The New Deism: Divine Intervention and the Human Condition

by R.L.Sturch (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  1990

  $3.25

  This is a discussion of a current theme, much debated within contemporary theology, namely the nature of God's relation to the world. Many, perhaps the majority of, modern theologians assume a closed universe , that is to say, one in which there are no divine interventions in the world. Rather, God merely relates to the world as a whole as its creator and sustainer. The author finds himself dissatisfied with this view, and through a series of short chapters attempts to undermine its coherence as a viable Christian position. Earlier chapters are concerned to demonstrate our own lack of closure within such a world: consciousness, rationality and creativity are all, the author argues, inexplicable so long as one confines oneself to physical reductionism or some other purely causal account. The second half of the book then considers whether we have any good reason to believe that God would voluntarily close himself off from our world, such that it became entirely self-contained, He argues that not only have we no good reason to suppose this so, supposing it so would make unintelligible a range of traditional Christian assumptions, about the incarnation, revelation and history. The argument is well-presented, so apart from its interest to philosophical theologians it will be useful for parish clergy and the laity in enabling them to focus on what precisely the issues are.