Nature of Love

Jay Oord Thomas

Description

God is love. Consequently, shouldn't love exist at the center of Christian theology? When love is at the center, theology is understood differently than it has typically been understood. Some theologians have placed faith at the center, others God's sovereignty, still others-the Church, but Dr. Oord places the emphasis on love. God's love for us, revealed in Christ, in the Church, and in creation, and our love for God and others as ourselves-must be afforded its rightful place. Beginning with the foundation of "love" is what differentiates the Christian faith from others...a loving God. Dr. Oord defines love as: "To love is to act intentionally, in sympathetic/empathetic response to God and others, to promote overall well-being." Is this not what has defined Christians throughout history?

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Christian theology
• Theology
• Christianity

Informations

• Publié par: Chalice Press
• Date de parution: 01 avril 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780827208308
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

thenature of love

For Ray Dunning, Bill Greathouse, and Mildred Wynkoop

thenature of love: a theology

Thomas Jay Oord

Copyright © 2010 by Thomas Jay Oord. All rights reserved. For permission to reuse content, please contact Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, [phone], www.copyright.com. Bible quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from theNew Revised Standard Ver- sion Bible,copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Those quotations marked RSV are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952, [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture marked NASB is taken from theNEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission. Scripture marked KJV is from theKing James Version. Cover art: Lushpix/FotoSearch Cover design: Elizabeth Wright

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EPUB: 978-08272-08292 • EPDF: 978-08272-08308

Library of Congress Cataloging–in–Publication Data

Oord, Thomas Jay.  The nature of love : a theology / by Thomas Jay Oord.  p. cm.  ISBN 978-0-8272-0828-5 1. Love—Religious aspects—Christianity. I. Title.

 BV4639.O629 2010  231’.6—dc22

Printed in the United States of America

2010008567

Acknowledgments Preface

Contents

1—The Primacy of Love Love Matters Love Has Not Been the Center of Theology Love Defined 2—AgapeTheology and the Bible Agapeas Authentically Christian Love Agape’sMeaning in the Old Testament The Meaning of Love in the New Testament Agape, Eros,andPhiliain the New Testament Elements in a Theology of Love

3—Augustinian Love Theology Love and Philosophy Love Is Desire, Not Doing Good Loving Others Is Not for Their Own Sakes God Doesn’t Love Us We Can’t Really Talk about God’s Love Love Takes Time, but Augustine’s God Doesn’t Have Any Elements in a Theology of Love

4—Open Theology as a Theology of Love The History of Open Theology An Overview of Open Theology God Is Not Perfectly Loving If God Could, but Fails to, Prevent Genuine Evil

vii xi

1 4 14

33 38 41 49 51

57 58 63 67 69 76 80

85 86 96

Divine Creative Powers Should Be Used to Prevent Evil God Does Not Necessarily Love the World Elements in a Theology of Love

101 107 113

5—Essential Kenosis Jesus Christ: The Center of a Theology That Makes Love Central 117 Essential Kenosis vs. Voluntary Divine Self-limitation 122 Chesedand God’s Necessary Love for Creation 129 God Creates out of Creation through Love 133 Obstacles to Affirming This Creation Doctrine 137 God’s Freedom to Love Necessarily and Create Everlastingly 139 Loving Means That Justify the End 145

