore, religious statements are cognitively meaning
​
Evaluatio
n
Strengths Weaknesses
Clear criteria for meaning. Makes ethics, aesthetics,
metaphysics meaningless
too.



Supports scientific enquiry. The principle fails its ow
test — it is neither analyt
nor verifiable.