Satan and the Problem of Evil: Constructing a Trinitarian Warfare Theodicy
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
An Examination of Personal Salvation in the Theology of North American Evangelicalism: on the Road to a Theology of Social Justice
Wilfrid Laurier University Scholars Commons @ Laurier Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) 1980 An Examination of Personal Salvation in the Theology of North American Evangelicalism: On the Road to a Theology of Social Justice Robert F.J. Gmeindl Wilfrid Laurier University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd Part of the Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Gmeindl, Robert F.J., "An Examination of Personal Salvation in the Theology of North American Evangelicalism: On the Road to a Theology of Social Justice" (1980). Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive). 1421. https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd/1421 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) by an authorized administrator of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ABSTRACT AN EXAMINATION OF PERSONAL SALVATION IN THE THEOLOGY OF NORTH AMERICAN EVANGELICALISM: ON THE ROAD TO A THEOLOGY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE by Robert F.J. Gmeindl The question under consideration is the effect of the belief in personal salvation on the theology of North American Evangelicalism, for the purpose of developing a theology of social justice. This study is a preliminary investigation of the history of Evangelical individualism and the potential influence that individualism might have on Evangelical theology. Certain trends toward isolation and separation, as well as a tendency to neglect what I have called systemic evil, are examined to see how they may result from the Evangelical stress on individualism. -
Theodicy: God's Sovereignty & Human Freedom
1 The Foundation for Adventist Education Institute for Christian Teaching Education Department – General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists RELIGIOUS FAITHS AND THE PROBLEM OF EVIL: A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE Lael Caesar, Ph.D. Andrews University 4th Symposium on the Bible and Adventist Scholarship Riviera Maya, Estado Quintana Roo, Mexico March 16-22, 2008 2 RELIGIOUS FAITHS AND THE PROBLEM OF EVIL: A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE Lael Caesar Andrews University Introduction Beyond these introductory remarks, this paper, on the enigma of the existence of evil, proceeds in four stages. Stage One Stage one presents definitions of three terms—‘theodicy’, ‘pain’, and ‘suffering’. Needless to say, agreement on the meanings of these terms allows reader and writer to stand on common ground with regard to their use throughout the paper. Stage Two In stage two, following the definitions, and under the rubric of “Some Religious Perspectives on Pain and Suffering”, the paper reviews a number of faiths, ancient and modern, on their attitude to pain and/or suffering. The review serves to locate the paper’s subsequent arguments on suffering and evil within a global perspective. Stage Three Thereafter, discussion on suffering and evil reflects on a pair of ironies I find of considerable significance for Christian theodicy. Note that this paper offers no exhaustive answer on theodicy [as defined below]. Rather it proposes the sine qua non for beginning any biblically based Christian theodicy. Theodicies in general are doomed to fail to the extent that they give inadequate address to the question of evil’s origins. In Bart Ehrman’s opinion, humanity’s most important question concerns why we suffer. -
APPETIZER – Loving God with Our Minds DINE in – Because Jesus
THREE DANGERS… 1. You may widen your hypocrisy gap. Galatians 5:6; James 1:22-25 2. You may get bogged down in the paralysis of analysis. John 5:39-40 WEEK 1: PROLEGOMENA & GOSPELOLOGY: Loving God with all our Minds 3. You may fall in love with a system instead of your Saviour. WEEK 2: CHRISTOLOGY & BIBLIOLOGY – The Word of God, in Print and in Person WEEK 3: THEOLOGY PROPER/PATEROLOGY – The Person and Work of God John 3:8; 1 Corinthians 4:20 WEEK 4: ANTHROPOLOGY & HARMARTIOLOGY – Humanity and Sin WEEK 5: SOTERIOLOGY – Salvation Achieved and Received WEEK 6: ZOEOLOGY – The Christian Life (with Special Guest) THREE TIPS TO SURVIVE AND THRIVE… WEEK 7: PNEUMATOLOGY – The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit WEEK 8: ECCLESIOLOGY – The Identity and Practice of the Church 1. Look for the ONE THING that connects with you. WEEK 9: MISSIOLOGY – The Mission of the Church 2. Imagine how you will LIVE what you learn. WEEK 10: ESCHATOLOGY – Last Things 3. Do your homework – review, discuss, apply. APPETIZER – Loving God With Our Minds Mark 12:28-34; Romans 12:2 “THEOLOGY” = Theos (God) + Logos (Word) DINE IN – Because Jesus Is Lord THEOLOGY = Faith Seeking Understanding (Augustine & Anselm) Romans 10:9; 2 Corinthians 4:5 vs APOLOGETICS = Offering evidence for the faith we have Because Jesus is Lord (CHRISTOLOGY/GOSPELOLOGY)… THEOLOGY IS A LOT LIKE DOING A PUZZLE… • God is Love (THEOLOGY PROPER/PATEROLOGY) • SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY = the picture of the puzzle • The Bible is Precious (BIBLIOLOGY) • BIBLICAL THEOLOGY = the pieces of the puzzle • We Are Priceless -