Notes

Index of Topics and People

Index of Scriptures

vi

159

179

189

Acknowledgments

So many helped me directly or indirectly as I wrote this book. The project really began in the late 1990s. The dozen or so books I have written or edited since have helped formulate my thoughts. Friends, colleagues, church members, and peers in the academy have shaped my thinking about, and living in, love. The acknowledgment list below is partial, but I hope it expresses my appreciation for so many who positively influenced my life as I thought about theologies of love. I thank the following scholars for their conversations over the decade during which the ideas of this book developed: Paul Alexander, Paul Allen, Kathy Armistead, Karen Baker-Fletcher, Ian Barbour, Dave Basinger, Randall Basinger, Dean Blevins, Donna Bowman, Craig Boyd, Greg Boyd, Laurie Braaten, Bernard Brady, John Brasch, Dennis Bratcher, Warren Brown, Barry Callen, Ted Campbell, Frank Carver, Anna Case-Winters, Gary Chartier, Don Christensen, Philip Clayton, John Cobb, Monica Coleman, Rick Colling, Francis Collins, Ken Collins, Robin Collins, Ernst Conradie, C. S. Cowles, Randy Craker, Greg Crofford, Tim Crutcher, David Cubie, John Culp, Scott Daniels, Greg Denniston, Gary Dorrien, Kathy Duffy, Ray Dunning, George Ellis, Bruce Epperley, Steve Evans, Roland Faber, Andy Flescher, Lewis Ford, John Franke, Steve Franklin, Terry Fretheim, Todd Frye, Tripp Fuller, Jamie Gates, Karl Giberson, Bill Greathouse, David Griffin, Christy Gunter-Leppert, Phil Hamner, Doug Hardy, Mark Harmon, Bill Hasker, Jack Haught, Dana Hicks, Curtis Holtzen, Nancy Howell, J.R. Hustwit, Tyron Inbody, Kip Ingram, Tim Jackson, Max Johnson, Kurian Kachappilly, Catherine Keller, Brad Kent, Irving Laird, David Larson, Matthew Lee, Michael Lodahl, Randy Maddox, Dave Mann, Mark Mann, Bradford McCall, Steve McCormick, Jay McDaniel, Scot McKnight, Dan Messier, Jürgen Moltmann, Brint Montgomery, Leslie Muray, Mark Otto, Alan Padgett, Doug Perkins, Mike Peterson, Tom Phillips, Clark Pinnock, Darrell Poeppelmeyer, John Polkinghorne, Stephen Pope, Stephen Post, Sam Powell, Mark Quanstrom, John Quiring, Harold Raser, Ed Robinson, Alan Rhoda, Rick Rice, Stan Rodes, John Sanders, Jim Schaal, Eric Severson, Bill Shea, Larry Shelton, LeRon Shults, Jamie

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viiiThe Nature of Love

Smith, Chris Southgate, Atle Sovik, Susie Stanley, Rob Staples, Eric Stark, Kent Stiles, Bryan Stone, Marjorie Suchocki, Len Sweet, Rob Thompson, Don Thorsen, Marit Trelstad, Al Truesdale, Ed Vacek, Wentzel Van Huysteen, James Van Slyke, Howard Van Till, Don Viney, Zhihe Wang, Keith Ward, Paul Wason, Reg Watson, David Wheeler, John Wilson, Karen Winslow, David Woodruff, Ron Wright, Don Yerxa, Amos Yong, Dean Zimmerman, and Josef Zycinski. I first conceived parts of this book as aspects of my Ph.D. dissertation. I thank my doctoral advisor, David Ray Griffin, and my doctoral committee, which included Marjorie Suchocki, Richard Rice, and Stephen Davis. Clark Pinnock and John Cobb also read portions of my dissertation as outside readers. My home educational institution, Northwest Nazarene Univer- sity, supported me throughout the writing of this book. I thank my friends, colleagues, students, and assistants connected to NNU for their support, including Jay Akkerman, David Alexander, Joe Bankard, Wendell Bowes, Randy Bynum, Rhonda Carrim, Ed Crawford, Samuel Dunn, Fred Fullerton, Mark Gismondi, Darrin Grinder, Richard Hagood, Dana Hicks, Jill Jones, Mike Kipp, Diane Leclerc, George Lyons, Mark Maddix, April McNeiece, Ralph Neil, Brent Peterson, Mark Pitts, Carol Rotz, Jim Rotz, Gene Schandorff, Julie and Michael Straight, Dick Thompson, Kevin Timpe, and Gary Waller. A number of students in my classrooms and online have helped me think through these issues. I will refrain from posting a long list to name them all. But I thank the following in particular: Phil Antilla, Justin Barksdale, Jonathan Batchelder, Dan Bechtold, David Blackwell, Adam Butts, Ben Boeckel, Billy Buisman, Rob Carlson, Zach Carpenter, Steve Carroll, Terry Clees, Noel and Addison Cooper, Mickey Cox, Emely DeLeon, Brent Dirks, Ryan Donley, Vanessa Evans, Shemia Fagan, Nathaniel Fairchild, Jonathan Falkenstein, Forrest Fisk, Becky Fleming, Daniel Fleming, Tom Foisy, Ahren Foster, Dave Gerber, John Grant, Rich Hadley, Matthew Henry, Jonathan Hill, Todd Holden, Jeff Horne, Kerry Huffman, Jeremy Hugus, David Hutsko, Chad and Stephanie Johnson, Tony Johnson, Jennie Johnston, Eric Knape, Cami Koepke, Kevin Lambert, Keegan Lenker, Christy Gunter Leppert, Ryan Levinger, Laura Hanson Lyons, Brian Mackey, Corey MacPherson, Lindi Wells Martsolf, Dan and Heather Masshardt, Shaun Mattson, Chris May, Jerad May, Jason McPherson, Tim Meeks, Olivia Meyer, Josh Meyers, Tyler Mostul, Bobby Passmore, Kylee

