God’s Reality, Matters of Fact and D.Z. Phillips

Abstract

D.Z. Phillips’ work in the philosophy of religion continues to be criticised, often on the basis of serious misunderstandings. By engaging with criticisms of Phillips’ Wittgenstein-influenced approach, especially those recently exemplified by Graham Oppy and Nick Trakakis, this article seeks to clarify what Phillips’ approach does and does not involve. Focusing on the relation between talk of God’s reality and talk of matters of fact, and on the question whether God is a ‘metaphysical reality’, the extent to which Phillips himself emphasised the need for close attention to how language is used in real-life situations is highlighted, and the persistent mischaracterisation of Phillips as a ‘non-realist’ is rejected.