For the exam, you would want to know at least the following about cognitive and non-cognitive language.

• Cognitive language expresses facts about the world.

• As John Hick puts it, ‘We can define a cognitive (or informative or indicative) sentence as one that is either true or false’ (1990: 89).

• Non-cognitive language is language that does anything else, e.g.

  • expressing feelings

  • sharing opinions

  • giving commands

• There is a debate about whether religious language is cognitive or non-cognitive.

• Thomas Aquinas argues that religious language is cognitive.

• However, he explains ‘names [...] do indeed signify the divine substance and are predicated of God substantivally, but [...] they fall short in their representation of Him’ (ST I, q. 13, art. 2).

• He means that religious language does refer to God, and can even speak of Him truthfully, but we must always remember that our language is not adequate to describe God completely.

• A.J. Ayer claims that religious language attempts to be cognitive, but fails at it.

• He argues out that ‘to say that “God exists” is to make a metaphysical utterance which cannot be either true or false’ (1936: 120).

• Since true cognitive language is verifiable in practice or principle, and religious language is not, it fails as cognitive language, and becomes nonsense instead.

• R.B. Braithwaite argues that religious language is non-cognitive.

• He claims that ‘the meaning of a religious assertion is given by its use in expressing the asserter’s intention to follow a specified policy of behaviour’ (1955: 16).

• He means that when people use Christian language, they are not describing the world, but rather their intention to live as a follower of Christ; it is more like taking the Oath of Allegiance than explaining how the universe works.

Sources:

• Aquinas, Thomas. n.d. 'New English Translation of St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologiae (Summa Theologica)', trans. Alfred J. Freddoso <https://www.freddoso.com/summa-translation/TOC.htm>

• Ayer, A.J. 1936 [1971].  'Language Truth and Logic' (Penguin)

• Braithwaite, R.B. 1955. 'An Empiricist's View of the Nature of Religious Belief' (Cambridge)

• Hick, John. 1990. 'Philosophy of Religion', 4th ed. (Prentice-Hall)