Gregory,
The recognition in all areas of science since Darwin (and 18th century
geology) that process is a real feature of the creation means that we must
either bury our heads in the sand or consider how we should adjust our
thinking (philosophically and theologically). The Christian tradition
(especially since Calvin) has emphasized a view of God that is so
transcendent that it is difficult to find a way to envision how that kind of
God could truly interact with a creation that was created with process
in-built.
I suggest that you read the 1994 book "The Openness of God" by Pinnock and
others. They review this church history and argue strongly for an openness
view of God that is Evangelical and not at all Process Theology. Pinnock and
others acknowledge that it is the recognition of the fact of evolution (read
process in the most general sense) as a real feature of the created order
that opened the lid on the "neat and tidy" traditional views on these
points.
Personally, an openness to the fact of process in creation (both physically
and with regard to God's plan and purpose in human history) has helped me
understand things in scripture that seem very odd otherwise. For example,
why does God not rebuke Noah for getting drunk and passing out naked, or
Abraham for continually lying, or many other such examples in the OT? It
seems that God's standards (expectations for human moral behavior) have
changed considerably over time. Maybe this example is very tangential to the
current discussion, but it does point out how a serious consideration of
reality of "process" in history and human interaction with God is important.
The traditional picture of Adam and Eve as "perfect" in the sense of being
"superhuman" and the garden as having "no physical pain or death" just isn't
possible to reconcile with the real creation that exists. Our physical
universe cannot function that way because it is not structured to do so.
...and there are all kinds of ways to think about process issues without
adopting what is known as Process Theology.
Douglas Hayworth
Rockford, IL
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Received on Thu Jan 31 18:29:02 2008
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