Brummer, Vincent

Vincent Brümmer (1932-2021) was a Dutch Reformed theologian and philosopher of religion who made significant contributions to understanding religious language and the concept of personal relationship with God. Professor of Philosophy of Religion at Utrecht University from 1967-1997, Brümmer developed an influential approach to philosophical theology that emphasized the personal and relational aspects of religious belief. His major work, "Speaking of a Personal God: An Essay in Philosophical Theology" (1992), explores how believers can coherently speak about God as a personal being with whom humans can have genuine relationships. Brümmer argued against reductionist accounts of religious language, defending the view that talk of divine personhood is neither merely metaphorical nor anthropomorphic projection. His philosophical analysis drew on ordinary language philosophy and speech act theory to illuminate how concepts of love, prayer, and divine-human interaction function in religious discourse. His work has been particularly influential in discussions of petitionary prayer, divine passibility, and the nature of religious commitment.