April 5, 2011
Speaking for those of us who hang our lives on the words of Scripture, we should welcome the efforts of those who challenge our theological assumptions. While it may be upsetting in the short term, as we grow together, these people may be the heroes of the faith. Such is the debt we owe to Dr. Thomas Talbott for his book written ten years ago, “The Inescapable Love of God”. The assumption that is challenged in this book is the church doctrine of eternal punishment.
What awaits each of us when we die? In Christian theology we assume that God is waiting to render payback for our sins on earth. That through faith in the blood of Jesus Christ shed on the cross at Calvary, we can escape the coming wrath of God and be warehoused together forever with the good guys. That is the understanding that unites us but what is the fate of the rest of humanity? That understanding divides Christian doctrine. Is the character of our God to condemn anyone to eternal punishment? Does he condemn to hell only those who have not jumped through our hoops? Can such a God be a God of Love?
The author traces through church history how the three major schools of church doctrine and how they answer these questions. The Augustinian, the Arminian and the universalist theological models for afterlife issues are argued logically in an attempt to at least rock our assumptions and get us thinking. We learn that the universalist interpretation of scriptures has always been a part of biblical dialogue. We learn that to be a universalist does not mean that one must discard the rest of Christian theology. We learn that free will is not the enemy of a really all powerful big God.
If yours is a School House God, don’t bother to attempt to read this book. The “Inescapable Love of God” is not a casual read. One cannot digest the content of this book without making theological choices. Take the time to get inside the thought of Thomas Talbot. You may come away with a better understanding of the scriptures and the things to come. This book may be the most important theological writing since Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis to the doors of the Castle Church, Wittenburg, Germany.
G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca
