Gade's problematization of the concept of revelation as an epistemological criterion of the theology of religions

Gerhard Gade's theological-fundamental conception of the plurality of religions (interiorism), provides a stimulating alternative to the classical "exclusivism-inclusivism-pluralism" definition of the relation of Christianity to other religions that appears deficient nowadays. This article discusses the main features of Gade's inovative conception with an emphasis on the role of revelation. Besides thorough problematization of the insufficiency of the above mentioned paradigms, Gade's contribution to this question rests in the emphasis on the theologico-hermeneutic relation of the Christian to the Jewish Bible, which indeed is a key relation for a more adequate reflexion of the relation of Christianity to other religious traditions. Practical application of Gade's concept (i.e. for the relation of Christianity to Islam) however indicates certain problems not formulated by Gade, such as the problem concerning distinct epistemological status of the Christian Bible in relation to the Islamic Koran, which reflects a different self-conception of a certain religion that does not have to correspond to its reception in other religions structures. We can surely understand the Islamic hermeneutics of the Christian Bible, however we can only hardly identify with them (incl. Christianity as a praeparatio i: lamica). The category of salvation and its content, posited by Gade as common for all religions, should be, formulated as problematic in the next step as well as the basic question of a fundamental theology (credibility question). Current expectations of the contribution of the fundamental theology to clarifying our understanding of the relation of Christianity to other religions are to be discussed at the end of the article.