Gordon asked: "What did Strunk mean by Christian Atheism?"
Remember that Strunk was writing his book in the mid-60s. The three leading
exponents of radical theology at that time were Thomas Altizer, William
Hamilton and Paul Van Buren. All, apparently, used the phrase, but none of
the three agreed with the others as to what it meant. Strunk, in his 4th
chapter, summarizes their views for a layperson. For a more scholarly view,
he refers to Thomas Ogletree's THE DEATH OF GOD CONTROVERSY, published in
1966.
Another theologian of the time was, of course, John Robinson, and it was his
book, HONEST TO GOD, that probably got the most press.
The key to the phrase is, of course, that the TRADITIONAL views of God are
"dead," except in, perhaps, fundementalist circles. Another key is that, for
people in the 60s, God was no longer REAL in their minds. Too mny were
simply "going throughthe motions."
Of course the word "atheism" admits of more than one meaning; Strunk
identifies ten possibilities. Of the ten, I probably would claim to hold to
at least four or five. If anyone is interested, I'll post the list.
Burgy
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