1 Doubting God's Goodness: Life in a Time of War Rich Nathan May 20
Doubting God’s Goodness: Life in a Time of War Rich Nathan May 20, 2012 Apologetics: Doubting God Series Ephesians 6:10-12 I recently heard Dr. Greg Boyd, a pastor from Minneapolis, give the following illustration. I’m expanding on it with a huge degree of pastoral liberty. But the basic idea came from Dr. Greg Boyd. Imagine its June 5, 1944. You are living in France and have rented a beach house and you are planning to vacation with your family on the beach at a place called Normandy. You’ve been working hard all year and are looking forward to kicking back, relaxing, drinking good French wine, swimming in the surf with your children, and enjoying the beach for the next month. Well, to your surprise, that night, June 5, 1944, the sounds of planes flying overhead disturb your sleep. Paratroopers start dropping into your yard. And in the morning, before dawn, flotillas of landing craft land on just the spot you’ve planted your beach umbrella. You, of course, are very upset especially after one of the beach invaders breaks your favorite beach chair when he rolls over it with his tank. And then you have to contend with all the shooting and shells that are landing in your yard. You are in the backyard trying to get a little peace as you lie in your hammock. You finally lose your patience and start screaming at everyone, “Stop it! Stop it! I’m on vacation!” Dr. Boyd’s point was that the problem most Christians have and, indeed, most people have with all of the suffering and pain that exists in our world is that we basically believe that life should be like a vacation instead of like a war. -
Systematic Theology I Theo 0531
Course Syllabus FALL 2013 SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY I THEO 0531 MONDAY, 1:00 PM – 3:50 PM INSTRUCTOR: DR. DENNIS NGIEN Telephone number: 416 226 6620 ext. 2763 Email: [email protected] Office Hours: by appointment To access your course materials, go to your Tyndale email account: http://mytyndale.ca. Please note that all official Tyndale correspondence will be sent to your <@MyTyndale.ca e-mail account. For information how to access and forward Tyndale e-mails to your personal account, see http://www.tyndale.ca/it/live-at-edu. I. COURSE DESCRIPTION Systematic Theology I & II are designed to provide an introduction to the thematic study of Christian doctrine according to the evangelical protestant tradition. Systematic I acquaints students with the elemental building blocks of the Christian faith. The nature, sources, and task of theology will be considered, together with the following major doctrines: Revelations, Trinity, Person of Christ, Holy Spirit. Special attention will be given to the development of a missional, Trinitarian theology. Tyndale Seminary |1 II. LEARNING OUTCOMES At the end of the course, students should have: 1. Attitudes: a. increased appreciation for the value of theology in ministry and the Christian life. b. increased confidence in the authority of Scripture. 2. Information: a. the basic materials for further theological reflection and study. b. familiarity with major theological issues and lines of theological disagreement. 3. Skills: a. tools and skills for doing theological research. b. theological insights for practical situations in ministry. III. COURSE REQUIREMENTS: A. REQUIRED TEXTS: McGrath, Alister E. Christian Theology: An Introduction. 5th ed. Chichester, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2011. -
Donald Macleod. "The Doctrine of the Trinity,"
THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY DONALD MACLEOD FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND COLLEGE, EDINBURGH I must begin with a word of caution. This is indeed holy ground and I don't want to treat it as some kind of academic exercise. We do indeed have a barrage of technical terms to reckon with but these are always, I hope, tools of worship and adoration rather than equipment for mental gymnastics. The problem with which the doctrine of the trinity is concerned contains three basic elements. First, there is the unity of God. God is one. Amid all the emphasis on God's triune-ness this remains the most basic point in our faith. "Hear, 0 Israel, J ehovah our God is one J ehovah" (Deut. 6:4). We must never lose sight of that. Pagan religions had a multiplicity of deities, virtually one to each life-force. In Christianity we have one, exclusive Source of life and energy: one Creator, one elemental Power, one Monarchy. However we go on to define other elements in our doctrine, we have to keep this as our guiding principle: no proposition can be allowed to tamper with the emphasis on divine unity. The second element in the problem is the deity of Christ. This is a point on which the New Testament is emphatic. It is found in all strands of the tradition: Christ is the os, Christ is kurios, Christ is Son ofGod, Christ is Son of Man. He has all the attributes of God. He performs all the functions of God. He enjoys all the prerogatives of God. -