Acknowledgmentsix

Pearson, Ryan Pugh, Jenna Redmond, Nate Roskam, Andre Roux, Astin Salisbury, Josh Schultz, Andrew Schwartz, Ryan Scott, Jeremy Scott, Ric Shewell, Weldon Shuman, Vanessa Simoneau, Tricia Snyder, Daniel Spears, Cody Stauffer, Teanna Sunberg, Libby Tedder, Brent Temple, Ken and Maranda Tennyson, Kevin Tompos, Tiffany Triplett, David Troxler, Michael Turner, Pablo Vargas, Kylee Vienna, Katie Voelker, Seth Waltemyer, Verne Ward III and Verne Ward IV, David Young, Gail Zickefoose, and David Zirschky. While writing this book, I occasionally posted book topic–related questions and comments on my Facebook page and on Naznet. I thank the following for their helpful responses: Donna Allen, Paul de Baufer, Chelly Bennett, Alan Besherse, Martijn van Beveren, James Bolton, John Brickley, Benjamin Burch, Adam Butts, Kent Campbell, Steve Canary, Jim Chabot, Charles Christian, Catherine Clees, Marty Cobb, Scott Cundiff, Paul de Baufer, Hans Deventer, Todd Erickson, Carolyn Dunlop Franklin, Dave Gerber, Dan Glenn, Christy Gunter, John Hanna, Glenda Harvey, Bob Hunter, Jeremy Hustwit, Kevin Jackson, Eric Kellerer, Doug Kitchen, Jeremy Lindley, Steven Martinez, Dan Masshardt, Randy McRoberts, Kirsten Mebust, Don Minter, Craig Morton, Debi Peck, Douglas Perkins, David Pettigrew, Kevin Probts, Roy Richardson, Alistair Robertson, Nicholas Rowe, Dennis Scott, Jeremy Scott, Ryan Scott, Rich Schmidt, April Tucker Swonger, Jennifer Padgett Tammen, Richard Trapp, Eric Vail, Melissa Smith Wass, Jamie Wayne, Paul Whitaker, and Shea Zellweger. Various church families and pastors have influenced my thinking for this book in classes, sermons, or informal conversations. I thank Bob Luhn and the Othello Church of the Nazarene, Ron Alexander and the Walla Walla Church of the Nazarene, Fred Bruner and Celebration Community, Larry Wright, Todd Renegar and the Bloom- ington Church of the Nazarene, Mary Paul and the Bethel Church of the Nazarene, and Kent Conrad and the Nampa First Church of the Nazarene. Flying M Coffee Garage became my preferred writing spot the month leading to the conclusion of the manuscript. I thank the owner and staff for great iced tea, no-bake cookies, and the occasional peanut butter chewy. I especially thank two individuals for their help during the writing process. My friend and assistant, Andrew Schwartz, offered valuable suggestions pertaining to content and the book’s style. I placed a photo of my friend Hans Deventer talking with Brian McLaren on my desk