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counseling that is based solely on the Bible and cording to its design plan, it is properly functio-
that treats most mental problems as exclusively ning; 4) if it is properly functioning, it will yield
spiritual in nature, and therefore are opposed reliable knowledge; and 5) if it is not functioning
to the use of psychotropic medications as well properly, it may not yield reliable knowledge.
as therapeutic techniques not mentioned in the Plantinga (2000) argued further that, according
Bible. This group also typically rejects profes- to Christianity, 1) the design plan of the human
sional licensure and sometimes argues that the- mind has been compromised by sin which has
re is no such thing as mental illness. caused damage to its knowing capacities and
Finally, are those Christians who seek a “midd- so has compromised its ability to know certain
le way” between these extremes, in which they things (e.g., the proper knowledge of self and
learn from and practice critical engagement God), and 2) one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit
with modern psychology and participate in the is the restoration of those knowing capacities
contemporary discipline, in spite of the cur- lost by sin. Obviously, such conclusions would
rent dominance of naturalism. They begin with be irrational according to the canons of modern
a Christian understanding of human beings, discourse, particularly because of its assertions
but appropriate legitimate knowledge of the that some humans (Christians) may know im-
modern versions of the human sciences, inter- portant things that others cannot know unless
preted according to a Christian worldview and they too become Christians. Plantinga acknow-
translated into a Christian framework, but also ledges that he cannot prove the validity of spe-
believe that Christianity offers divine resources cifically Christian beliefs to those who are not
in Christ for the healing of the soul, unavailable Christians, but he is not attempting to provide
to humans apart from faith in Christ. Propon- such proof. He has simply tried to make the case
ents of this middle way seek to develop distinct- that the Christian is within her epistemic rights
ly Christian versions of psychology, as much as to hold to those beliefs, and that it is rational to
possible, within the Christian community, uni- do so, even though they are not held by other
versity, and local church, but are also willing to rational persons—that is, even though they are
work within the secular rules of discourse and not publicly verifiable. Moreover, in contrast to
practice that are currently mandated within the the post-modernist, Plantinga argues in favor of
public square. However, in addition, they ad- a realist theory of human knowing that is, that
vocate for an increasingly pluralistic education humans can know things as they really are and,
and public mental health system that respects even more controversial, Christians can know
the worldviews of all professors, students, prac- some things more accurately than non-Christi-
titioners, and counselees. Christian psycholo- ans, because of God’s grace, directly suggesting
gy is one name for this “middle way” (see the that if one does not believe in Christ, one’s kno-
website of the Society for Christian Psychology, wing faculties are deficient.
www.Christianpsych.org.), but there are also This brief summary cannot do justice to the com-
some who identify themselves with biblical plexity of Plantinga’s arguments, nor can it deal
counseling (Williams, 2010) and integration with difficulties in the position (e.g., if belief in
(Tan, 2010) who also advocate this middle way. the Christian God can be rationally held in the
face of objections from other rational persons,
Conclusion what about belief in the Great Pumpkin?). Ne-
Distinctly Christian scholarship has been hel- vertheless, the significance of his work for Chri-
ped immeasurably in the past few decades by stian psychology is inestimable. To begin with,
the work of Alvin Plantinga (1993; 2000; 2012), he has written a well-structured argument for
one of the most important Christian philoso- the rationality of holding to specifically Chri-
phers in the 20th century. He has argued (1993) stian beliefs even though other rational persons
that it is rational to assume the following: 1) the disagree. This is of seismic importance for the
human mind is a belief-producing mechanism; Christian psychologist because of the many di-
2) the human mind produces beliefs according stinctively Christian beliefs that bear on human
to its design plan; 3) if it is producing beliefs ac- nature and Christian experience that are not

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