Download Transcript
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 165: Q&A 22 Naked Bible Podcast Transcript Episode 165 Q&A 22 July 1, 2017 Teacher: Dr. Michael S. Heiser (MH) Host: Trey Stricklin (TS) Dr. Heiser answers your questions related to: Source material showing Jesus’ existence When a believer receives the Spirit of God Balaam’s error related to geography Seventy archangels in Jewish studies Theosis Which events in Genesis 1-11 are literal Whether Adam and Eve pooped Transcript TS: Welcome to the Naked Bible Podcast, Episode 165: our 22nd Q&A. I'm the layman, Trey Stricklin, and he's the scholar, Dr. Michael Heiser. Hey, Mike, how are you doing? MH: Pretty good, pretty good. Been staying busy, as usual. TS: Yeah. I just want to mention that we talked about how we were going to do our voting for the next book that we're going to cover on the podcast on July 1. We've added another interview, so we're actually going to start the voting on July 15th and run it through August 7th. That's when the voting's going to begin on the what the next book we're going to cover will be. MH: That's good. So in other words, I have a little more time to contact the Russians to have them influence the outcome of our vote, correct? TS: No comment on that. (laughter) The Russians or the Vatican, I don't know who you want to reach out to. The aliens? I don't know. MH: The Rosicrucians, the Templars.. -
Download ##Common.Downloadpdf
Glocal Conversations Vol 9 (1) May 2021 http://gc.uofn.edu A Cross Vision of G. Boyd’s Cross Vision Paul Miller Email: [email protected] Abstract This paper critiques Greg Boyd’s Cross Vision: How the Crucifixion of Jesus Makes Sense of Old Testament Violence. The paper commends Boyd’s recognition that the God of the Bible prefers to extend grace and life instead of judgment and death, but addresses Boyd’s woefully inadequate hermeneutic—a hermeneutic based on a radically minimized concept of “revelation.” The paper addresses three basic concerns with Boyd’s approach: first, how Boyd’s hermeneutic fatally undermines the very concept of “inspired revelation”; second, that Boyd’s hermeneutic of “Christ crucified” is accurate but woefully incomplete; and third, that Boyd’s hermeneutic in continually contradicting major biblical themes is fatally hostile to Scripture. Key Words: Greg Boyd, Cross Vision, biblical inspiration, inerrancy, hermeneutics, progressive revelation, atonement, penal substitution ******* No shrinking violet, Boyd’s Cross Vision: How the Crucifixion of Jesus Makes Sense of Old Testament Violence tackles what he calls “the elephant in the room”: that is, trumpeting confidently the “God of love” on the one hand while holding to God as portrayed in the Old Testament (OT) on the other. Boyd argues that the OT presents “some portraits of God … [that] are, quite frankly, really ugly! How else can you honestly describe a depiction of God, for example, ordering his people to mercilessly annihilate every member of the Midianites except for the virgin girls…?”1 And how does this OT picture harmonize with the New Testament Jesus, who came to self- sacrificially give his life for sinners rather than to take their lives? The answer, according to Boyd, is that it doesn’t. -
Aspects of Arminian Soteriology in Methodist-Lutheran Ecumenical Dialogues in 20Th and 21St Century
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Helsingin yliopiston digitaalinen arkisto ASPECTS OF ARMINIAN SOTERIOLOGY IN METHODIST-LUTHERAN ECUMENICAL DIALOGUES IN 20TH AND 21ST CENTURY Mikko Satama Master’s Thesis University of Helsinki Faculty of Theology Department of Systematic Theology Ecumenical Studies 18th January 2009 HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO − HELSINGFORS UNIVERSITET Tiedekunta/Osasto − Fakultet/Sektion Laitos − Institution Teologinen tiedekunta Systemaattisen teologian laitos Tekijä − Författare Mikko Satama Työn nimi − Arbetets title Aspects of Arminian Soteriology in Methodist-Lutheran Ecumenical Dialogues in 20th and 21st Century Oppiaine − Läroämne Ekumeniikka Työn laji − Arbetets art Aika − Datum Sivumäärä − Sidoantal Pro Gradu -tutkielma 18.1.2009 94 Tiivistelmä − Referat The aim of this thesis is to analyse the key ecumenical dialogues between Methodists and Lutherans from the perspective of Arminian soteriology and Methodist theology in general. The primary research question is defined as: “To what extent do the dialogues under analysis relate to Arminian soteriology?” By seeking an answer to this question, new knowledge is sought on the current soteriological position of the Methodist-Lutheran dialogues, the contemporary Methodist theology and the commonalities between the Lutheran and Arminian understanding of soteriology. This way the soteriological picture of the Methodist-Lutheran discussions is clarified. The dialogues under analysis were selected on the basis of versatility. Firstly, the sole world organisation level dialogue was chosen: The Church – Community of Grace. Additionally, the document World Methodist Council and the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification is analysed as a supporting document. Secondly, a document concerning the discussions between two main-line churches in the United States of America was selected: Confessing Our Faith Together. -
