So, here we are, deep within our Theodicy discussion.
It seems like you would have to travel into the desert and live in a cave to escape The Shack these days. I must admit that I've read it, and loved it. I think that the spirit of the book is intact. As for the theology of theodicy? I'm not sure.
That isn't to say that I disagree. On the contrary. I agree in almost every way. I often found myself thinking, "God, surely things MUST be this way." The book is engaging, and it keeps the reader on track. How good does it do at truly relaying a Theodicy?....hmmm...let's ask some more experts.
I wanted to point us in the direction of some critical, current theology discussion on the subject.
One of our very own Theologians, BW3 (or, Ben Witherington, as he is known to the masses) has recently posted his review of The Shack, and people all over the interweb are rejoicing at his glowing review that is also tempered with a realistic theological view.
When starting this discussion, Rob wrote the following words I've extracted. I'd really like to see some involvement in talking about this issue, as I've wrestled with it for years.
To bounce back, I'd like to offer up a couple of counter questions/thoughts on Rob's original post.
Christians believe in a good, loving God who cares for his creation, yet we live in a world that is full of pain. War, theft, murder and rape dominate our cultural landscape. How can an all-powerful God allow such atrocities to occur?
Essentially, you come down to two options:
Either God is all-loving, but is unable to stop the sin in the world, or he is capable of ending the evil that we see in the world, but refuses to do so, rendering him somewhat less than our idea of a loving God.
So the 4th of July messed up our usual schedule here in TN. Cleveland and Chattanooga groups will be meeting THIS Friday, the 11th, at their usual places. Come on out and help us hash out the problem of evil in this world.
The Bartender
Hey Pub Planters.
We have a problem (besides Theodicy). We are a little lost on how to properly develop and orient this site for all of you.
So, here's the deal:
We are asking all of you who are interested in being a part of Pub Planters, those who head up plants, those who want to, or any of you who have signed up for an account to speak up! Let us know what you want to see here. What you don't.
We want to have as wide and deep a conversation as we can so we can get started better tailoring this site to fit the community's needs.
Don't delay ... speak up now!
(thanks go to Chops for getting this started)
We have a problem.
The problem is that Christians believe in a good, loving God who cares for his creation, yet we live in a world that is full of pain. War, theft, murder and rape dominate our cultural landscape. How can an all-powerful God allow such atrocities to occur?
Essentially, you come down to two options:
Either God is all-loving, but is unable to stop the sin in the world, or he is capable of ending the evil that we see in the world, but refuses to do so, rendering him somewhat less than our idea of a loving God.
If a man allowed his 4-year-old daughter to run out into the street to play, what would people say about him? Surely they would say, “He is a bad Father. That child could be hurt or even killed!” Anyone who loves their child would never let them be in such danger. Yet God not only allows us to wander into traffic, so-to-speak, but it appears that quite often, he himself throws us into the danger!
Hey, Pub Planters!
This Friday, May 2nd, marks the third meeting in our ongoing series on Politics and Theology/Religion.
We encourage all of you to keep working through the topic, particularly concerning the readings posted last month. There a lot of provocative ideas offered by Audi and Wolterstorff, notably their differing views on the place that one's religious convictions ought to have when advocating public policy in the political sphere.
Also, please feel free to sign up for an account here or login if you have one already and share in the comments area what questions and thoughts your groups have had on this topic. We'd love to hear from all of you and would enjoy engaging in more online discussion to help stretch all of us.
To help get things started, if any of you care to discuss this online, here's a few questions:
First of all, we want to apologize to all of you. Rob recently welcomed a new baby into his family, and I have been overworked with programming jobs that niether one of us has done a good job of making time for the Pub Planters readings this month. We should have done it weeks ago, but one often gets so distracted by the vagaries of life, that extracurricular obligations flee one's waking consciousness.
Pub Planters of the world ... Forgive!
Now, on to the matter at hand. We not only ask your forgiveness for our extreme tardiness, but we ask you all to relax. Discussing the intersections of politics and theology is a heavy undertaking, and I'd hate to just throw something out to all of you that wouldn't best serve our desire to grow from these discussions.
It's another Pub Planters tonight.
Most of the groups are meeting at their usual places.
However, there's an important change to note: Durty Nellie's has closed shop in Chattanooga. Therefore, all of Nellie's is invited to meet up at Murphy's Ale House (on Georgia Ave across from the courthouse and the big fountain). We hope to have a great discussion, and will probably talk about if we need to find another spot depending on the size of the group.
Thanks, and have a great time tonight, all.
The Bartender.
It is well understood in our culture that the average American table is not to be cluttered by two things: Theology (some people say Religion) and Politics.
Pub Planters gathers around bar tables each month to discuss the theology of one thing or another. We think it's important. We like to think that's the way things should be. More importantly, we think there is a theology to be found in most everything, which increases the importance of having discussions. Put another way, we would argue that a robust and developed theology can and should inform nearly all aspects of our lives, and people should talk about these things more often than our culture suggests we should.
In the past year-and-a-half, Pub Planters has discussed the theologies of church, the Trinity, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and God. Now, in this time of unbridled contest leading up to all out electioneering in November, we think it is time that we bring that other white elephant into the room.
So, coming to a Pub Plant near you, we are diving into a new series regarding the Theology of Politics.
We won't be hosting any fund-raising dinners. You most likely will not find any Presidential hopefuls sitting at your tables, trying desperately to talk you into voting for their causes. We aren't going to tell you if you should be Republican or Democrat or Independent or Green or conservative or liberal or Libertarian or Vegetarian. However, we do want to reflect from what discussions we have had to the crazy realm of Politics.
Does God care about politics?
What do we think God might think about human government?
Does God care about representative government? Monarchy? Anarchy?
What approach might a theologically responsible person take when it comes to the public square?
Pub Planters are meeting everywhere on Friday, 1 February 2008 @ 7pm.
Check the Pubs area for locations near you -- or start one in your area.
We will be having our usual wrapup discussion -- this time wrapping up our thoughts and impressions on Paterology and last month's speaker, if you were able to attend.
