James Mahaffy wrote:
> folks,
>
> Terry suggested in a post at the end of last month that someone held to
> process theology. Since I know Terry is Orthodox, I gather it is not
> something we want to be. On another list someone accused George Mardsen
> of holding to it (I really wonder about that). In any case, I am a
> biologists who has read a lot of theology in the past and know a lot of
> terms so figure I should not be ignorant on this one.
>
> Can you give me a simple clear explanation. I could just ask one of my
> theology brethern at Dordt tomorrow and then no one would know I was so
> ignorant - but if I didn't know it there could be one other lurker who
> does not know exactly what it is.
>
> But I guess if it is a bit heretical, I didn't think George Marsden
> would lean in that direction coming out of a conservative Presbyterian
> church (OPC and teaching at Calvin). Our won never sin. Why might
> someone suggest he leaned in that dirction? See then I have to modify
> my strong annotation of Marsden in the bibliography I hand to students
> when I work on it this summer.
With extreme brevity: Process thought holds that reality is to be
understood not in terms of static "substances" or "natures", as in classical
metaphysics, but in terms of process. God is also understood to be "in
process," so there is divine temporality. God & the world cannot really be
separated. God is involved in everything that happens, not controlling but
"persuading" or "luring" things toward the best future.
Two introductory references are:
John B. Cobb, Jr., _God and the World_ (Westminster, 1969).
Ewert Cousins (ed.), _Process Theology_ (Newman, 1971) - a
collection of basic writings by major process thinkers.
I think it's an overstatement to call process theology "heretical".
Some of the things that conservatives tend to be nervous about, panentheism
& divine temporality, are also ideas held by non-process theologians. The
idea of the world being fundamentally dynamic seems to me to be obvious to
anyone familiar with modern science, & the idea that God is involved with
time is held by many modern trinitarian theologians.
The basic problem with most process theologies is that they are
based on an _a priori_ philosophy rather than on revelation. It is, in
other words, natural theology. This means, in particular, that Christ tends
to be an exemplar, albeit perhaps a very important one, of divine
involvement with the world. Connected with this is the fact that it's
difficult - I do not say impossible - to formulate a doctrine of the Trinity
adequately in process terms. (Cf. Cobb & Griffin in _Process Theology: An
Introductory Exposition_: "Process theology is not interested in
formulating distinctions within God for the sake of conforming with
traditional trinitarian distinctions.") Ted Peters' discussion of this
problem in _God as Trinity_ is helpful.
My own feeling is that Christians should be eclectic with process
thought. There are some ideas that may be useful, but it's unwise to buy
the whole package.
Shalom,
George
George L. Murphy
http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
"The Science-Theology Interface"
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