Theological Foundations I Essentials of Christian Doctrine •
Theological Foundations I Essentials of Christian Doctrine • instructor’s guide • Theological Foundations I Essentials of Christian Doctrine instructor’s guide Bethlehem College & Seminary 720 13th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55415 612.455.3420 | 612.338.6901 (fax) [email protected] | bcsmn.edu Copyright © 2016 by Bethlehem College & Seminary All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, modified, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright © 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. • Theological Foundations I Essentials of Christian Doctrine instructor’s guide Table of Contents Instructor’s Introduction Course Syllabus 1 Lesson 1 Introduction to Systematic Theology 5 Lesson 2 Scripture, the Word of God Written (1) 17 Lesson 3 Scripture, the Word of God Written (2) 35 Lesson 4 The Trinity, One God as Three Persons 55 Lesson 5 God’s Eternal Purpose and Election (1) 77 Lesson 6 God’s Eternal Purpose and Election (2) 103 Lesson 7 God’s Creation of the Universe and Man (1) 127 Lesson 8 God’s Creation of the Universe and Man (2) 147 Lesson 9 Man’s Sin and Fall from Fellowship with God 167 Lesson 10 Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son of God (1) 191 Lesson 11 Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son of God (2) 211 Lesson 12 The Saving Work of Christ 235 Appendix A: Bethlehem College & Seminary Affirmation of Faith Instructor’s Introduction It is our hope and prayer that God would be pleased to use this curriculum for his glory. -
Critique of Aulen's Christus Victor by GEORGE O
Concol2()io Theological Monthly OCTOBER • 1957 A Critique of Aulen's Christus Victor By GEORGE o . EVENSON NE of the most significant theological books published in O recent decades is Christus Victor by Gustaf Aulen. In it he suggests that there are three main ideas or theories of the atonement: the classic, the Latin, and the subjective-humanistic. That which makes the book both significant and controversial is the author's contention that the authentic Scriptural doctrine of the atonement is the classic idea, that Luther was an exponent of the classic idea, and that therefore the orthodox Lutheran doctrine of the atonement differs markedly both from Scripture and from Luther. Aulen asserts that "the doctrine of Lutheranism became a very different thing from that of Luther." 1 The translator in his preface informs us that "Dr. Aulen shows how sharp is the contrast between Luther and the Lutherans" (p. ix). Hence Christus Victor faces us with an insistent challenge to seriously re-examine and re-evaluate the "traditional" Lutheran doctrine of the atonement. That the question cannot be avoided is made clear by Edgar Carlson's assertion that Aulen's view of the atone ment is in the main taken for granted in present-day Lundensian theology (Seminarian, pp. 36 f.). This article is only incidentally a defense of the doctrine of the vicarious satisfaction. It is primarily a criticism of the methodology and theology presented in Christus Victor. This critical position does not mean that this reviewer finds nothing to commend in the book. In it there is much for which to be thankful. -
What Happened at Central Plains Mennonite Conference?
EAST UNION MENNONITE CHURCH VOLUME XXV, ISSUE 7 J U L Y 2 0 1 5 What happened at Central Plains Mennonite Conference? The 15th Annual Meeting of Central Plains Mennonite Conference (CPC) was held June 18- 21 at The Woodland Hills Church, St. Paul. MN. The theme for the weekend was “Joyfully Following Jesus: Communities Centered in Christ.” The back drop for the Delegate Work Sessions was worship time with Dr. Greg Boyd. Greg is the co-founder of Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul where he serves as Senior Pastor. He is an internationally recognized theologian and author who has authored or co-authored 18 books and numerous academic articles, including his best-selling and award-winning Letters From a Skeptic and his recent books Repenting of Religion and The Myth of a Christian Nation. He talked to us about what the Kingdom should look like. He said we should look like, serve like and love like Jesus. He encouraged us to celebrate the Kingdom. The work of the conference centered on hearing about the various ministries serving the congregations of our conference. We celebrated it having been the 4th year in a row the conference has finished the financial year in the black. A New Covenant for CPC was shared about. The booklet, Being God’s Faithful Community, by Tim Detweiler was introduced. It is a 4 session study which will help us together process the Covenant and how to implement it in our church. We are encouraged to study it together as a congregation. The conference has a Conflict Management Support Team consisting of four professional persons with expertise to lead seminars for groups or congregations to improve communication skills.