Relativism's Many Daughters

Plato's Cave: fiction poses as science

Relativism is a result of the denial of metaphysics and so is manifested in the overreach of the various areas of thought by restricting "truth" to opinion and denying truth to reality itself. Opinion (partial, transitory and inconclusive knowledge) is given the status of ultimate knowledge. The principle of non-contradiction is rejected. And ultimate truth is thereby deemed unattainable.

Relativism's types vary according to the relativizing referent, i.e. whether relativism be considered regarding the perspective of the knowing subject, the knowing system, or the end pursued in knowledge.

  I. Subject: the knowing individual

         psychologism

         historicism

         sociologism

 II. Knowing systems: cognitive theories

         phenomenalism, criticism

         sensualism

         empiricism, positivism

         nominalism

         idealism, immanentism

III. The purpose of the knowledge

         pragmatism, utilitarianism

         biologism, evolutionism, instrumentalism

         fictionalism

"Relativism. It is a meaning of truth in which true knowledge is not in the being as it is in itself but rather is assessed within the process of knowing. For relativism there is no absolute, that is, in being grounded in its own validity, so that the it itself, of itself, in itself is said to be an aspect which can be true for one subject and false for another. One and the same thing and in the same respect can be said

to be true for one subject and false for another.

"There are different types of relativism depending on the point of view from which the "truth" is relativized.

"A first group. Theories let themselves depend upon certain peculiarities of the knowing (individual or supra-individual) subjects. So, from the laws of psychological causes, by which the realization of judgments are effected: psychologism; from those of each historical period and particular cultural situation: historicism; from those of human society: sociologism.

"Insofar as the human knowing capacity can only know a partial area of being as truth laden, likewise the truth is relativized, whose absolute validity claim will always be weighed against the horizon of total being. This is the second relativist group. Theories developed on systems, of the human cognitive faculty restricted to certain areas of objects: phenomenalism, criticism; on the meaningful perception of objects: sensualism; on that through the experience of the knowable circumstances: empiricism, positivism; on the individual under the exclusion of general concepts and laws: nominalism; on the conditions of consciousness: idealism, immanentism.

"The third group of relativists. Theories make the "truth" dependent on a goal to be achieved by it: "truth" is usefulness: pragmatism, utilitarianism; human knowledge comes from the necessity of adaptation to the environment and is true in the whole of its adaptation: biologism, evolutionism, instrumentalism; Thought takes on the conscience of fiction, of feeling its way around the world of appearances (phenomena): fictionalism."

[Plinthos translation]

W. Czapiewski in Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, volume 8 (Palermo bis Roloff), Freiburg: Herder, 1963, 1159-1160.

P.S. It is safe to assume that Joseph Ratzinger would totally agree with this definition of relativism, published while he was in his prime, and in an encyclopedia in which he made some major contributions. This was the beginning of the years of the Council during which Ratzinger and Rahner (the editor of this 60's edition of the Lexicon) were close colleagues.